Spotify lashes out at 'monopolist' Apple in escalating war of words
The battle between Apple and Spotify continues, with the streaming music company labelling the iPhone-maker a "monopolist".
The spat started when Spotify filed a complaint against Apple, saying that the company is stifling competition and limiting user choice with rules it puts in place. Apple responded, poo-pooing the claims, and now Spotify has responded in turn not only accusing Apple of having a monopoly, but also saying that the company's response to the complaint was "entirely in line" with what it expected.
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Spotify's response was reported by Variety which quotes an unnamed representative of the company as saying: "Every monopolist will suggest they have done nothing wrong and will argue that they have the best interests of competitors and consumers at heart. In that way, Apple's response to our complaint before the European Commission is not new and is entirely in line with our expectations".
The Spotify representative added:
We filed our complaint because Apple's actions hurt competition and consumers, and are in clear violation of the law. This is evident in Apple's belief that Spotify's users on iOS are Apple customers and not Spotify customers, which goes to the very heart of the issue with Apple. We respect the process the European Commission must now undertake to conduct its review.
It's unlikely we've heard the last of this tit-for-tat battle of words, so we'll just have to wait to see what Apple has to say next.
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