Apple Inc. (AAPL.O) is under scrutiny in a landmark lawsuit at London’s Competition Appeal Tribunal, accused of abusing its market dominance by charging app developers a 30% commission on App Store transactions. The case, which began Monday, claims this practice has cost British consumers up to £1.5 billion ($1.8 billion).
The mass lawsuit, led by British academic Rachael Kent, represents approximately 20 million iPhone and iPad users in the UK. Kent argues Apple has leveraged its monopolistic position to impose exorbitant fees on app developers, which are ultimately passed on to consumers.
“Apple is not just dominant … it holds a 100% monopoly position,” said Kent’s lawyer, Mark Hoskins, in court filings.
Apple denies the allegations, asserting the case overlooks the benefits of its iOS ecosystem, which prioritizes security and privacy. Marie Demetriou, Apple’s lawyer, argued that the commission reflects the value provided by the company’s innovative platform. She also dismissed the claim as a “misguided expropriation of property rights masquerading as competition.”
This case marks the first mass lawsuit against a tech giant to proceed under Britain’s emerging class action regime. A separate $1.1 billion lawsuit against Google (GOOGL.O) over similar Play Store commission fees is set to begin later this year, while other high-value cases against Meta (META.O) and Amazon (AMZN.O) are also in progress.
The seven-week trial will include testimony from Apple’s CFO Kevan Parekh, expected later this week.
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