Spotify claims that Apple is taking a very anti-competitive action through the approval process of its App Store. The music and video-streaming service's general counsel sent a letter to Apple earlier last week arguing that the tech giant is harming Spotify customers and the Swedish company itself. Spotify claims that Apple rejected Spotify's newest iPhone app update because it did not use Apple's billing system.
Attorney Horacio Gutierrez wrote that Apple's actions raised concerns related to United States and European Union competition law, according to TechnoBuffalo. He argued that rejecting the Spotify app was part of a pattern of behavior. Gutierrez stated that Apple had a history of making Spotify less competitive on iOS smartphones and tablets because it is a rival of Apple Music.
Spotify ran a promotion last year that gave new subscribers three months of video and music streaming service for a super-low price of $1. However, the stipulation was they had to sign up through Spotify's website.
If the promo had been run through an in-app purchase, Apple would get a cut from the campaign's earned revenue.
Apple was not pleased about Spotify's move. When the music-streaming service brought the promotion back this month, Apple threatened to pull the app from its App Store.
This requires Spotify to charge $13 for subscriptions bought through in-app purchases via Apple's App Store. Meanwhile, the $10 price at the Spotify website is about one-quarter lower.
Apple has an edge by requiring companies to use its in-house billing system. This gives the company an advantage because it charges just $10 for purchases made via the App Store.
However, Rule 3.1 of Apple's App Store Review Guidelines for "Payments" is very clear, according to The Next Web. It explains how in-app purchases must function when apps are distributed through the company's online app store.
Spotify did not just send its letter of complaint to Apple. It also sent a copy to Congressional staff in Washington, D.C., which suggests it believes the federal government should consider taking action.
Spotify is not the only company that has challenged Apple's business practices. Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos recently implied that the retail giant stopped selling Apple TV because of the corporation's unfair subscription rules.
Here's a video on Apple Music vs. Spotify: