Apple abused its dominant position by imposing fees of up to 30% on rival music streaming services such as Spotify, Deezer and YouTube Music in its App Store, while blocking them from telling users about cheaper options elsewhere. iPhone and iPad users paid the price. Following the European Commission’s €1.8 billion fine against Apple, Euroconsumers has launched a coordinated class action in Belgium, Italy, Spain and Portugal to get consumers’ money back.
Apple controls access to millions of iPhone and iPad users through its App Store, and it used that power to tilt the market in its own favour. Music streaming services such as Spotify, Deezer, YouTube Music, SoundCloud, Amazon Music, Tidal and Qobuz were charged fees of up to 30% on subscriptions sold through the App Store, while Apple’s own service, Apple Music, faced no such charges.
What this means in practice for consumers?
To cover these fees, streaming services raised their prices specifically for iOS users. Spotify, for example, went from €9.99 to €12.99 per month for subscribers on iPhone and iPad. On average, consumers have paid around €3 extra per month since July 2013, simply for using an Apple device.
At the same time, Apple prevented these services from informing users that cheaper subscriptions were available directly on their websites. Consumers were kept in the dark and left with no real way to avoid the extra cost, while competition between music streaming services was distorted.
An abuse confirmed by the European Commission
This behaviour is not only unfair and anti-competitive, it is illegal. In March 2024, the European Commission fined Apple €1.8 billion for abusing its dominant position in the market for music streaming apps. BEUC, with the support of Test-Aankoop/Test-Achats, OCU, Altroconsumo and DECO PROteste, helped lay the groundwork for this decision by intervening in the case to defend consumers’ interests.
Why we’re taking Apple to court
A fine does not give consumers their money back. Over the years, Apple made unfair profits of around €259 million in Europe by overcharging users of rival streaming services. Euroconsumers is therefore launching a coordinated class action in Belgium, Italy, Spain and Portugal to reclaim these undue charges for more than 500,000 affected consumers.
All iPhone and iPad users who paid for a non-Apple music streaming subscription through the App Store since 2013 can join.
Our call
With power comes responsibility. Fair competition ensures consumers have access to quality services at fair prices, and when companies exploit their dominance to undermine it, they must be held accountable. By joining the class action, consumers can reclaim what was unfairly taken and help build a fair digital market with transparent, innovative and competitive services.
Euroconsumers is launching a coordinated class action in Belgium, Italy, Spain, and Portugal. Every iOS user who overpaid for their music streaming subscription deserves to get their money back. Our goal is to hold Apple accountable and make them return the undue charges paid by consumers.
As a big tech player, Apple abused its power to impose up to 30% extra charges on non-Apple music streaming services like Spotify, Deezer, YouTube Music, SoundCloud, Amazon Music, Tidal, and Qobuz through its Apple App Store. This led to higher prices for consumers and unfair competition. Euroconsumers is standing up to Apple’s unfair play and launches a class action to reclaim these undue excess fees for consumers.
Hearings, panels and meetings where this case was on the table. Everything we said is on the record.
Letters, complaints and collective actions, with the documents that back them.
