Published
Thu, Mar 14, 2019, 11:10
- The streaming company's CEO, Daniel Ek, says the "Apple tax" gives Apple Music an unfair advantage over rivals.
Spotify has filed a complaint against Apple with the European Commission, a regulatory body responsible for keeping competition fair and nondiscriminatory.
In a blog post submitted yesterday, Spotify CEO Daniel Ek called the "Apple tax" an unfair and "discriminatory" business practice. The tax charges a 30 percent fee on all purchases made through Apple's App Store.
"If we pay this tax, it would force us to artificially inflate the price of our Premium membership well above the price of Apple Music," he writes. "And to keep our price competitive for our customers, that isn't something we can do."
Ek also points out that other digital services, such as Uber or Deliveroo, are not subject to the tax. Meanwhile, he accuses Apple of using similar discriminatory practices against competitors for Siri, HomePod and Apple Watch.
Ek calls for the "same fair rules" for all companies. Because Spotify is headquartered in Sweden, the streaming giant is taking action through the European Commission.
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