Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) stock fell over 2% on Monday following an EU antitrust fine related to music streaming.
Apple (AAPL) faced a significant blow on Monday as it was slapped with a substantial fine. The European Commission, a regulatory body overseeing competition in the European Union, imposed a penalty of over 1.84 billion euros ($1.95 billion) on Apple. The penalty came into effect due to allegations that Apple prevented music streaming services, including Spotify Technology S.A. (NYSE: SPOT), from informing users about alternative payment methods outside Apple’s App Store, as reported by Reuters.
Margrethe Vestager, the EU’s antitrust chief, asserted in a statement that Apple had wielded its dominant position in the market for distributing music streaming applications through the App Store for over a decade.
She added,
“They did so by restricting developers from informing consumers about alternative, cheaper music services available outside of the Apple ecosystem. This is illegal under EU antitrust rules.”
The European Union regulator’s investigation found that Apple’s measures created unfair trading conditions, ultimately limiting consumer choice. The decision to fine Apple comes after Spotify, a prominent player in the music streaming industry, raised concerns about Apple’s restrictions and the hefty 30% commission fees imposed on transactions made through the App Store back in 2019. Apple has already expressed its intent to challenge the decision.
Apple defended its practices, arguing that the Commission failed to produce credible evidence of consumer harm. The tech giant also argued that the ruling failed to acknowledge the dynamic and competitive nature of the market, which, according to Apple, is flourishing and expanding rapidly.
Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) Stock Performance
AAPL stock declined 2.54% to close at $175.10 on Monday. The traders had exchanged hands with 80,304,976 (80.30 million) shares compared to the average daily trading volume of 56.40 million.
