Apple Another rather unpleasant legal dispute awaits in the United States. An antitrust lawsuit regarding fees for Apple Pay The lawsuit has overcome an important hurdle after a US federal court approved its management as a class action lawsuit. This allows US banks that issued payment cards supporting the Apple Pay while Apple they paid fees for transactions made through them.
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The lawsuit itself dates back to 2022 and is based on the fact that Apple in the past, restricted competitors' access to NFC chip iPhone, which was supposed to practically prevent the emergence of competing contactless wallets. Because of this, according to the plaintiffs, it was able to charge fees that would not be possible in the case of real competition. And these are not small amounts. According to the lawsuit, Apple for credit cards, it charges 0,15% of each transaction made via Apple Pay, while debit cards charge half a cent per transaction. For example, if you make a $1000 purchase with a credit card, the card issuer will pay Apple $1,50. The plaintiffs therefore argue that in this way Apple earn up to a billion dollars a year.
Apple Meanwhile, the rules have changed.
The lawsuit, among other things, compares the situation with the Android OS, where multiple contactless wallets can operate and Google, according to the plaintiffs, does not charge a similar fee to card issuers for contactless payments. Lawyers representing the plaintiff are therefore now demanding not only a refund of the fees paid, but also legal intervention against the challenged practices. AppleHowever, the situation is somewhat different today than when the lawsuit was filed. Apple because it gradually changed its rules and from iOS 18.1 allows developers to use NFC iPhone pro contactless transactions in their own applications. Access is available in the United States, Canada, Australia, Japan, the United Kingdom or the European Economic Area, among others.
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In any case, the current court decision does not mean that Apple violated antitrust laws or that it will actually have to pay the banks back. So far, the court has only allowed eligible U.S. banks, credit unions, and other card issuers to pursue their claims against Apple applied together. Pro Apple However, this turns the original dispute into a potentially much larger problem, in which very large amounts may be involved.
