According to reports, the Dutch antitrust watchdog said that Apple Inc. will allow the use of third-party payments in Dutch dating apps, thus ending a long-running dispute. It is reported that the dispute had previously resulted in Apple being fined a total of 50 million euros in the Netherlands.
With the concession, Apple will meet requirements set by regulators under EU and Dutch competition rules, the Netherlands Authority for Consumers and Markets (ACM) said. Apple has long mandated the use of its in-app payment system, taking a commission of up to 30%, which many developers consider exorbitant.
“In the digital economy, big companies have a special responsibility to maintain fair and open markets. But Apple has shied away from that responsibility and abused its dominance over dating app providers,” said Martijn Snoep, chairman of the ACM board.
“It’s reassuring that Apple finally complies with European and Dutch competition rules.”
Last year, the ACM ruled that Apple’s rules violated competition law in the Dutch dating app market and asked Apple to allow those developers to use third-party payment systems.
On Friday, Apple introduced rules that would allow Dutch dating app developers to skip the in-app payment system. Dating app developers will still be required to pay a commission on sales outside of its in-app payment system, but there will be discounts, Apple said.
In response to media inquiries, and Apple representative referred to an update to the dating app the company released in the Netherlands on Friday, in which the company said it disagreed with the ACM’s initial order.
“We do not believe these changes are in the best interests of user privacy or data security,” the update said. “As Apple is committed to engaging constructively with regulators, we have made additional changes at the request of the ACM. We disagree with the ACM. The original order is being appealed.”
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