Dutch Fines Against Apple Hit €45 Million in Dating App Payment Fight

22 MARCH 2022 - Another week, another €5 million. TechCrunch says Apple and the Netherlands’ Authority for Consumers and Markets (ACM) have failed to reach an agreement on how Apple will implement third-party payment systems for operators of dating apps in the Dutch App Store. Apple has offered a plan for such a system, though the ACM was not turned on by it. As a result, they’ve been fining Apple €5 million-per-week. That ends next week, not because anyone expects a resolution but because €50 million is as high as the fine is allowed to go. Yesterday’s fine brought the total demanded to €45 million.

Then again, maybe they will reach an agreement. The TechCrunch piece has the ACM saying that Apple has submitted “new proposals…”  In a statement, the organization said:

We will now assess the substance of these proposals… In that context, we will also sit down with various market participants. Our aim is to complete this assessment as soon as possible.

Vestager Brandishes Bigger Fines and Breaking Up Offenders

While €5 million-a-week is a lot of money, no it isn’t - at least not where a company like Apple is concerned. In cases like this, the head of the European Commission’s competition arm, Margrethe Vestager, thinks the fines levied need to be an amount that companies like Apple will actually feel. 9 to 5 Mac highlights an interview between Vestager and The Verge, which sounds like a cop show, but isn’t. 

The way Vestager sees it, the Digital Markets Act - a set of pan-European laws aimed at curbing the perceived anticompetitive power of big tech - Digital Markets Act punishments would get tougher as demands go unmet. According to Vestager:

…in the Digital Markets Act, there is a full toolbox where the sanctions become more and more severe. The fines will increase if you do not implement changes. Eventually, in the toolbox, there’s also the tool that you can actually break up a company if no change is happening, or if you are a repeat offender.

You know, my tool box came with nothing. I kind of feel hosed.