Apple to EU: “Letting Devs Make More Money and Users Save Some, is Bad and Confusing”

Remember when the EU slapped Apple with a €500 million fine for being stingy with links in the App Store? That was back in March, and we covered it then.

Long story short, the EU said Apple was stopping developers from telling users they could get stuff cheaper outside the App Store, something the new Digital Markets Act (DMA) says is a big no-no.

Apple wasn’t happy, but they grudgingly made some changes in June to avoid more daily fines. They opened the gates a bit, letting devs steer users to external websites and adjusted their commission structure. But it turns out Apple had not accepted their fate.

Now they’re back with a legal swing.

Apple has formally appealed the €500m fine, calling it “unprecedented” and saying the EU went way too far. Here’s Apple’s statement, and you can hear the frustration behind the corporate speak:

Today we filed our appeal because we believe the European Commission’s decision – and their unprecedented fine – go far beyond what the law requires. As our appeal will show, the EC is mandating how we run our store and forcing business terms which are confusing for developers and bad for users. We implemented this to avoid punitive daily fines and will share the facts with the Court.

In every day English: We did what we had to do to dodge more fines, but we’re not done fighting.

Confusing for who, exactly?

Let’s break it down. Developers now have the option to tell users, “Hey, you can get the same service for less money if you pay us directly instead of going through Apple.”

The developers make more per user. The users pay less. But according to Apple, that’s somehow bad for both parties?

Apple’s logic is amazing. The only scenario that’s good for everyone, somehow, is the one where Apple gets the biggest cut, developers make less, and users pay more. A 30% fee to Apple is apparently the path to clarity and happiness.

That’s Apple logic for you.

This is more than just a money thing, Apple is trying to push back against what it sees as the EU trying to run the App Store from Brussels.

Let’s see how this one plays out. You can bet they’ll drag it through every court possible.