Daniel Ek, CEO of Spotify, one of the world’s most popular music streaming platforms, heavily criticized Apple’s App Store changes within the scope of the EU’s Digital Services Law in his written statement. Here are the details!
Spotify CEO says to Apple “This is clearly extortion”
Following the reaction of Epic CEO Tim Sweeney and the Coalition for App Fairness, Spotify CEO also opposed Apple’s plans within the EU Digital Services Law.
Daniel Ek says the following in his written statement:
“This is clearly extortion. Apple offers an unworkable alternative where developers will have to focus solely on it until the end of their work. Apple is making it as difficult as possible for developers to choose between the current state and this new program.
Apple now says, ‘of course, we’ll let you connect or offer your own payment methods… but you still owe us a commission for even doing that’ (plus the new flat 0.50 cent Euro fee).
This combination of fees means that in most cases, if your app is popular, you’ll pay Apple the same or even more than under the previous rules. “Apple is making the Digital Services Act even more damaging to developers.”
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At the end of the blog post, which you can access here, Daniel Ek says:
“Apple has shown the world that they don’t think the rules apply to them. We are happy to support the success of all developers, including Spotify, the world’s most successful music streaming app. The changes we’re sharing for apps in the European Union give developers choice with new options for distributing iOS apps and processing payments. Any developer can choose to remain on the same terms in effect today. And under the new terms, over 99% of developers will pay Apple the same or less.”
Of course, all these did not remain unanswered. Following the blog post, Apple made a statement to 9to5Mac. Let’s take a look at their explanation:
Apple’s statement was a bit superficial and did not provide an explanation for everything the Spotify CEO said. What do you think about the incident? Please don’t forget to share your thoughts with us in the comments.
