APPLE PROPOSES 15% COMMISSION ON EXTERNAL APP PAYMENTS

Apple submitted a proposal to the U.S. District Court of Northern California on Thursday outlining commission rates it seeks to charge on purchases made through external payment links in iOS apps. The proposal specifies a tiered structure: 15 per cent for standard apps, 10 per cent for apps enrolled in Apple's News Partner Program, Video Partner Program and Mini Apps Partner Program, and 5 per cent for apps in the Small Business Program. According to the proposal, the vast majority of developers qualify for the Small Business Program, which has charged a 15 per cent commission on App Store purchases since 2020.

The submission follows years of litigation between Apple and Epic Games over app store payment practices. Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers, who oversees the antitrust case, ordered Apple in 2021 to allow external payment links to avoid the standard 30 per cent App Store commission. Apple subsequently collected 12 to 27 per cent from external transactions, prompting Epic Games to accuse the company of non-compliance. The judge found Apple in contempt of court last year and ordered it to stop collecting such fees entirely, though an appeals court later overturned that prohibition while upholding the contempt finding.

The court must now determine what commission rate Apple may reasonably charge on external payments. Google, facing parallel antitrust litigation from Epic Games, opened its Play Store to external billing on 30 June with a flat 10 per cent commission regardless of payment system, and began permitting third-party app stores on Android in July. Judge Gonzalez Rogers will weigh Apple's proposal against these competitive developments and the established legal requirements before issuing a ruling.