Meta, Microsoft, X, and Match File Legal Protest Against Apple
In response to a federal court order requiring Apple to accept alternative payment methods, Meta Platforms, Microsoft, X, and Match Group have taken legal action by filing a petition to oppose the tech giant’s app store policy.
Protesting Apple’s intention to impose a fee for payments processed outside of the app store, the four companies—creators of some of the most downloaded apps in the store—join Epic Games, maker of the popular game Fortnite.
This briefing highlights how serious the tech industry’s adversaries are about pressing Apple to relax its stringent regulations on third-party apps. Developers feel that Apple’s 30% commission rate is excessive when it comes to app store purchases of services or one-time fees. Apple has maintained its authority to levy the fees and has stated that it funds user privacy and security initiatives.
Software developers were quick to criticize Apple in January when the tech giant revealed plans to let developers process purchases outside of its app store, citing the 27% commission it would collect in such circumstances. The new policy was implemented following the decision by the U.S. Supreme Court to not accept appeals of a rule from 2021. The court had previously mandated software developers to permit consumers to be directed to non-app store payment methods. Customers can save money by choosing some of those solutions.
U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers presided over the case in 2021; earlier this month, Epic petitioned the Northern California District Court to enforce her decision. Judge Rogers has hinted that she may decide to change her verdict after seeing how Apple complies with her order.
In their united amicus briefing, the four corporations declared that “The Apple Plan comports with neither the letter nor the spirit of this Court’s mandate” (October 31, 2018).
The four companies’ briefing states that the current rule makes it difficult for software developers to direct customers to alternative options, and that Apple’s answer basically maintains that rule. According to it, app developers would also be subject to new regulations.
Similar complaints have been leveled against Apple over its adherence to the Digital Markets Act, a recent piece of legislation in Europe. The goal of the legislation is to open up software ecosystems that are now restricted, with the hope that digital platforms like Apple will comply. For app developers who wanted to take part in Apple’s new compliance plan, which it unveiled last month, the new policy was a labyrinth of additional costs and limitations. The majority of developers felt that Apple’s European policies were unrealistic and unworkable.
