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Comment by schmorptron | Hacker News Reader

If this gets through and implemented, it's probably gonna affect Google a lot, but I wonder whether they'll also go after Apple with their App Store and the whole Spotify situation, since I don't think I've seen the EU regulators look into that before.

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EU is already going after apple.

https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/ip_20_...

What are you referring to by "Spotify situation"? I'm out of the loop. Could it be the data breaches mentioned here?

https://threatpost.com/spotify-changes-passwords-data-breach...

Spotify complained that apples uses its market power as the app-gatekeeper to promote its own services over Spotify's. Afaik, Spotify needs to pay that 30% royalty fee to apple whenever someone signs up to Spotify via the app-store, whereas apple obviously does not have pay itself that fee for its music streaming service. This is the complaint: https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/ip_20_...

Spotify has illustrated that they have no qualms themselves in abusing their market power to subvert the fairness/freeness of markets - they're currently pouring massive amounts of resources into an attempt to force themselves into the role of podcasting-gatekeeper. Hope that the EU looks into their own actions as well.

The "Spotify situation" is an ongoing argument between Spotify & Apple.

Spotify's side: https://www.timetoplayfair.com/facts/ (this page is theirs)

Apple's side: https://www.apple.com/newsroom/2019/03/addressing-spotifys-c...

I doubt Ireland(EU HQ of most FANNGs) will not veto this.

No single EU member state can veto this.

To pass the Council a Regulation like this only requires a Qualified Majority,[0] that's votes in favour from at least 14 countries representing at least 65% of the EU's population.

[0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voting_in_the_Council_of_the_E...

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