Apple Dating App Changes Mean Peace with Dutch Regulators (for Now)

13 JUNE 2022 - It looks like Apple and Dutch authorities have finally come to terms. You probably remember the story. Since the tail end of 2021, regulators in the Netherlands have insisted that Apple make it possible for dating apps in the App Store there to employ third-party payment solutions, rather than being bound to Apple’s in-app payment mechanism. Apple submitted a proposal in February that was rejected by the Netherlands Authority for Consumers and Markets. That was not even the middle of back-and-forth-back-and-forth between the two parties, though the whole affair has finally reached its end. Well, reach a stopping point.

A piece from MacRumors lays out the latest concessions made by Apple. Meanwhile, Apple 3.0 shared the news that the changes were up to spec, as far as regulators were concerned. The Apple 3.0 post had the regulators saying:

Apple has changed its unfair conditions, and will now allow different methods of payment in Dutch dating apps. With this concession, Apple will meet the requirements that the Netherlands Authority for Consumers and Markets (ACM) set under European and Dutch competition rules.

Not that Apple is done fighting. The MacRumors report has Apple saying:

We don't believe some of these changes are in the best interests of our users' privacy or data security. Because Apple is committed to constructive engagement with regulators, we're making the additional changes at the ACM's request. As we've previously said, we disagree with the ACM's original order and are appealing it.