Apple appears to be losing court cases centered on its monopolistic hold over the App Store, left, right, and center, with the latest setback coming from the UK's Competition Appeal Tribunal.
Apple just lost the UK's first class action-style tribunal case, filed on behalf of 20 million iPhone and iPad users in the UK
The British academic, Rachel Kent, filed a case against Apple in January 2025 with the UK's Competition Appeal Tribunal.
Kent had argued :
- Apple earns exorbitant profits by excluding competition from the distribution of apps and in-app purchases within its App Store.
- The Cupertino giant also imposes restrictive terms on app developers, all the while charging excessive commissions.
- These costs are ultimately borne by the consumers in the UK.
Now, the Competition Appeal Tribunal appears to have concurred with Kent's primary argument by ruling against Apple.
This means that Apple is now on the hook for around GBP 1.5 billion or around $2 billion, which is the amount sought by Kent as a remedy for Apple's monopolistic behavior.
For its part, the Cupertino giant says it would appeal the ruling, arguing that it took a "a flawed view of the thriving and competitive app economy."
Interestingly, this was the first case filed in the UK on the pattern of class action lawsuits that are fairly common in the US.
Apple is facing concerted legal action in various jurisdictions
In the EU, Apple allows users to install third-party app stores on their devices, in compliance with the EU's Digital Markets Act.
In the US, Apple was recently compelled by a court in the Epic case to allow access to external payment methods, and to enable the return of Epic's Fortnite app.
While Apple has complied with the verdict, it still vows to charge a commission on those payments, prompting the judge in the case to call on the tech giant to cease doing so or face contempt proceedings, and even possible criminal charges.
Apple and Epic have returned to court this week, where the Cupertino giant is arguing in an appeals court that the U.S. District Judge went beyond the scope of their 2021 order when they banned Apple from taking any commission on purchases made outside apps, and then punished the company with contempt for failing to comply with an inherently unclear ruling.
This situation has created a legal precedent, where consumers in other markets are also asking for similar privileges. For instance, in Australia, Epic recently asked the court to allow its apps to be sideloaded onto Apple devices without any associated commission.
Apple's App Store is also now caught in China's regulatory crosshairs following an antitrust complaint, which alleges that Apple maintains a monopoly over app distributions and payment methods in China while allowing off-App Store payments as well as third-party app stores in other markets.
About the author: Writing is my one incontrovertible passion. Over the past six years, he has authored over 2,200 distinct articles on financial and tech-related topics, spanning nearly 1 million words. And he has been a member of Wcctech mobile team since 2025. As an alumnus of the University of Toronto, Rotman Commerce Program, I bring nuance, in-depth knowledge, and a unique perspective to every topic that I cover. When I'm not writing, I'm traveling the world, exploring hidden confectionaries and restaurants as an aspiring food connoisseur.
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