Dutch Regulators Will Now Require Apple To Provide Alternative Payment Methods For Dating Apps

One of the things that developers are demanding from Apple is that the company allow them to use alternative payment platforms. This would allow them to sell their apps and in-app purchases without having to give a massive 30% cut to Apple. For developers that generate millions in revenue, this 30% is a huge sum of money.

However, Apple has largely resisted the idea. The company even managed to win a stay in their case against Epic which meant that they would not have to implement changes to the App Store for now. That being said, that doesn’t appear to be the case over in the Netherlands where Dutch regulators are now forcing Apple to allow third-party payments.

This is according to a report from iCulture who discovered that Dutch regulators are saying that Apple will need to allow third-party payments in the App Store or risk paying 5 million euros a week in fines. However, what’s odd about this is that this requirement is only for dating apps such as Tinder.

We’re not sure why the focus is on dating apps and not other apps in the App Store. Perhaps developers of dating apps have stronger lobbying in the Netherlands and managed to make this request, but we suppose it’s better than nothing and could help establish precedent.

Tyler Lee
Categories: Apple, Cellphones
Tags: Apps, iOS, Legal