Apple and Google Face Crossfire in Parliament Over 'Abuse of App Market Dominance'

Horacio Gutierrez, Chief Legal Officer of Spotify (Photo by Bloomberg)

[Asia Economy Reporter Yujin Cho] On the 21st (local time), during a hearing held by the U.S. Senate, Apple and Google faced concentrated criticism for abusing their platform dominance to control the app market competition ecosystem.

This hearing was held to address criticisms that Apple and Google are engaging in anti-competitive business practices by leveraging their market dominance to impose high commission fees within the App Store and Play Store, and to discuss possible improvement measures.

Representatives from music streaming company Spotify and dating app company Match Group, which are currently in disputes with Apple and Google, testified at the hearing.

On this day, there were repeated accusations that Apple and Google are using their platform dominance to impose excessive fees that impact the app market economy.

Amy Klobuchar, Chair of the Antitrust Subcommittee, pointed out that Apple and Google have used their authority to exclude or suppress apps competing with their own services, and that excessive fees also affect competition.

Jared Sine, Chief Legal Officer of Match Group, claimed that Apple and Google’s 30% app market commission fees ultimately raised consumer prices. He explained that Match Group pays about $500 million annually in fees to the App Store.

Bloomberg reported that while previous congressional investigations focused more on Google than Apple, this hearing saw more criticism directed at Apple than Google.

Spotify highlighted the lack of transparency in Apple’s app review process. Horacio Gutierrez, Spotify’s Chief Legal Officer, stated, "Apple, as the gatekeeper of the App Store, has abused its dominant position to disadvantage competing services like Spotify."

He emphasized, "Apple’s regulations on developers are merely an abuse of power to seize value created by others."

In 2019, Spotify filed a complaint with the European Union (EU) Commission, alleging that Apple gives preferential treatment to its own apps in the App Store while disadvantaging third-party apps.

App developers such as Spotify and Match Group argue that Apple and Google force the use of in-app payment methods only and monopolize 30% of mobile content revenue under the name of distribution fees, preventing them from properly recovering their earnings.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.