European regulators say Apple is in breach of new rules with its App Store

The Commission says Apple’s business terms don’t allow developers to do this, citing limits on communication and information sharing within the app.

Margrethe Vestager, an executive vice president of the European Commission, said: “Our preliminary position is that Apple does not fully allow steering. Steering is key to ensure that app developers are less dependent on gatekeepers’ app stores and for consumers to be aware of better offers.”

“The developers’ community and consumers are eager to offer alternatives to the App Store. We will investigate to ensure Apple does not undermine these efforts,” she said.

The regulators said they’d also opened a new probe into Apple’s contractual requirements for third-party app developers and app stores.

Apple representatives didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider made outside normal US working hours.

But an Apple spokesperson, Julien Trosdorf, told Politico that the company was “confident our plan complies with the law” and that it estimated “more than 99% of developers would pay the same or less in fees to Apple under the new business terms we created.”

In March, the European Commission fined Apple 1.8 billion euros, accusing it of abusing its market dominance. The regulators said Apple had restricted app developers from informing users about other, cheaper music services.

Apple said in a press release at the time that it would appeal the decision.

The company said the Commission reached the decision despite a “failure to uncover any credible evidence of consumer harm” and argued that the ruling ignored “the realities of a market that is thriving, competitive, and growing fast.”