A consumer rights organization is suing Apple in Belgium, Italy, Spain, and Portugal, claiming that iPhone and iPad users overpaid for music services other than Apple Music on iOS.
According to Euroconsumers, which is organizing the lawsuits as a multi-jurisdiction class action, Spotify and other streaming services like Deezer, YouTube Music, SoundCloud, and Amazon Music, paid higher subscription fees due to Apple’s App Store commission. These fees were passed on to users. Spotify, for example, increased its monthly subscription price from 9.99 to 12.99 euros for iOS users to cover Apple’s commission fees.
In May of this year, the European Commission fined Apple 1.8 billion euros for abusing its dominant position on the market for the distribution of music streaming apps to iPhone and iPad users (iOS users) through its App Store.
In particular, the Commission found that Apple applied restrictions on app developers preventing them from informing iOS users about alternative and cheaper music subscription services available outside of the app, forcing these users to spend up to 30% more. This is illegal under EU competition rules.
According to reports, the coordinated class action seeks to recoup around 62 million euros on behalf of more than 500,000 customers across the four nations where it is being filed.
Consumers who used Apple’s in-app payment system for music streaming services may qualify to receive approximately 3 euros for every month they incurred inflated charges.
