Apple faces €1 billion fine as Spain investigates App Store practices

Spain’s competition authority is investigating Apple’s App Store for potential anti-competitive conduct, threatening fines of up to €1 billion.

Unfair Practices Under Investigation

According to a report by Reuters, the Spanish competition authority is investigating Apple’s App Store for possible anti-competitive activities that could result in heavy fines.

This week, the ‌App Store‌ was the subject of an investigation by the National Competition and Markets Commission (CNMC). The CNMC is looking into allegations that Apple may be unfairly treating app developers who distribute their apps through the store.

The investigation was launched without consulting anyone, which shows how much influence app stores have on the Spanish economy. Both Spanish competition law and the TFEU prohibit Apple from engaging in conduct that may constitute an abuse of a dominant position.

Legal Implications for Apple

If the CNMC investigation finds that these claims are true, Apple could face fines of up to 10% of its annual global revenue, which could translate into billions of euros. Apple is facing increasing regulatory hurdles in Europe as a result of the investigation, which could take up to two years to complete.

An Apple representative said the tech giant “will continue to work with the Spanish Competition Authority to understand and address customer concerns,” reiterating the company’s belief that the rules governing the App Store are reasonable and consistent and noting that developers receive more than 90 percent of revenue without commission.

Previous European Commission fine

MacRumors reports that there has been a general increase in regulatory scrutiny of the dominance of large tech corporations in online markets, and the Spanish investigation is part of that trend. Apple was fined €1.84 billion by the European Commission in March for anti-regulatory actions involving music streaming apps.

Apple’s App Store guidelines prevented game developers from directing consumers to alternative payment methods, in breach of the Digital Markets Act (DMA), according to preliminary findings from the European Commission published in June.

The DMA aims to make the technology market more fair for smaller rivals. If a corporation doesn’t play by the rules, it can be fined up to 10% of its global revenue.