Apple fined 45 million euros for 9 consecutive weeks

Apple Inc will face another fine next week for failing to fully comply with an order to open competing forms of App Store payment to Dutch dating apps, the Dutch antitrust watchdog said on Friday. It is worth noting that since January this year, the Dutch Consumer and Market Authority (ACM) has issued a weekly fine of 5 million euros. However, it appears that the company does not see any issue with the fine. This is because this week will make it nine consecutive weeks that Apple will be issued the fines. So far, Apple has received a total of 45 million euros in fines.

According to reports, most of the software in the App Store has always been mandatory for users to use Apple's own payment system to pay. Furthermore, for each transaction, the company will take a 15% - 30% commission. This is what everyone calls the "Apple tax".

In recent years, the Dutch Consumer and Markets Authority has been investigating whether Apple has abused its dominant market position. The Dutch dating software developer has previously filed lawsuits against the company. It is asking regulators to investigate the monopoly of Apple's App Store payment system. So far, the company has not met the rectification requirements of Dutch regulators.

According to reports, Apple has actually submitted a new proposal to the ACM this week to try to stop the penalty. However, an ACM official said the proposal did not fully comply with its order. If the company does receive the tenth fine next week, the total fine in the Netherlands for the "Apple tax" will reach 50 million euros.

What's more, according to the ACM, once the total fine reaches 50 million euros, subsequent fines may be higher.

Apple buys UK banking startup for $150 million

Apple has acquired British open banking startup Credit Kudos, which aims to help lenders make better decisions. Credit Kudos provides insight and scoring based on loan applications derived from bank data on transactions and loan results. According to the company's website, the company's API offers lenders a way to obtain loans with faster, automated decisions, reducing risk and increasing acceptance rates.

The startup started raising capital in April 2020 with $6.5 million in investment. The current value of the company is about $150 million. The Credit Kudos website terms of use link now redirect to Apple's terms of use.

It's unclear what Apple's plans for Credit Kudos are. However, it's plausible that the company's technology could help it launch its Card in the UK. The U.K. is one of Apple's most important markets, with the largest number of stores outside the U.S. and China.