Apple will pay a fine in Russia for breaking Antitrust Laws

The US tech giant Apple has violated Russian antitrust laws and abused its dominating position in the app store market, according to the Russian Competition Authority, which announced on Tuesday that it would be fined.

Apple will be subject to a turnover-based fine from the federal anti-monopoly service (FAS), the amount of which will be decided after an administrative examination.

Moscow has long objected to the penetration of international tech platforms into the Russian market, but since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February, the long-simmering conflict has intensified.

“The company has abused its dominant position in the iOS app distribution market,” the FAS said in a statement.

“Apple prohibits iOS app developers from telling clients inside the app about the possibility of paying for purchases outside the App Store or using alternative payment methods.”

A request for comment from Apple was not immediately complied with.

Western companies have received a succession of fines from Moscow for breaking internet regulations, which opponents claim is an effort by the Kremlin to gain more control over the online environment.

In accordance with them, client data must be stored on Russian servers, content must be removed at the request of Russia’s communications watchdog, and local offices must be established there.

The choice to take legal action against Apple on the basis of antitrust laws is reminiscent of the European Commission’s well-publicized investigation of the firm for what it has referred to as a “closed ecosystem” that “unfairly insulated” Apple from competition.

Russia is considerably increasing its financial penalties after initially fining companies in the tens or hundreds of thousands. Russia fined Google $370 million on Monday for what it claims were repeated failures to take down information.