As Apple preps for the upcoming global launch of its “Spotify-killer”,Beats Music platform, industry insiders and competitors are becoming more vocal about the strings Apple is pulling behind the scenes. The latest issue isn’t exactly new, but the recently hostile industry environment is finally primed to dispute it. In question are some of Apple’s App Store policies that make it unfriendly to third parties looking to compete on iOS. Apple has a built-in advantage at a key time when Beats is looking to undercut Spotify and competitors with its new, low-priced subscription service.
The issue at the heart of the anti-competitive allegations is that Apple takes a 30% cut from all App Store and in-app purchases, including subscription services. This means that to make the maintain the same revenue from App Store purchases, Spotify and others need to raise their prices proportionally. At the same time, Apple can offer its upcoming Beats service at a lower price, luring away customers from Spotify and other music subscription services.
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https://www.slashgear.com/apples-alleged-anti-competitive-app-store-hurts-spotify-06382453/
