Anika Begay
Apple is changing its App Store rules in the EU after regulators accused the company of violating the Digital Markets Act (DMA) in June. At first glance, the updated rules appear to give developers more freedom when linking to external purchases, but a restrictive new pricing structure will force developers to pay Apple a commission for sales made on Anyone platform, not just iOS, as long as they include external links.
Starting this fall, all developers in the EU will be able to include links to purchases outside of their apps. The updated rules will allow developers to inform their users about offers on the web, in another app store, or otherwise “at a destination of their choosing.” It lets developers include as many links as they want and gives users the option to disable in-app scare screens.
But using the feature comes with fees so high that it’s hard to imagine a developer using it. Once a developer adds external links, Apple charges a new “store service fee” on sales of digital goods and services that occur within a year of the date a user installs the app, on any platform, even if the user never actually clicks the external link. That could potentially include purchases made on an alternate app store or a developer’s website from any type of device, like a Windows computer. And if the user reinstalls or updates the app, the clock starts again. The fee is 20 percent for apps offered only through the App Store; apps that add support for third-party app stores pay 10 percent, though they’ll face other associated fees.
In addition, Apple is implementing a 5 percent “initial acquisition fee” on digital goods and services purchased “on any platform” within a year of a user first installing the app. Overall, this means Apple can take up to a 25 percent fee on purchases made within a year of installing, including off-platform subscriptions and auto-renewals. Developers in Apple’s small business program and those who charge “qualifying” auto-renewing subscriptions longer than a year will face lower fees. The fees also do not apply to subscriptions or auto-renewals purchased before the app is downloaded.
“Apple’s terms make it completely uneconomical for developers to distribute their apps through both the Apple App Store and competing iOS app stores,” Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney said in a post on X discussing the new rules.
Apple said the fees reflect the expansive value provided by its app store. The initial acquisition fee “reflects the value provided by the App Store in connecting developers with customers in the EU,” while the store services fee “reflects the ongoing services and capabilities Apple provides to developers.”
Outside the EU, Apple charges up to 30 percent commission on in-app purchases. Apple also has strict rules about links to external purchase options, such as requiring developers to follow specific formatting guidelines, only showing external links once, and displaying a notification (or “scare screen”) to warn users that they are leaving the app. This is all part of the reason Spotify doesn’t sell audiobooks within its iOS app.
The new fee structure comes as Apple seeks to stave off further action from the EU. In June, regulators accused the company of violating the DMA’s anti-steering rules, which prevented developers from directing users to cheaper purchase options outside the App Store. The EU also fined Apple €1.84 billion (about $2 billion) for preventing music streaming apps like Spotify from showing cheaper subscription offers outside the App Store.
The EU is currently investigating Apple for its restrictive policies on alternative app stores and its new Core Technology Fee, which requires third-party app store developers to pay 50 euro cents per install for apps with more than 1 million downloads. The DMA came into force in March, aiming to regulate big tech companies to promote competition in digital markets.
“We are currently evaluating Apple’s deliberately confusing proposal,” Spotify spokeswoman Jeanne Moran said in an emailed statement to The limit. “Apple is once again brazenly ignoring key requirements of the Digital Markets Act (DMA). The European Commission has made it clear that imposing recurring fees on basic elements such as pricing and connections is unacceptable. We call on the Commission to speed up its investigations, implement daily fines and enforce the DMA.”
Apple has already made some small changes to its DMA compliance plans after facing criticism from developers and EU regulators earlier this year. It announced that developers of free apps will not have to pay the Core Technology Fee to access third-party app stores, and also gave developers a one-time option to opt out of the company’s new business terms, but only if they haven’t already launched an alternative app store or used a third-party payment method.
Apple’s latest changes bring some improvements, but they still have the same limitations that make it harder for developers to do business.
