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        <title><![CDATA[Apple warns regulation of App Store could &#8216;materially&#8217; hit its results]]></title>
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            <media:title type="html">Apple warns regulation of App Store could &#8216;materially&#8217; hit its results</media:title>
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						<p>Apple&#8217;s lucrative App Store fees could be slashed by regulators to the tune of billions of dollars a year, the company warned investors Friday.</p>
<p>The iPhone maker said in its most recent <strong>annual report</strong> that the growing regulatory pressures targeting Big Tech could have a major impact on its bottom line.</p>
<p>&#8220;If the rate of the commission that [Apple] retains on [App Store] sales is reduced, or if it is otherwise narrowed in scope or eliminated, the company&#8217;s financial condition and operating results could be materially adversely affected,&#8221; the company wrote in its 10-K report.</p>
<p>Apple earlier this month was <strong>excoriated by the House Judiciary Committee&#8217;s antitrust panel</strong>, which accused it — along with Facebook, Amazon and Google parent Alphabet&nbsp;— of becoming &#8220;the kinds of monopolies we last saw in the era of oil barons and railroad tycoons.&#8221;</p>
<p>Apple approves every app that gets onto its App Store, which is the only way to get software onto the company&#8217;s iPhones and iPads. The California-based tech giant charges developers a 30-percent commission for in-app purchases and restricts them from telling users about cheaper purchasing options.</p>
<p>Though Apple did not specify how much it could be on the hook for if its fee structure is changed, in 2019 the <strong>App Store processed $61 billion</strong> worth of purchases that were eligible for the 30 percent cut.</p>
<p>In addition to the regulatory scrutiny, Apple&#8217;s fees have made headlines because of a high-profile battle with Epic Games, the maker of the mega-popular video game &#8220;Fortnite.&#8221;</p>
<p><strong>Apple booted “Fortnite,”</strong> a free-to-play game with millions of players, from the App Store after Epic introduced a system to accept payments for in-app purchases directly in an effort to avoid the 30 percent fee. The move to bypass Apple’s cut has since led to Apple suspending Epic&#8217;s developer account and booting all of its games from the App Store.</p>
<p>The companies are now embroiled in a high-stakes lawsuit, with Epic asking for &#8220;injunctive relief to allow fair competition in these two key markets that directly affect hundreds of millions of consumers and tens of thousands, if not more, of third-party app developers.&#8221;</p>
<p>Several other tech firms have also blasted Apple’s fees as the unfair result of its market dominance, including Facebook, Spotify and Tinder owner Match Group.</p>
<p>Last week, a nonprofit group called The Coalition for App Fairness — which is pushing for legislation that will force Apple to cut its steep fees and whose membership includes Spotify and Match — said that it has <strong>received more than 400 membership requests</strong> from developers in recent weeks.</p>
<p>Apple shares were down 6.3 percent Friday after the company declined to give iPhone 12 sales guidance for the current quarter.</p>
			
					
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