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It seems like Apple’s App Store regulations keep making app developers unhappy, time and again. Music streaming giant Spotify, alongside eight other companies, has composed a letter to the EU Commission’s executive vice president. In the letter, the companies call Apple a harmful, anticompetitive and monopolistic organization, with further requests to regulate Apple’s policies through ‘urgent action’. 

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The letter has been signed by the CEOs of Spotify, Deezer, Basecamp, Proton, EPC, Schibsted, France Digitale, and News Media Europe. The letter was addressed to Margrethe Vestager, the Executive VP of the EU Commission, and it strongly urges the commission to provide a verdict on the investigation that Spotify previously started. The companies claimed that the Apple App Store is creating hurdles for them to function effectively and grow, owing to Apple’s flawed app distribution practices. Furthermore, the letter states that the policies also affect European citizens negatively because of Apple’s high commissions for app developers and restricting them from accessing user data (which in turn can be used to improve user experience). They cited the newly cleared Digital Markets Act (DMA), urging the EU Commission to act fast for the welfare of European consumers. 

This is not the first time that companies have raised their voice against Apple’s practices. In April 2022, Spotify filed a complaint, which caused the EU Commission to start a probe into the matter. They stated that Apple App Store regulations “purposely limit choice and stifle innovation at the expense of the user experience,” in addition to the exorbitant commission rates on their applications. Spotify has also previously stated that Apple’s regulations create an unfair playing field where Spotify struggles against Apple Music. Now, time will tell if the EU decides to make a statement on Apple’s policies or if it refrains from doing so.

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