Apple says it collects fees for less than 1% of Spotify’s subscribers, but the App Store ‘tax’ isn’t the whole story

Researchers argue that the shift towards streaming recorded music from smartphones has resulted in a higher amount of carbon emissions than at any previous point in the history of music.

LOS ANGELES: Apple, trying to show that it doesn’t force app providers to pay a “tax” to be included in the App Store, filed a response to Spotify’s antitrust complaint with the European Commission – revealing that Apple collects a 15% fee for just 680,000 of Spotify’s more than 100 million premium subscribers. 

According to Apple, the company doesn’t levy the 30% fee on any of Spotify’s subscribers. It takes 15% of the ongoing subscription fee for Spotify customers who signed up between 2014 and 2016 (its standard cut for subscriptions purchased through the App Store after the first 12 months). In 2016, Spotify removed the ability to subscribe to the streaming service via Apple’s in-app payment.