Apple pays millions to Russia in another antitrust case over in-app payments

MOSCOW: US tech giant Apple has paid a Russian fine of 1.2 billion rubles ($13.65 million) that was imposed on the company over alleged abuse of its dominant market position regarding in-app payments, Russia’s FAS antitrust agency said. Said on Monday.

Apple, which did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Monday, previously “respectfully disagreed” with the FAS’s ruling that Apple’s distribution of apps through its iOS operating system gave its own products a competitive advantage.

The Federal Antimonopoly Service said Apple paid the fine on January 19 and the funds were transferred to Russia’s federal budget.

In February 2023, the FAS said that Apple had paid a fine of approximately $12.1 million in another antitrust case in which Apple was accused of abusing its dominance in the mobile app market.

Russia has been at loggerheads with foreign technology companies for several years, particularly over Moscow’s failure to store illegal content and user data locally, a dispute that intensified after Russia sent troops to Ukraine in February 2022 Has gone.

Apple halted sales of all products in Russia shortly after the conflict in Ukraine began and limited its Apple Pay service in Russia.

(This story has not been edited by News18 staff and is published from a syndicated news agency feed – Reuters)