They're being sued by an entire class of developers" Interview with Sarah Miller produced by Sameer Chhabra.IPhone event (Image credit: Apple) "Apple's not just being sued by Mr. Written by Jason Vermes with files from Reuters. "And there's incredible fear of retaliation when you actually go against a company that controls your ability to get to market."Įpic Games derives most of their revenue through gaming consoles, Hubbard notes, which puts them in a unique position to take on the tech giant on. "The reason why we haven't seen action from private parties is it's really hard to have the resources to sue a monopolist," she said. Hubbard says that for too long, smaller companies have resisted taking action against California's big tech giants - but that's changing. Representatives for Spotify and dating services company Match Group testified against the companies. senators also took Apple, along with Google, to task last month over the fees they charge to developers. Margrethe Vestager speaks during an online news conference on Apple antitrust case at the EU headquarters in Brussels, Belgium. They argue that Spotify has become the largest music streaming service in the world, in part thanks to the App Store. Spotify welcomed the investigation, while Apple rebuffed the charges. "This significant market power cannot go unchecked as the conditions of access to the Apple App Store are key for the success of app developers," European Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager said in a news conference. That case could lead to hefty fines against Apple. Regulators in the European Union accused Apple on Friday of anti-competitive practices in the music streaming market, siding with Spotify. The California court case is not the only legal challenge Apple is facing. "Regardless of what happens in this particular case, I think the end is coming for this 30 per cent fee. So we're talking about multiple of what is typically kind of expected to facilitate a transaction," she explained.Īnd while experts say Epic's battle won't be resolved any time soon, Hubbard welcomes what she calls a reckoning for tech companies - and she expects to see some changes. "If you compare that to what a credit card company takes, they tend to take two to three per cent. In response to criticism over its fees, Apple last year reduced its cut of sales to 15 per cent for small developers making less than $1 million US per year. "They use that choke point to preference themselves through extracting very high fees, through developing competing apps and then preferencing those apps because they can see the whole kind of universe of the app ecosystem."Įxperts say that a ruling in favour of Epic could mean lower prices for consumers.Īpple has reduced its App Store fees for some developers following criticism of its 30 per cent cut. It has a choke point between millions of businesses and consumers," said Sarah Miller, executive director of the American Economic Liberties Project. "Basically what Apple has is gate-keeping power. Apple requires most developers to use its payment system. Epic alleges that Apple is using control over its operating system and services to hold back competition.Įpic kicked off the fight last August when Apple booted its hit multiplayer game Fortnite from the App Store for implementing a workaround to Apple's payment system that offered customers lower prices on in-game content. As a lawsuit between Epic Games, which makes Fortnite, and Apple heads to court, its outcome could mean industry-wide changes for how consumers buy apps and make in-app purchases on their devices, according to experts.Īt the heart of the dispute is a 30 per cent fee Apple charges app developers on purchases made directly inside apps and games.
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