(Reuters) - Spotify said on Friday that Apple's new plan to comply with the European Union's Digital Markets Act (DMA) is "a complete and total farce."
From early March, developers will be able to offer alternative app stores on iPhones and opt out of using Apple's in-app payment system, which charges commissions of up to 30%, under the bloc's new rules.
In Apple's 'new' world, the fees could be astronomical. Picture this: A popular free app with tens or hundreds of millions EU users, now faces a tax on every download and update annually. Imagine the impact on popular apps like WhatsApp, Duolingo, X, and Pinterest, all free to…
— Daniel Ek (@eldsjal) January 26, 2024However, developers will still be required to pay a "core technology fee" of 50 euro cents per user account per year under Apple's new EU regime.
"From the beginning, Apple has been clear that they didn't like the idea of abiding by the DMA. So they've formulated an undesirable alternative to the status quo," the music streaming-giant said on Friday.
Spotify said it would have to pay a 17% commission if it stays in the App Store and offers its own in-app payment under the new terms.
"Every developer can choose to stay on the same terms in place today. And under the new terms, more than 99% of developers would pay the same or less to Apple," Apple said in an emailed statement to Reuters.
Apple faces strong action if changes to its App Store do not meet incoming regulations, the bloc's industry chief exclusively told Reuters on Friday.