Dutch Authority Challenges Apple’s Fees in Dating App Dispute
According to a filing seen by Reuters, the Dutch consumer watchdog is contesting the fees imposed by Apple on dating app providers in the Netherlands. This move is part of the watchdog’s ongoing case against the U.S. tech giant, which focuses on the app store’s monopolistic control.
Bloomberg News reported on the application earlier on Tuesday.
Although the case is limited to dating apps in the Netherlands, it is seen as potentially setting a precedent for other markets.
The Dutch consumer and market authority (ACM) fined the company 50 million euros ($53 million) in 2021 for failing to implement changes Apple ordered to its app store to end practices it said violated European Union competition laws.
Apple denied wrongdoing and appealed the fines at the Rotterdam court. Apple agreed to make changes to the app store, including opening it up to alternative payment methods for dating apps in the Netherlands.
In February 2022, Apple cut commissions for dating app producers in the Netherlands to 27% from 30%. ACM never revealed whether it thought the change was satisfactory.
This month, ACM released a July 13, 2023 summary of Apple’s objections, noting that there was one remaining dispute that it could not disclose publicly for legal reasons.
According to more detailed July 13 arguments from ACM, now seen by Reuters, the undisclosed dispute was over fees.
“Apple … harms dating app providers by charging them an additional and inexplicably higher fee for the same services,” it does to other types of app makers, it said in the filing.
A spokesperson for ACM said on Tuesday that the agency cannot comment on the matter while it is before the court. No closing date has been set.
Apple did not respond to requests for comment.
