Last month Apple received a huge fine of 2 billion dollars from the European Union due to App Store rules regarding music streaming services. He took advantage of the European Commission’s decision Spotifywhich recently presented a update of its app for iOS and iPadOS which, among other things, also includes information on how to subscribe in the EU. However, nothing went as expected.
New clash between Spotify and Apple due to a blocked update
Spotify could have used the new terms imposed by the European Union to its advantage by inserting alternative payment methods in your application to sign up for a subscription. However, he decided to take a different path, that of provide information on costs and how to subscribe outside of the App Store. All this, however, without providing a direct link, a link to click on, in short.
Dustee Jenkins, head of public relations at Spotify, once again explained what she believes is Apple’s current strategy, i.e. “punish” developers with new tariffs in case of use of alternative payment methods. Since no links are included in the update, Spotify believes it doesn’t have to pay Apple any fees.
«Despite Apple’s attempts to punish developers with new fees, we remain committed to offering consumers real choice through our app without any increased cost. That’s why we submitted a new update to Apple. It features basic pricing and information on the website: the bare minimum outlined by the European Commission’s ruling on music streaming» Jenkins said.
Well, the Swedish streaming giant has revealed that Apple has blocked this update thus challenging the European Commission once again. Below is the comment from a company spokesperson released to the editorial staff of 9to5mac:
Apple has once again defied the European Commission by rejecting our update for attempting to communicate our pricing information to customers without having to pay them a commission. Their low regard for consumers and developers is matched only by their disregard for the law.
Apple hasn’t released a statement on the matter (and may not). It is clear, however, that the clash between Spotify and the giant with Tim Cook at the helm will be enriched with new rounds.