App developers urge EU action on Apple fee practices

A coalition of 20 app developers and consumer groups on Tuesday called on European regulators to enforce EU laws against Apple, saying the company's fee structure unfairly disadvantages European developers compared to their U.S. rivals following a recent U.S. court decision.

The European Union's Digital Markets Act (DMA), implemented in 2023, mandates that large tech platforms designated as "gatekeepers," such as Apple, facilitate in-app transactions outside their ecosystems at no charge.

Earlier this year, the European Commission fined Apple 500 million euros (about $588 million) for breaching the DMA by obstructing developers from guiding users to alternative payment methods.

In response to the EU ruling, Apple revised its terms to impose fees ranging from 13 percent for smaller businesses to 20 percent for App Store purchases, along with penalties of 5 to 15 percent on external transactions.

The Coalition for Apps Fairness (CAF), representing firms such as Deezer and Proton, argues these revised fees still violate DMA stipulations and says that U.S. developers benefit from more favorable terms after a court decision that restricts Apple's ability to impose fees on external transactions.

According to the CAF, European developers remain disadvantaged six months after the Commission declared Apple's policies illegal under the DMA.

"We want the EU Commission to tell Apple that the law is the law and that free of charge means free of charge," said Gene Burrus, global policy counsel for the CAF.

Burrus argued that developers in the EU have to either bear the cost of those fees or pass them down to customers. "It is bad for European companies, and it is bad for European consumers," he said.

"This situation is untenable and damaging to the app economy," the CAF said in a statement, accusing Apple of undermining transparency and stifling innovation.

Although Apple has announced further policy changes to take effect in January, it has yet to specify what these revisions entail, fueling dissatisfaction among developers over the lack of clarity.

(With input from Reuters)