Russia’s antitrust agency on Thursday said it had written to Apple asking the company to explain why users of Apple devices in Russia do not have access to full functionality of banking and payment services.
a href=”https://www.reuters.com/technology/russian-antitrust-agency-complains-apple-over-users-limited-payment-services-2024-04-04/”>Reuters:
Russia’s Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS) has fined Apple around $26 million in the last two years related to what it described as Apple’s abuse of its dominant position concerning the mobile apps market and in-app payments.
Apple has previously “respectfully disagreed” with a FAS ruling that Apple’s distribution of apps through its iOS operating system gave its own products a competitive advantage.
The FAS said most Russian banks had been removed from the App Store and that Apple was not letting users install apps from anywhere but the App Store, making it impossible for Russian banks and contactless services to function.
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MacDailyNews Take: Apple paused all product sales and limited its Apple Pay service in Russia soon after the country invaded Ukraine, so why “respectfully” disagree or pay one red rouble — for bogus “antitrust” findings or, for that matter, for any reason — to Russia’s federal budget?
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