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Apple is facing another lawsuit after a total of 1,566 app developers from the United Kingdom complained about the company’s commission fees. (via Reuters)
Apple’s App Store commission fee policy has always been a hot issue among app developers. Nonetheless, a group of developers from the UK is now taking action to address this through an opt-out class action lawsuit.
Sean Ennis, Director of the Centre for Competition Policy and a Professor of Competition Policy at Norwich Business School at the University of East Anglia, is leading the lawsuit by partnering with law firm Geradin Partners.
“Apple’s charges to app developers are excessive, and only possible due to its monopoly on the distribution of apps onto iPhones and iPads,” Ennis said. “The charges are unfair in their own right, and constitute abusive pricing. They harm app developers and also app buyers.”
This is not the first time Apple has faced a lawsuit due to its App Store business. Another current case it is dealing with involves Epic Games, which is suing the Cupertino company after its Fortnite app was kicked out of the App Store. To recall, Epic was hit by Apple’s punishment after introducing a web link in its Fortnite in-game payment to help its users save some cash. Apple blocked the app in App Store after the move violated its policies, and Epic responded by suing the Cupertino giant. The judge in the case favored Epic, but Apple is now trying to undo this by appealing to the US Supreme Court.
The new lawsuit also adds to Apple’s other antitrust challenges regarding its App Store. It includes the European Union’s Digital Markets Act, which could force companies with gatekeeper status (like Apple) to make significant platform changes. Japan also recently drafted regulations pushing Apple and Google to allow iOS and Android users to download third-party apps outside their platforms. The regulations also aim to stop companies from favoring their own system’s services and payment platforms and should also allow customers to pay for in-app purchases via third-party platforms. Australia also recently started pushing anti-competitive legislation, which could affect huge companies’ app sideloading and in-app purchase commission policies.
