Apple is bracing itself for a legal battle on Monday, marking the first instance of a major tech company in the º£½ÇÊÓƵ answering to a class action lawsuit over accusations of imposing "excessive and unlawful" charges through its App Store.
The claim, seeking up to £1.5 billion in damages, was initiated in 2021 at the Competition Appeal Tribunal on behalf of approximately 20 million Apple users, as reported by .
Critics argue that Apple has effectively stifled competition by obligating customers to use its proprietary payment processing service, levying a 30 percent commission on app store transactions and charging developers additional fees for in-app purchases. This approach, the plaintiffs assert, allows Apple to reap "unlawfully excessive levels of profit".
Brought forth by law firm Hausfeld on behalf of Dr Rachael Kent of King’s College London, serving as the class representative, the lawsuit suggests 19.6 million º£½ÇÊÓƵ consumers could qualify for compensation. While Apple has dismissed the action as "meritless", it has expressed eagerness to present its steadfast dedication to consumer welfare and the positive impact of the App Store on the º£½ÇÊÓƵ’s innovation sector to the court.
A preliminary session was convened in September to deliberate upon the relationship between this lawsuit and another similar case, Dr Sean Ennis v Apple.
In November, the Tribunal decided that these proceedings would proceed as usual, separate from the Ennis proceedings, which will be managed independently. Apple is the first Big Tech company to face trial under the º£½ÇÊÓƵ collective action regime.
This case will be closely monitored as it will influence other class actions against big names such as Google, facing a £14bn lawsuit, and Meta, facing a £2.2bn lawsuit, whose trials are set to follow. The trial is scheduled to begin on 13 January at the Tribunal and is expected to last for an estimated seven weeks.
