Apple Inc (NASDAQ:AAPL, ETR:APC) will challenge a €1.8 billion fine levied by European Union regulators for imposing anti-competitive practices against Spotify and other music-streaming services.
Apple copped the fine in March for preventing Spotify and others from directing users outside of Apple’s App Store ecosystem.
The EU determined that Apple forced unfair trading conditions on music streamers, with Margrethe Vestager, the EU's antitrust chief, stating: "For a decade, Apple abused its dominant position in the market for the distribution of music streaming apps through the App Store.
According to Bloomberg, the Cupertino megacap filed a suit at the EU’s General Court in Luxembourg to topple the March decision.
The EU has heated up its campaign against alleged antitrust abuse among technology gatekeepers via its EU’s flagship Digital Markets Act, signed in 2022.
Apple’s App Store ecosystem and Google Play have faced heightened scrutiny from competition regulators in Europe and the US
Last December, Google agreed to pay a $700 million fine to settle allegations of stifling competition in its Play Store on Android devices.
It followed a defeat for Google in an antitrust case brought by Fortnite developer Epic Games claiming that Google prevented smartphone manufacturers, wireless carriers and app developers from offering viable alternatives to the Google Play store.