What you need to know
- Facebook and Microsoft have recently locked horns with Apple over gaming services.
- The European Commission says it is "aware of these concerns".
- The recent sagas may play into ongoing antitrust investigations into Apple and the App Store.
The European Commission has said it is "aware" of concerns regarding Apple's App Store rules following Apple's refusal to let Microsoft xCloud onto its App Store, and trouble with Facebook Gaming.
As Reuters reports:
The European Commission in June opened four probes into Apple, three of which are into its App Store and its restrictive rules, including requirements that app developers use its own in-app purchasing system.U.S. social media giant Facebook and Microsoft are the latest companies to voice concerns about the rules, which have drawn criticism from app developers who say they create an uneven playing field to compete with the iPhone maker.Asked about Facebook and Microsoft's issues with Apple, Commission spokeswoman Arianna Podesta said in a statement: "The Commission is aware of these concerns regarding Apple's App Store rules."
Without further details, it's impossible to say what the EU means by this, but it could signal that the recent fiascos with xCloud and Facebook Gaming are being considered as part of a wider investigation into Apple's App Store and alleged antitrust behavior.
Microsoft was recently forced to withdraw support for Project xCloud on iOS, stating Apple was stopping it from bringing the cloud gaming service to the App Store.
Facebook was also recently forced to push Facebook Gaming onto the App Store without any games in order to comply with Apple's App Store rules.
