Spotify Claims ‘Small Step’ Victory in Apple EU Pricing War

Spotify gained Apple’s approval to show European Union users pricing information in its iOS app.

Spotify is opting into Apple’s “entitlement” for music streaming services, created following the European Commission’s landmark antitrust ruling against the tech giant in March, according to an updated blog post Wednesday (Aug. 14).

“This means we will finally be able to offer something as obvious as it is overdue: iPhone consumers in the EU will now see pricing information for Spotify in the app and the fact that they can go to our website to purchase items directly,” the post said.

The change lets iPhone users in the EU see things like the company’s end-of-summer promotion pricing and how much a Spotify Premium plan would cost once the promotion ends, per the post.

However, this is a “small step” in a larger effort toward giving iPhone consumers the same experience as users of other phones, according to the post.

“Unfortunately, Spotify and all music streaming services in the EU are still not able to freely give consumers a simple opportunity to click a link to purchase in-app because of the illegal and predatory taxes Apple continues to demand, despite the commission’s ruling,” the post said.

Apple did not respond to PYMNTS’ request for comment.

The European Commission fined Apple just under $2 billion March 4 after determining the company abused its place in the streaming music market by preventing app developers from telling iOS users about alternative, cheaper music subscription services — like Spotify — which is illegal under Europe’s antitrust regulations.

Apple responded by saying it would appeal the decision — which it did in May — criticizing what it said was the commission’s “failure to uncover any credible evidence of consumer harm.”

The iPhone maker also took aim at Spotify — whose complaints sparked the commission’s probe — saying the company met with the commission 65 times during the investigation. Apple also pointed out that Spotify has a 56% share of Europe’s music streaming market.

“A large part of their success is due to the App Store, along with all the tools and technology that Spotify uses to build, update and share their app with Apple users around the world,” the company said at the time.