Washington
\nApple is seeking to overturn a landmark \u00a31.5bn court ruling on behalf of millions of UK customers, which found the company overcharged them for years in its App Store.
\nThe iPhone maker has applied to the court of appeal to challenge a verdict that campaigners heralded as the start of a \u201ctidal shift against big tech\u201d.
\nIt is one of a cluster of cases heading towards trial in 2026 as consumers realise the mounting cost of paying up to 30% commission \u2013 what campaigners call the \u201cApple tax\u201d \u2013 on apps and in-app purchases, which more people rely on for activities from fitness to dating.
\nThe appeal, if allowed, involves one of several class action suits against Apple and Google in which consumers, small businesses and entrepreneurs are demanding over \u00a36bn in combined compensation. The class action cases use an opt-out system that means millions of people can be represented at once in claims of breaches of competition law.
\n\u201cIt\u2019s definitely a tipping point,\u201d said Dr Rachael Kent, an academic at King\u2019s College London who won the \u00a31.5bn case against Apple on behalf of 36 million UK consumers. \u201cPeople are pushing back against the harms from digital worlds, which they have to be living in and through every day and the financial implications of that,\u201d she said.
\nKent added that the win in October still felt \u201ca bit pinch me\u201d. If Apple\u2019s appeal fails, every person in the UK who made App Store purchases between 2015 and 2024 could be entitled to a payout.
\nIn the suite of class action cases, Apple and Google are accused of overcharging British consumers and developers in their app stores and, in the case of Apple, of \u201ctrapping\u201d and overcharging customers with its iCloud data storage service.
\nInstead of up to 30%, Apple should be charging commission of 17.5% when selling apps and 10% on in-app purchases, while app developers should pay 10%, the competition appeal tribunal found in Kent\u2019s case.
\nAnother of the cases is being brought by Barry Rodger, a law professor at the University of Strathclyde, on behalf of more than 2,000 app developers who he argues are collectively entitled to up to \u00a31bn in compensation.
\n\u201cSmall and medium-sized app developer businesses have suffered as the result of excessive profiteering by the App Store and Google Play,\u201d he said. His case alleges Google Play has charged \u201cexcessive, arbitrary and discriminatory commissions\u201d against developers, with the makers of dating and games apps particularly affected.
\nHis suit is expected to reach trial at the competitions appeal tribunal in October 2026, and will be jointly managed with a claim for about \u00a31bn on behalf of 19 million Google Play customers, who are alleged to have been overcharged. That case is being brought by the consumer activist Liz Coll and accuses Google of \u201cexcluding competition and\/or charging an unlawfully high level of commission on digital purchases\u201d, breaching competition law.
\nColl said: \u201cThese types of large collective proceedings are new in the UK, but I\u2019m really excited about the potential of the Kent decision to not only make people aware they were paying too much for apps through opaque commission but also that there is now a clear route to getting that put right. Where we need consumers to get really active now is in claiming back the money they\u2019re owed.\u201d
\nA Google spokesperson said: \u201cAndroid provides more choice than any other platform and our fees are the lowest of any major app platform. We\u2019ll defend these cases vigorously.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Washington Apple is seeking to overturn a landmark \u00a31.5bn court ruling on behalf of millions of UK customers, which found the company overcharged them for years in its App Store. The iPhone maker has applied to the court of appeal to challenge a verdict that campaigners heralded as the start of a \u201ctidal shift against […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-522520","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-sports"},"yoast_head":"\n