While the European Commission has signaled that it may be satisfied with Apple’s proposed changes to comply with the Digital Markets Act, recent U.S. court rulings are leading a group of developers to press European regulators for tougher enforcement in the region. Here are the details.
European developers call for tougher DMA enforcement
As reported by Reuters, the Coalition for App Fairness (CAF) is arguing to European regulators that Apple’s intended fee structure for the region offers a worse deal than what US-based developers will get, following a ruling earlier this week in the Epic Games antitrust lawsuit.
The Coalition for App Fairness was founded in 2020 by developers from companies such as Basecamp, Deezer, Spotify, Tile, and Epic Games. Since then it has been recruiting developers “to advocate for freedom of choice and fair competition across the app ecosystem”.
Their latest move comes after the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled against Apple’s 27% commission for web-based purchases, and encouraged both companies to either agree on a new rate, or, as my colleague Zac Hall described in his article about the decision, “rely on the court to establish fair policy.”
Based on this decision, the CAF is arguing that Apple’s proposed structure for EU-based commissions, with a two-tier scheme involving App Store fees of up to 20% and additional charges of 5% to 15% on external transactions, shouldn’t be allowed.
According to Reuters, the CAF argues that this “unfairly disadvantages European developers compared to their U.S. rivals after a recent court decision in the United States,” as “developers in the EU have to either bear the cost of those fees or pass them down to customers,” per Reuters’ characterization.
The CAF also argues that while it has been six months since the EU fined Apple €500 million for breaching the DMA, local developers are still at a disadvantage:
“We want the EU Commission to tell Apple that the law is the law and that free of charge means free of charge,” Burrus said, adding that the European authorities should consider referring the issue to the European Court of Justice if necessary.
What’s your take on the CAF’s argument? Let us know in the comments.
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