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Spearheaded by Prof Sean Ennis, the lawsuit argues that consumers are being harmed because developers are being deprived of money that could be spent on research.
Apple has lost its bid to dismiss a lawsuit brought against it which alleged it charged more than 1,500 UK developers unfair commission fees of up to 30pc on app purchases.
Valued at nearly $1bn, the lawsuit was spearheaded by Prof Sean Ennis, a competition law professor and economist, and filed at London’s Competition Appeal Tribunal last year.
Ennis teaches competition policy at the University of East Anglia and is also director of the Centre for Competition Policy at the university and a former senior economist at OECD.
“The fact that users and developers are completely locked into the iOS system and the App Store gives Apple monopoly power, which Apple leverages to charge excessive fees on app developers,” he said when the lawsuit was first filed in July last year, seeking more than $1bn in damages.
“The UK tech industry is being forced to pay an unjustified 30pc premium on the price of the app as well as in-app purchases – money that could be reinvested in the UK’s digital economy.”
The lawsuit, which Apple bid to dismiss in January, argues that UK consumers are also being harmed because developers are being deprived of money that could be spent on research to drive forward app innovation.
In defence, Apple argued last year that around 90pc of the $1.1trn generated by its app ecosystem in total billings and sales in 2022 was commission-free and went directly into developers’ pockets. The study was conducted by Analysis Group and backed by Apple.
According to Reuters, which first reported on today’s rejection of Apple’s bid, Judge Andrew Lenon said in ruling that Ennis’ lawyers had a realistic prospect of establishing that Apple’s overcharging of commission to UK app developers in relation to commerce transacted on non-UK storefronts “did amount” to conduct implemented in the UK.
Last month, the US Department of Justice slammed Apple with an antitrust lawsuit, alleging the iPhone maker’s monopolistic practices have resulted in fewer choices, higher prices, lower quality products and less innovation.
Several Big Tech companies have also called out Apple recently for its app payment rules as the company’s row with Epic Games intensified.
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