Meta and Spotify criticize Apple App Store policies, again

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Spotify CEO Daniel Ek spoke against the policies of the App Store, yet again. Although it is not the first time both senior executives have publically criticized App Store rules, they are taking advantage of the attention created by Twitter CEO Elon Mask, who recently called out Apple’s 30% App Store tax the company charges from developers.

Zuckerberg was the one who coined the term Apple tax for App Store 15% -30% commission, and EU Commission is investigating Apple for App Store antitrust practices on the complaint filed by Spotify in 2019.

Meta and Spotify slam Apple App Store for limiting users’ choices

At The New York Times DealBook Summit, Zuckerberg said, only Apple limits apps in the app store, and its policies aren’t sustainable. According to CNBC, Zuckerberg claimed that Apple had “singled themselves out as the only company that is trying to control unilaterally what apps get on the device, which is not a good place to be.”

However, Zuckerberg went on to praise Google for having third-party app stores on Android devices. He said:

They’ve always made it so you can sideload and have other app stores and work directly with phone manufacturers. Zuckerberg previously went against App Store policy several times, specifically over numerous purchases that can be made in Facebook app. Apple wants 30% of things’ such as in-app boosts, which Facebook has no interest of paying for.

In addition, Spotify CEO Daniel Ek tweeted that Apple gave developers “the illusion of control” and the App Store is a “threat to the future of the internet” that denies users choice.

Last month it was reported that Spotify clashed with Apple over its new audiobook feature. The audio streamer’s audiobook update was rejected several times by the App Store review team and was only accepted when the company removed the direct links in its iOS app for users to purchase audiobooks through its own payment system outside App Store.

Zuckerberg and Ek are Apple critics for a long time and have been encouraging lawmakers to push Apple to support alternative app stores on iOS to reduce fees. Several bipartisan bills have been introduced in the U.S., and if these are ultimately passed, Apple will have to make a lot of changes to the App Store.

Meta and Spotify slam Apple App Store for limiting users’ choices

Ali Hasnain