Just in: Apple $AAPL is set to receive EU antitrust approval for App Store fee changes, avoiding daily fines, reports Reuters. Developers will face a 20% processing fee, with potential reductions to 13% for small businesses.
Sources: the EU is set to approve Apple's App Store rule and fee changes, unveiled last month, in the coming weeks, staving off a potentially hefty daily fine (@fooyunchee / Reuters) https://t.co/JK4FJ5teKK https://t.co/FxDBPGofwF https://t.co/ZOzeer1FAj
$AAPL | Apple Likely To Gain EU Antitrust For App Store Fees And Rules – RTRS Sources - Approval Of App Store Changes To Help Apple Stave Of Daily Fines - Decision Expected In Coming Weeks, Timing May Still Change
Apple’s revised App Store rules and fee structure are expected to receive clearance from European Union antitrust regulators in the coming weeks, according to people familiar with the review. Approval would spare the iPhone maker from daily penalties that could have reached about €50 million—5% of its average daily worldwide revenue—had it failed to comply with the bloc’s Digital Markets Act. Under the changes, developers will pay a 20% processing fee on in-app purchases made through Apple’s platform, with rates falling to 13% for participants in the company’s small-business program. Developers that direct users to external payment options will be charged 5% to 15% and may include unlimited links for off-store transactions. Apple introduced the new terms after the European Commission fined the company €500 million in April and gave it 60 days to overhaul its practices. While the Commission said it is still assessing the proposal, sources said the regulator is leaning toward approval, a decision that would mark an important early test of the EU’s efforts to rein in large digital platforms.