Wachiwit
The fees that Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) collects via its App Store for dating apps may violate the laws of the European Union, the Netherlands’ consumer watchdog regulator said in a newly public filing.
The Authority for Consumers and Markets, or ACM, filed an opinion before the Dutch court in July that said Apple (AAPL) hurts companies such as Match Group (MTCH) and others “by charging them an additional and inexplicably higher fee.”
News of the filing was first reported by Bloomberg.
In February 2022, Apple (AAPL) cut its fee on App Store commissions to 27% from 30%, but the latest findings from the ACM said the cut did not satisfy its concerns.
If the company were forced to make significant changes to its App Store commission policies, it could put a sizable portion of its services revenue at risk. In its most recent quarter, Apple (AAPL) generated $21.2B in revenue from services, up from $19.6B in the year-ago quarter.
Apple (AAPL) is slated to report fiscal fourth-quarter results after the close of trading on Tuesday.
Earlier this month, Apple (AAPL) objected to a fine of 50M euros, or roughly $53M, placed on it by the ACM in 2021, stating that the regulator had incorrectly defined relevant markets and had overestimated the dominance of its position.
Cupertino, California-based Apple (AAPL) is slated to appeal the fine.
Apple (AAPL) and the ACM did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Seeking Alpha.