Epic Games, Spotify, Proton, 37signals, and other developers had already expressed their dissatisfaction with Apple’s approach to adapting its rules to comply with the requirements of the new EU regulation, the Digital Markets Act (DMA), labeling it as “extortion” and “bad-faith” compliance, among other criticisms.
Now, these companies have formalized their grievances in a letter addressed to the European Commission (EC), collectively asserting that Apple has undermined the spirit of the new law and urging the EC to take “swift, timely, and decisive action against Apple” to safeguard developers.
Apple’s implementation of the DMA rules has faced widespread condemnation from developers and tech firms, including Meta, Mozilla, and Microsoft. Rather than fostering a more equitable environment where developers could compete with Apple’s App Store on equal footing, Apple has found a way to comply with the letter of the regulation while disregarding its intent.
Notably, it introduced a Core Technology Fee for developers adopting its DMA rules, which mandates that apps distributed outside the App Store still pay Apple €0.50 for each first annual install per year over a threshold of 1 million.
This development spells trouble for potential competitors aiming to establish their own app stores or distribute their apps outside of Apple’s ecosystem to circumvent commission fees.
In the latest letter, signed by 34 companies and associations across various sectors, the collective calls upon the EC to take decisive action.
