Meta, Microsoft criticizes Apple for its app store policy

Meta, Microsoft, X and online dating giant Match Group hit out at Apple on Wednesday for overcharging for app purchases.

The four companies have filed a rare joint amicus brief in a California court charged with enforcing a ruling that requires Apple to allow companies to connect to alternative payment options outside of the app store for iPhone users.

The ruling stemmed from a 2020 lawsuit by video game giant Epic Games, which has been battling Apple in courts around the world for years over its strict app store policies.

Apple is discounting as much as 30 percent of all financial transactions in its app store, prompting complaints of an unfair “tax” on businesses.

A federal court in San Francisco overwhelmingly rejected Epic’s lawsuit in 2021, offering only a concession that apps can indicate other ways to pay for services outside Apple’s ecosystem.

But Apple’s compliance with the order earlier this year drew a furious response from Epic, which went to court claiming it was defying the judge’s intentions.

Apple’s proposed solution allows it to charge 12 to 27 percent on third-party purchases outside its app store, which is only a small discount from what it used to charge inside the app store.

“Apple’s plan is inconsistent with neither the letter nor the spirit of this Court’s mandate,” Meta, Microsoft, X and Match said in a joint filing Wednesday, supporting Epic.

“The plan’s new restrictions are clearly designed to make alternatives to Apple’s in-app purchases impractical for developers, and unavailable and unattractive to consumers,” they added.

Apple told AFP it had “fully complied” with the judge’s injunction, allowing it to take the necessary measures to protect users.

These measures also “protect the uncompensated use of, among other things, Apple’s platform, services … and proprietary tools and technologies protected by intellectual property,” the company said, citing its compliance statement sent to the court.

© 2024 AFP