Apple is accused of abusing App Store practices, fined 1 million euros in France

by ·

Apple is once again in trouble in Europe, specifically this time in France. According to Reuters, the Paris Commercial Court found that Apple had abused the App Store business practices and imposed a fine of about 1 million euros.

The case began in 2015 and is being investigated by the French Directorate General for Competition Policy, Consumer Affairs and Fraud Control (DGCCRF). The Paris Commercial Court finds that Apple has imposed unfair App Store commercial terms on French app developers. The other party was also unable to negotiate or contest these terms with Apple, which was seen as an exploitation of French app developers.

Apple third-party app stores

An Apple spokesman said: “Through the App Store, we’ve helped French developers of all sizes share their passion and creativity with users around the world while creating a secure and trusted place for customers.”

Earlier this year, the European Parliament passed the “Digital Market Law”, and the new antitrust legislation brought some changes, which eventually forced Apple to change its previous business strategy and break the monopoly business practices on the App Store. The bill requires Apple to allow developers to use third-party payment platforms in their apps while enabling app loading in iOS and allowing iMessage to interoperate with other messaging platforms.

Tags: