Apple Facing $1 Billion UK Antitrust Lawsuit Over App Store Fees

Apple has become the target of a £785 million ($1 billion) class action lawsuit on behalf of over 1,500 developers in the UK over its App Store fees, reports TechCrunch.

app store blue banner uk fixed
The suit accuses Apple of abusing a dominant position by charging a 15% to 30% fee on in-app sales in the ‌App Store‌, a policy that has been criticized by antitrust regulators in other countries.

It also argues UK consumers are missing out because developers are being deprived of money that could be spent on research and development to help drive app innovation.

The lawsuit is being brought by Sean Ennis, a professor at the Centre for Competition Policy at the University of East Anglia, on behalf of 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," said Ennis in a statement. "The charges are unfair in their own right, and constitute abusive pricing. They harm app developers and also app buyers."

The lawsuit is an opt-out class action. In other words, UK-based developers don't have to register to be included in any potential winnings, which would be calculated based on their app business.

Apple has been accused of or investigated for anticompetitive practices in several other countries over the past few years, including France, Germany, the Netherlands, South Korea, Japan, the United States, and more, with many of the complaints related to the ‌App Store‌. As a result, Apple has been forced to make changes to the ‌App Store‌ in some countries, such as allowing developers to offer alternative payment systems in South Korea.

Apple's ‌App Store‌ terms and conditions are also being probed by the UK's Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), which opened its investigation in March 2021.

In the European Union, Apple is gearing up to accommodate the Digital Markets Act, which will require it to allow apps to be downloaded on the iPhone using sideloading or alternate app stores in iOS 17.

For Apple's part, it says the ‌App Store‌ is not the only way for developers to reach users, since they can also do so over Safari and other web browsers, where Apple rules do not apply. The company also says the majority of developers don't even pay any commission, while of those who do, many benefit from the ‌App Store‌ Small Business Program which requires them to pay only 15% fees.

Apple has also been keen to point out that over the past 15 years it has not raised commission rates or added fees, while twice in the last two years, federal courts have said Apple is entitled to charge a commission for access to its platform and rejected the assertion that the ‌App Store‌ gives the company monopoly power. Apple often also highlights the success of third-party apps on the ‌App Store‌ and their investments in developers' success, as well as the quality and security of the ‌App Store‌ itself.

Popular Stories

Beyond iPhone 13 Better Triad

Apple's 20th Anniversary iPhone May Finally Go All Screen

Tuesday April 15, 2025 6:31 am PDT by
Apple is preparing a "bold" new iPhone Pro model for the iPhone's 20th anniversary in 2027, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. As part of what's being described as a "major shake-up," Apple is said to be developing a design that makes more extensive use of glass – and this could point directly to the display itself. Here's the case for Apple releasing a truly all-screen iPhone with no...
maxresdefault

iPhone 17 Pro Launching Later This Year With These 12 New Features

Sunday April 13, 2025 7:52 am PDT by
While the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of April 2025: Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and ...
iOS 19 Roundup Feature

iOS 19 Will Add These New Features to Your iPhone

Tuesday April 15, 2025 7:37 am PDT by
The first iOS 19 beta is less than two months away, and there are already a handful of new features that are expected with the update. Apple should release the first iOS 19 beta to developers immediately following the WWDC 2025 keynote, which is scheduled for Monday, June 9. Following beta testing, the update should be released to the general public in September. Below, we recap the key...
CarPlay Hero

Apple Releases Wireless CarPlay Fix

Wednesday April 16, 2025 11:28 am PDT by
If you have been experiencing issues with wireless CarPlay in your vehicle lately, it was likely due to a software bug that has now been fixed. Apple released iOS 18.4.1 today, and the update's release notes say it "addresses a rare issue that prevents wireless CarPlay connection in certain vehicles." If wireless CarPlay was acting up for you, updating your iPhone to iOS 18.4.1 should...
iphone 16 pro models 1

17 Reasons to Wait for the iPhone 17

Thursday April 17, 2025 4:12 am PDT by
Apple's iPhone development roadmap runs several years into the future and the company is continually working with suppliers on several successive iPhone models simultaneously, which is why we often get rumored features months ahead of launch. The iPhone 17 series is no different, and we already have a good idea of what to expect from Apple's 2025 smartphone lineup. If you skipped the iPhone...
Apple 2025 Thumb 1

10 Products Still Coming From Apple in 2025

Friday April 11, 2025 4:14 pm PDT by
Apple may have updated several iPads and Macs late last year and early this year, but there are still multiple new devices that we're looking forward to seeing in 2025. Most will come in September or October, but there could be a few surprises before then. We've rounded up a list of everything that we're still waiting to see from Apple in 2025. iPhone 17, 17 Air, and 17 Pro - We get...
iOS 18

Apple Releases iOS 18.4.1 With Bug Fixes

Wednesday April 16, 2025 10:11 am PDT by
Apple today released iOS 18.4.1 and iPadOS 18.4.1, minor updates to the iOS 18 and iPadOS 18 operating systems that came out last September. iOS 18.4.1 and iPadOS 18.4.1 come two weeks after the launch of iOS 18.4 and iPadOS 18.4. The new software can be downloaded on eligible iPhones and iPads over-the-air by going to Settings > General > Software Update. There have been complaints about ...
iPhone 6s MacRumors YouTube

Apple Says These Products Are Now Vintage

Tuesday April 15, 2025 9:53 am PDT by
Apple today updated its vintage products list to add the 2018 Mac mini and the iPhone 6s, devices that will get more limited service and repairs now that they are considered vintage. The iPhone 6s initially launched in 2015, but Apple kept it around as a low-cost device until 2018, which is why it is only now being added to the vintage list. The iPhone 6s had Apple's A9 chip, and it was...
tvOS 18 Thumb 1

Apple Releases tvOS 18.4.1

Wednesday April 16, 2025 10:04 am PDT by
Apple today released tvOS 18.4.1, a minor update to the tvOS 18 operating system that came out last September. tvOS 18.4.1 comes two weeks after Apple released tvOS 18.4, and it is available for the Apple TV 4K and Apple TV HD models. tvOS 18.4.1 can be downloaded using the Settings app on the ‌Apple TV‌. Open up Settings and go to System > Software Update to get the new software....

Top Rated Comments

senttoschool Avatar
23 months ago
Good time to repost this: https://www.macrumors.com/2020/07/22/apple-app-store-fee-study/




Score: 74 Votes (Like | Disagree)
senttoschool Avatar
23 months ago

If developers did no longer bother to develop for Apple, the iPhone wouldn't sell either. In a sense they are really depending on one another but Apple still has the upper hand being a "Monopoly". Devs kind of have no choice but to suck up the fee if they want to stay in business
They do have a choice. They can develop for Windows, Android, Linux, web, Playstation, Xbox, Samsung App Store, Nintendo Switch, etc. The terms were clear when they first signed up to develop for iOS - pay 30% for digital goods. They signed up knowing this term.

It's like suing Walmart, America's largest retailer, because you don't want to continue to pay the fee to have your products in Walmart stores. If you don't like Walmart's fees, then put your products into Kroger, Albertson, Target, Amazon, etc.
Score: 39 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Glenny2lappies Avatar
23 months ago
If it weren't for Apple creating the App store in the first place, those developers would never have sold a thing.
Score: 26 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Sammy in SoCal Avatar
23 months ago
Someone explain to me how android-based phones which is like 80% of the global smart phone market doesn’t have developers catering to the app stores on there? If Apples fees are too much why aren’t they making apps for Android phones the first priority?

EDIT: looks like the previous post beat me to the punch first by 2 minutes (senttoschool)
Score: 21 Votes (Like | Disagree)
contacos Avatar
23 months ago

If it weren't for Apple creating the App store in the first place, those developers would never have sold a thing.
If developers did no longer bother to develop for Apple, the iPhone wouldn't sell either. In a sense they are really depending on one another but Apple still has the upper hand being a "Monopoly". Devs kind of have no choice but to suck up the fee if they want to stay in business
Score: 19 Votes (Like | Disagree)
SFjohn Avatar
23 months ago
Why aren’t they investigating Amazon which takes 50%! It makes Apple’s fee structure look absolutely inexpensive in comparison. ?
Score: 16 Votes (Like | Disagree)