Spotify and Deezer call on Europe to end Apple and Google's app store abuse

TECH FIRMS including Deezer and Spotify have called on Europe to crack down on Apple and Google and their "troubling" app store practices.

That's according to a report by the Financial Times (FT). It has seen letter signed by the chief executives of Deezer, Spotify and German start-up investor Rocket Internet, among others, that has been sent to the European Commission (EC) asking it to probe the way that Apple and Google "abuse their privileged position". 

The letter complains that some mobile operating systems, app stores and search engines have evolved from "gateways" into "gatekeepers", effectively stopping third-party software from competing with their own services. 

Furthermore, the companies moan that they are not able to
able to access customer data when they sign up through an app store.

While Apple and Google are not named in the letter, it's pretty clear that the two firms - which combined account for 90 per cent of the mobile market - are the target of the complaint. 

Spotify and Deezer are arguing that more regulation is needed, noting that cases involving companies that their dominant market position take too long and cost too much for smaller internet companies.

This isn't the first time Spotify has faced off against Apple. Back in 2015, the music streaming service hit out at the firm and its anticompetitive "Apple tax", which at the time saw the company charging 30 percent fee toward any sales through its App Store, including subscription services. 

This meant that Spotify, which usually costs a tenner a month, would be forced to increase its prices by 30 per cent in order to pull in the same revenue, while Apple could continue to offer its own music service - which at the time was Beats - at a lower price. 

At the same time, reports had claimed that Apple was using its influence and power in the industry to convince music labels to put an end to the free streaming services offered by the likes of Spotify. 

Source