Back in 2018, Apple started cracking down on third-party iOS parental control apps. In the wake of that, the Russian Federal Anti-monopoly Service (FAS) investigated Apple and found the company guilty of market abuse. Now the official fine has been announced with Apple owing $12 million to the Russian government.
One of the company’s to file a formal complaint that led to the Russian investigation was Kaspersky Lab. And the FAS concluded in August 2020 that “Apple Inc. limited competition in the market for iOS-based mobile apps and abused its dominant position with respect to the developers of parental control apps.”
At the time, Apple said it would appeal the ruling that demanded it “remedy the violations.” However, the specifics on what the remedy would be weren’t set.
Reported by Reuters, the Russian government has announced the fine will be $12 million (906.3 million roubles), a slap on the wrist for Apple but something Russia thinks will be “noticeable on financial statements.”
For its part, Apple says it previously helped Kaspersky get its apps back on the App Store.
“We worked with Kaspersky to get their app in compliance with rules that were put in place to protect children,” Apple said in a statement. “They now have 13 apps on the App Store and we have processed hundreds of updates for them.”
Anton Gorelkin, who is on Russia’s State Duma committee on information and communications also wrote something of a warning on Telegram:
Gradually we are approaching the kind of seriousness in the conversation with Big Tech that has long been on display in the West.
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