Spotify and Epic Games call Apple's revised DMA compliance plan 'confusing,' 'illegal' and 'unacceptable'

Count Spotify and Epic Games among the Apple critics who are not happy with the iPhone maker’s newly revised compliance plan for the European Union’s Digital Markets Act (DMA). Shortly after Apple announced the updated version on Thursday, including loosened restrictions along with the addition of two more fees, Spotify shared a statement with TechCrunch calling the plan “unacceptable” and claiming Apple was once again disregarding “the fundamental requirements” of the DMA. Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney, meanwhile, called the revisions another case of “malicious compliance” involving “junk fees.”

The European Commission had already determined that Apple’s first attempt at DMA compliance had failed and was investigating the new fee structure proposed under Apple’s DMA rules, which included a new Core Technology Fee, for the privilege of using Apple’s technology to build mobile apps.

Under Apple’s new policy, proposed today, developers who want to link out to their websites from inside their iOS apps now don’t have to accept Apple’s DMA rules to do so. But those developers will still have to pay Apple, even if they no longer face the Core Technology Fee that comes with Apple’s new DMA rules. In its place, Apple added two new fees — an “Initial Acquisition Fee” and another “Store Services Fee.” The former is a commission of sorts for connecting users with the app through the App Store that applies during the first 12 months, while the latter helps to fund Apple’s App Store operations. It is charged on a 12-month fixed basis, meaning it would apply to those users who continue to make new purchases of digital goods and services through the app.

Both fees are being applied to developers who do accept Apple’s new DMA terms, too, adding on new charges on top of the Core Technology Fees for app installs.

The changes are confusing — so much so that even Spotify isn’t yet quite sure what to make of them, according to its statement.

However, the company still condemned the revisions based on its current understanding of how this new policy would work:

We are currently assessing Apple’s deliberately confusing proposal,” the company statement reads. “At first glance, by demanding as much as a 25% fee for basic communication with users, Apple once again blatantly disregards the fundamental requirements of the Digital Markets Act (DMA). The European Commission has made it clear that imposing recurring fees on basic elements like pricing and linking is unacceptable. We call on the Commission to expedite its investigation, implement daily fines and enforce the DMA.

Fortnite maker Epic Games, an Apple critic that had sued the app stores for antitrust issues, also called out the new revisions as being unlawful.

Wrote CEO Tim Sweeney in a post on X, “In the European Union where the new DMA law opens up app store competition, Apple continues its malicious compliance by imposing an illegal new 15% junk fee on users migrating to competing stores and monitor commerce on these competing stores,” he said.

It remains to be seen whether the EU will accept Apple’s proposed changes.