Apple lands in massive trouble, to be fined more than Rs 44740000000 for…

Apple is one of the most valuable companies in the world with a massive market cap. Apple iPhone is the most selling product of the company and its users mostly prefer to rely on apps and services provided by Apple, including Apple Music. It turns out that one of the reasons most users stick to Apple Music is that the company prevented other apps from telling users about cheaper alternatives to Apple’s music service. As per a report by Financial Times, the issue got attention of regulators after Apple Music’s biggest rival Spotify filed a complaint regarding this practice. The company will now reportedly have to pay more than Rs 44740000000 for this move.

To recall, the complaint against Apple was filed by Spotify in 2019 claiming that Apple’s policies muted competition against Apple Music. The issue broadly comes down to iPhone maker’s efforts to keep users and apps corralled inside its App Store payments system. After the beginning of a probe, EU reduced its objection against Apple’s action to deny developers to even link out to their own subscription sign-ups within their apps. The policy was changed by Apple in 2022 after regulatory pressure in Japan.

Although a fine of Rs 44740000000 may sound like a massive number but it is nothing compared to the fine of Rs 3320720000000 that was on the table when the EU updated its objections last year. To recall, Apple was charged over a billion dollars in 2020, but French authorities dropped that to about 366 million dollars after an appeal from the company.