Apple Says Spotify Wants 'the Benefits of a Free App Without Being Free'

Apple has responded to Spotify's European Commission (EC) complaint. In a press release, the company said that Spotify 'seeks to keep all the benefits of the App Store ecosystem... without making any contributions to that marketplace.' It added that the App Store has generated $120 billion for developers while offering users a secure platform, and that Spotify is seeking to side to sidestep the rules that every other app follows. From a report: 'Spotify has every right to determine their own business model, but we feel an obligation to respond when Spotify wraps its financial motivations in misleading rhetoric about who we are,' the company wrote. Spotify's main argument was that Apple's own music service, Apple Music, isn't subject to the same restrictions of its own app. '[A]pps should be able to compete fairly on the merits, and not based on who owns the App Store,' wrote CEO Daniel Ek. 'We should all be subject to the same fair set of rules and restrictions -- including Apple Music.' It added that Apple had often stymied it on app updates and locked it out of Apple services, 'such as Siri, HomePod and Apple Watch.' Finally, it noted that Apple had blocked communication with its own customers on things like special offers. In response, Apple addressed each complaint point by point, while criticizing Spotify's treatment of musicians and artists. It said that it has approved nearly 200 app updates, and 'the only time we have requested adjustments is when Spotify has tried to sidestep the same rules that every app follows.'

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