Google and Apple are under questioning by US Senators given their power play in the market.
The news comes as this play of power by Google and Apple is under inspection by US Senators in due time.
The current market situation
App makers similar to music streaming service Spotify Technology SA and dating services giant Match Group are questioning the big monopolies.
Consequently, Match Group, which owns the Tinder app, has long complained that mandatory revenue sharing for sales of digital goods.
Additionally, the complaints include strict composition rules set by Apple’s App Store for iPhones and iPads.
Subsequently, this comes with Google’s Play store for Android devices, which weighs anti-competitive behavior.
What Apple and Google have to say
Spokespeople for Apple and Google spoke to the senators.
Subsequently, they told that the companies’ tight command over their stores and the associated revenue-sharing conditions are needed.
Thereby, this need is to implement and pay for security means to protect users from harmful content and applications.
Senators’ comments
A panel of U.S. senators grilled officials from Apple Inc and Alphabet Inc’s Google on Wednesday.
Subsequently, the questioning was about the dominance as well as the prominence of their mobile app stores. Additionally, it was also about if the companies exploit their power at the cost of smaller competitors.
Amy Klobuchar, one of the prime Senate Democrats on antitrust issues, commented.
She said Apple and Google could use their authority to “exclude or repress apps that collide with their products” and “charge exorbitant fees that influence conflict.”
What does Tinder say in this all
Match’s Chief Legal Officer Jared Sine said Google demanded to know why Sine’s designed testimony the way it did.
Consequently, the testimony, newly released, deviated from previous comments the dating company had made.
“It looks like a warning. It talks like a warning, and it’s a warning,” Blumenthal said of the call.
Additionally, he is vowing to investigate Google’s action further.
In his statement, Match’s Sine asserted that Google and Apple both exact a demanding 30% of any digital transaction.
Consequently, this is contributing to rising prices for consumers.
Match spends nearly $500 million in fees to the app stores yearly. Thus, this is the company’s single most crucial expense, Sine told.
Tinder isn’t the only one with the complaint
Spotify and Match announced Apple’s app review method was opaque.
Additionally, Sine said Apple charged a safety update to the Tinder app meant to warn LGBTQ+ users.
Apple and Google faced a battery of accusations on Wednesday from prominent app developers, including Spotify and Tile, who alleged that the large tech platforms have abused their dominance and harmed competition https://t.co/XAtguU3Hjd
— CNN Business (@CNNBusiness) April 22, 2021
Subsequently, the warning was if they traveled to a nation where it might be unsafe to expose their identification. Apple said the update disrupted the “spirit” of a new rule.
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