{"id":44498,"date":"2024-08-14T14:00:46","date_gmt":"2024-08-14T18:00:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mjtsai.com\/blog\/?p=44498"},"modified":"2024-08-15T14:29:00","modified_gmt":"2024-08-15T18:29:00","slug":"eu-pricing-information-in-spotify-app","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mjtsai.com\/blog\/2024\/08\/14\/eu-pricing-information-in-spotify-app\/","title":{"rendered":"EU Pricing Information in Spotify App"},"content":{"rendered":"

Jess Weatherbed<\/a> (MacRumors<\/a>, Slashdot<\/a>):<\/p>\n

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Spotify will begin showing in-app pricing information for iPhone users in the European Union starting today, following a yearslong legal battle against Apple<\/a>. In an update to an old blog post<\/a>, Spotify says that EU iPhone users will now see things like promotional offers and pricing information for each subscription tier — including how much a plan costs once a promotion ends.<\/p>\n

One thing that’s missing is the ability to click a link to make those purchases from outside the Apple App Store. Spotify says it’s opting into the “music streaming services entitlement<\/a>” that Apple introduced after being served a €1.84 billion (about $2 billion) EU antitrust fine<\/a> in March for “abusing its dominant position” in music streaming, rather than accepting the complicated new developer terms Apple outlined last week<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n

Dare Obasanjo<\/a>:<\/p>\n

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After being fined $2 billion by the EU for preventing Spotify from telling people they can subscribe on its website, it still took Apple four months to approve their app with those changes and they still can’t link to their website.<\/p>\n

Apple has elevated rent seeking to a high art.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n

John Gruber<\/a>:<\/p>\n

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For anyone who isn’t paying close attention to these arguments over Apple’s draconian anti-steering terms for apps, it is surely very surprising that it took years of legal wrangling and a $2 billion fine<\/a> (which, it should be noted, Apple hasn’t yet paid, and which quite possibly will be reduced or thrown out upon appeal<\/a>) just to allow Spotify to present this information to users. Just to tell them the price and tell them they need to go to Spotify’s website to sign up.<\/p>\n\n

These anti-steering provisions are indefensible. They make Apple look bad in the court of public opinion, and they look even worse in actual courts of law.<\/p>\n\n<\/blockquote>\n\n

Previously:<\/p>\n