Apple Accuses European Commission of 'Political Delay Tactics' Over App Store Changes

[MacRumors]

Apple claims the European Commission is refusing to let to implement App Store changes, instead using "political delay tactics" to levy unfair investigations and fines. Apple provided the statement to Bloomberg in response to MacPaw's decision to shut down alternative iOS app marketplace Setapp Mobile in the EU because of the complicated business terms that it has to deal with.

The European Commission has refused to let us implement the very changes that they requested. In October, we submitted a formal compliance plan and they have yet to respond. The EC is using political delay tactics to mislead the public, move the goal posts, and unfairly target an American company with burdensome investigations and onerous fines.

MacPaw plans to sunset Setapp Mobile in the EU on February 16, 2026. The company said it was shutting down the app because of "complex business terms that don't fit Setapp's current business model," but MacPaw did not go into further detail. Apple does indeed have a complicated fee structure in Europe, for both app marketplaces and the apps that are distributed through them. Apple allows for app marketplaces in the EU because of the Digital Markets Act, which is policed by the European Commission.

The European Commission is gearing up to blame Apple for Setapp's EU shutdown, according to information viewed by Bloomberg. "Apple has not rolled out changes to address the key issues concerning its business terms, including their complexity," the EC reportedly plans to say.

Apple says that it has not simplified its EU business terms as expected because of the European Commission's refusal to let it implement the changes.

Apple further claims that there is little demand for alternative app marketplaces in Europe, and the company said that it is not the reason that Setapp is shutting down.

Note: Due to the political or social nature of the discussion regarding this topic, the discussion thread is located in our Political News forum. All forum members and site visitors are welcome to read and follow the thread, but posting is limited to forum members with at least 100 posts.

Article Link: Apple Accuses European Commission of 'Political Delay Tactics' Over App Store Changes

 

[germanbeer007]

Apple is in the right. EU shooting themselves in the foot.

 

[jz0309]

Apple is in the right here.
Given the current political tensions, it shall be interesting to see the EU response ...

 

[zahuh]

Good job EU! Keep up the great work giving us CHOICE! LOVE IT! On my Mac I can go to the developers website to download an app or the Mac app store. Should be the same for iPHONE!

 

[HouseLannister]

A legal investigation is not a political delay tactic. Governments work slower than corporations. The EU doesn't need to adjust their work speed to appease Apple.

 

[Abydos]

not sure what to think but after reading the French labor manual (don't ask why) I think the EU's directives seem to largely derived from French antecedents , I'm not sure either side would recognize that a pile of dog excrement as a pile of dog excrement

 

[MacLawyer]

Many on this forum predicted this type of thing.

 

[SunMac]

EU is 💩

 

[GMShadow]

unfairly target an American company with burdensome investigations and onerous fines.

Which is the point.

Unfortunately for the EU, there's a new sheriff in town, and the more these mafia tactics keep up, the more pain will be administered in response.

 

[ProbablyDylan]

Apple does indeed have a complicated fee structure in Europe, for both app marketplaces and the apps that are distributed through them.

Not by accident.

 

[Paddle1]

Does the first sentence have a typo?

 

[d4cloo]

EU is 💩

Please stay away from the EU then. We don’t like people who voted for a fascist leader twice.

 

[twinlight]

Rather see an option for downloads from anywhere if it was ever needed. No one I know have ever asked for an alternative app store. It wouldn’t take off even if it was no fees and no Apple involvement at all.

 

[CapitalIdea]

A legal investigation is not a political delay tactic. Governments work slower than corporations. The EU doesn't need to adjust their work speed to appease Apple.

If a government sets aggressive timelines, people should expect them to follow up with as much gusto. 4 months is plenty for someone to go over a document they requested and redline or accept it.

 

[samh004]

Good job EU! Keep up the great work giving us CHOICE! LOVE IT! On my Mac I can go to the developers website to download an app or the Mac app store. Should be the same for iPHONE!

Technically, the mac was always open, and only more recently was an app store introduced, whereas the iPhone, when launched, had no way to even create native apps, with an SDK launching shortly before the official store launched in 2008. While you could jailbreak and whatnot, it's not like apps were available and then taken away, they were never there to begin with.

I'll probably never understand your point of view, but my view is that if you don't want a walled garden, you can switch to Android, no one is stopping you. The iPhone is what it is because of the walls Apple puts in place.

 

[Zubba]

Please stay away from the EU then. We don’t like people who voted for a fascist leader twice.

Voted against him twice, but still think the EU is 💩.

 

[contacos]

What do they mean by they don't let them implement those changes

 

[Hildy]

It feels wrong to tax American companies for their governmental policies. Maybe that’s the turn on.

 

[Runaway Train]

EU is engaging in political grandstanding, that’s all.

If the EU were truly about « fair » competition et al, they would not have created tax havens in Ireland and Luxembourg to enable loopholes for these big tech companies to rake in profits in from customers in Germany, France, Italy, Spain and everywhere else while paying zero 0€ in taxes to the respective countries. They then issue directives to respective countires to cut healthcare, schooling, police and other services to meet budgetary contraints imposed by Brussels - the very entity that deprives these countries of badly needed tax revenue to meet these demands.

To be fair, Apple has very little to complain about considering this « sweetheart » tax vehicle.

 

[Dredd67]

Well, look how disingenuous Apple can be.

The EU gave Apple several occasions to follow the rule. Instead Apple tried to be smart by abusing the rule and implementing all kinds of schemes to work they way around the rule and still have their cake and eat it.

In law there's also this principle that you have to follow the spirit of the law, as no text could ever cover all the use cases. You can perhaps need clarification at some times and that's OK. But once the law ans its spirit is clear to everyone, knowingly ignoring it and think the ruler will let it fly is simply stupid.

The EU simply stopped playing Apple's little game.

 

[ducknalddon]

It feels wrong to tax American companies for their governmental policies. Maybe that’s the turn on.

It works both ways, take a look at the fines foreign banks receive in the US compared to local ones.

 

[dwaite]

The EU simply stopped playing Apple's little game.

Refusing to let someone change behavior to meet regulations is a weird take for a regulatory body.

 

[ChrisMac47]

Here we go again, poor little rich boy Apple whingeing that they can't have it all their own way.

Meanwhile they love their 40%+ margins in the EU.

 

[leonremi]

Lol.
Apple whining to an audience of one...orange Cheetos.

 

[The_Gream]

Spirit of the Law, does not work for human beings. Their natural instinct goes against it.
Laws need to be simple, black and white, while also being a living thing as times change.

The DMA did not prevent Apple from making a profit from their IP, but every change to it, from what I have seen, has done just that.

My short form DMA rework
1: Does the electric device have the ability to connect to the internet and use applications? Yes/No
2: If yes, is the device able to use a web browser to search said web? Yes/No
3: If yes, then that device needs to allow the owner of said device to install trusted applications from the web or alternative stores.
3a: (wording on rights of the owner to be protected from distribution by bad actors)
4: If a device meets the above criteria, but is of a specialized nature, the maker of said device can request an exemption from these rules. The make will need to present their case before Panel X who will make the decision to approve or deny.