Apple slams Spotify for wanting ‘benefits of a free app without being free’
Apple has hit back at Spotify’s EU competition complaint, saying the streaming service wants “all the benefits of a free app without being free”.
Earlier this week Spotify filed a complaint with EU competition authorities over the way the tech giant’s App Store works.
Read more: Spotify reports Apple to EU commission over antitrust concerns
Chief executive Daniel Ek blasted what he called an “Apple tax” that forced his company to pay a 30 per cent commission for sales made via Apple's payment system.
But Apple has refuted Spotify’s complaints, accusing the Swedish firm of “misleading rhetoric”.
“Spotify wouldn’t be the business they are today without the App Store ecosystem, but now they’re leveraging their scale to avoid contributing to maintaining that ecosystem for the next generation of app entrepreneurs. We think that’s wrong,” Apple said in a statement.
Apple also rejected Spotify’s claims that it was blocking access to products and updates on its app. “Spotify is free to build apps for – and compete on – our products and platforms, and we hope they do,” the company said.
Earlier this week a spokesperson for the European Commission told City PM it will assess the complaint under its standard procedure.
Read more: Spotify celebrates its first profit as paid subscriptions near 100m
There are no regulations for how long this initial assessment can take, and the time frame depends on a series of factors, the spokesperson said.
Spotify has been contacted for comment.