And the battle continues: the European Commission has announced it’s notified Apple of several potentially prohibited geo-blocking practices that the CPC Network has identified on certain Apple Media Services.
Those services include the App Store, Apple Arcade, Music, iTunes Store, Books and Podcasts. The network requested Apple to align their practices with the EU’s anti-geo-blocking rules.
In the announcement, the CPC Network claims it found a number of limitations on Apple Media Services which, according to the network’s assessment unlawfully discriminate European consumers based on their place of residence. According to the announcement, consumers face limitations when it comes to:
- Online access: Apple Media Services have a different interface for different countries in the EU/EEA. In the app version of these services, consumers are only allowed to access the interface made for the country where they have registered their Apple account and face significant challenges when attempting to change this,which is not allowed under EU’s anti-geo-blocking rules.
- Payment methods: When making paid purchases on Apple Media Services, consumers are only allowed to use means of payment (such as a credit/debit card) issued in the country where they registered their Apple account.
- Downloading: Since App Store does not allow consumers to access the version of another EU/EEA country, consumers are not allowed to download the apps offered in other countries. Consumers should be able to download apps offered in other EU/EEA countries when they travel to or temporarily stay in that country.
Apple now has one month to reply to the CPC Network’s findings and propose commitments on how they will address the identified geo-blocking practices. Depending on Apple’s reply, the CPC Network says it “may enter into a dialogue with the company.” If Apple fails to address the concerns raised by the CPC Network, national authorities can take enforcement measures to ensure compliance.
Apple is constantly at odds with the European Commission. Among other things, the EC wants headphones/smart pens to have access to iPadOS features, wants the App Store open to more payments options, and more.
