France to Take Legal Action Against App Stores
Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire said Wednesday France will take legal action against Google and Apple and fines could be in the “million of euros”. Fines are likely to be about 2 million euros ($2.5 million) per company, accused of taking advantage of local developers. This comes after a two-year investigation by the ministry’s fraud repression unit, according to an official in Le Maire’s office.
“I learned that when developers develop their applications, and sell to Google and Apple, their prices are imposed, Google and Apple take all their data, Google and Apple can unilaterally rewrite their contracts,” Le Maire said in an interview with RTL radio. “All that is unacceptable and it’s not the economy that we want. They can’t treat our startups and developers the way they do.”
Update (2018-03-16): Pierre Lebeaupin:
I sure hope the actual suit is drawn from better information than what we’ve been given here, because while I’m on the record as deeming the current system of exclusive distribution through an app store (something which Google isn’t even guilty of) as being unsustainable in the long run, to have any hope of improving the situation through a suit Apple should be blamed for things it is actually doing. For instance, developers do not sell their wares to Apple (or Google) by any definition of that word, they do have to use a price grid but have full latitude to pick any spot in that grid, and Apple at least does not get that much data from apps.
I’m confused as to why so many reporting on this seem to be confused about the pricing comment. I would have expected it to be about price tiers and not being able to set specific prices, not about the 30% cut
That’s it actually. The French secretary is blaming Apple because developers are forced to choose between different prices. The 30% cut is not even discussed.
They are just abusing us. They just removed my app (the original) instead of a copycat app..
In its statement, Apple explained that it has a relationship with “tens of thousands” of developers in France, who have collectively earned over 1 billion euros via the App Store. The company highlights how developers can start with a company of one or two people, but ultimately grow to a full team.
And what’s the point of a $2 million fine? Last quarter Apple made $200 million in profit per day.
Previously: That 30% App Store Tax.
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"In its statement, Apple explained that it has a relationship with “tens of thousands” of developers in France, who have collectively earned over 1 billion euros via the App Store."
Once you've removed the hundreds of millions that went to Gameloft and the $99 annual ADC subscription paid by these tens of thousands of developers, 1 billion could easily become 100 million Euros in 9 years for tens of thousands of developers.
In the meantime: "Apple's Tim Cook gets $89 million stock payout" (http://money.cnn.com/2017/08/29/technology/apple-tim-cook-stock-award/index.html).
Surely stating the obvious here, but that’s probably something either company would deal with out of petty cash.