- Apple still hasn’t responded to Spotify’s request to update its EU app with price information.
- Spotify claims the silence is Apple’s way of “avoiding” compliance with the DMA, per The Verge.
- Spotify issued the update a day after the EU hit Apple with a nearly $2 billion fine.
Not even a nearly $2 billion fine from the European Commission seems to be able to stop Apple from beefing with Spotify.
Apple reportedly hasn’t acknowledged the update Spotify made to the European version of its app, according to an email Spotify sent to the EU Commission The Verge obtained.
The update was designed to directly put into the app things like pricing information and subscription links that direct iPhone users to Spotify’s website.
According to the Verge, Spotify issued the update on March, a day after Apple was hit with an almost $2 billion EU fine for barring developers from informing app users about cheaper payment options outside the App Store. The EU deemed this practice illegal in accordance with the Digital Markets Act.
Spotify wrote in its email that Apple’s refusal to follow up on the update is “yet another example” of how the company “will seek to circumvent and/or not comply with the Commission’s decision” if left unchecked, The Verge reported.
“Given Apple’s track record, Spotify is concerned that Apple’s delay is intentional and is aimed at delaying or avoiding compliance altogether,” the email wrote, per the Verge.
A Spotify spokesperson confirmed to Business Insider that the email is real.
“It’s been nine days now and we’re still waiting to hear from Apple about our app submission to show EU consumers pricing and a link to our website, which we are now authorized to do by the European Commission’s decision on the music streaming case,” Spotify spokesperson Jeanne Moran wrote in an emailed statement to BI as of March 14.
“Apple’s delay directly conflicts with its claim that they turn around reviews on app submissions within 24 hours, and it also flies in the face of the timeline for adoption the Commission laid out,” Moran added.
Apple didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider when asked about Spotify’s claims.
Tensions between Spotify and Apple have been brewing for years.
In March 2019, Spotify filed a complaint against Apple with the European Commission, accusing the iPhone maker of anti-competitive practices, particularly focusing on the App Store’s fee structure and the restrictions on app distribution. Spotify argued these expenses and guidelines unfairly favored Apple Music over other streaming services.
Since then, Spotify CEO Daniel Ek has continued to criticize Apple’s practices publicly. In January, when Apple announced it would allow developers to distribute apps through third-party marketplaces to comply with the DMA, Ek called Apple’s reaction to the antitrust law “a new low.”
“Their reaction to the DMA is a masterclass in distortion,” the Spotify CEO wrote in a thread on X, formerly Twitter. “They present a ‘simple’ choice: Stick with their current terms or switch to a convoluted new model that looks attractive on the surface but has potentially even higher fees.”
In response to the EU fine, Apple claimed that the company has been providing ongoing support to Spotify’s growth in Europe’s digital music market and that it hasn’t charged any fees.
“Spotify wants to bend the rules in their favor by embedding subscription prices in their app without using the App Store’s In-App Purchase system,” Apple wrote in a March 4th statement. “They want to use Apple’s tools and technologies, distribute on the App Store, and benefit from the trust we’ve built with users — and to pay Apple nothing for it.”
“In short, Spotify wants more,” Apple concluded.
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