Apple has lost a bid to throw out a mass lawsuit valued at just under $1 billion, brought in London on behalf of more than 1,500 app developers over its App Store fees, reports Reuters.
The case, worth up to 785 million pounds (about US$979 million) and one of several faced by the tech giant in the United Kingdom, alleges Apple charged third-party developers unfair commissions of up to 30% on purchases of apps or other content. UK’s Competition Appeal Tribunal denied the company’s request to throw out the lawsuit.
In July the lawsuit was filed against Apple giant by more than 1,500 app developers in the UK. The lawsuit claims that Apple’s 15% to 30% fees for its app stores’ in-app payment system is unfair.
The UK lawsuit at the Competition Appeal Tribunal was brought by Sean Ennis, a professor at the Centre for Competition Policy at the University of East Anglia and a former economist at the OECD, on behalf of 1,566 app developers.
“Apple’s charges to app developers are excessive, and only possible due to its monopoly on the distribution of apps onto iPhones and iPads,” Ennis said in a statement to Reuters. “The charges are unfair in their own right, and constitute abusive pricing. They harm app developers and also app buyers.”
In reply Apple claims that 85% of App Store developers don’t pay any commission. The tech giant also says that it helps European developers to access in markets and customers in 175 countries through its app store.
Article provided with permission from AppleWorld.Today