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Apple loses UK class action lawsuit over ‘excessive’ App Store charges
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Apple has lost a landmark UK class action antitrust lawsuit over claims it levies “excessive and unfair” charges on software downloaded from its App Store, in the latest legal blow to the US tech giant.
The Competition Appeal Tribunal ruled on Thursday that the Silicon Valley-based group abused a dominant position to charge developers commissions of as much as 30 per cent on purchases.
The claimants said 36mn consumers would be entitled to damages of about £1.5bn. Apple said it would appeal.
The tribunal found that Apple has “near absolute market power” in the markets for iOS app distribution and in-app payments.
Apple “is abusing its dominant position by charging excessive and unfair prices” to developers, it said in the decision.
The tech group said the ruling took a “flawed view” of the mobile apps market, arguing iPhones face “vigorous competition”.
“This ruling overlooks how the App Store helps developers succeed and gives consumers a safe, trusted place to discover apps and securely make payments,” Apple said.
The tribunal’s decision is the latest in a series of legal and regulatory challenges facing Apple’s lucrative services business, which is expected to generate more than $100bn in revenues for the first time this year.
The decision comes just a day after the UK’s antitrust agency said it would impose strict new rules on how Apple and Google run their mobile platforms under Britain’s new digital competition law.
Apple is also fighting several aspects of the EU’s Digital Markets Act, which has forced the iPhone maker to make changes to its App Store.
It also faces huge pressure over the App Store in the US. Last year, the US Department of Justice filed a landmark antitrust case against Apple over what it alleges is a smartphone monopoly.
The CAT ruling is a crucial victory for class action claimants following a series of recent disappointments.
A wave of lawsuits have been launched — many of them against technology companies — under legislation drawn up a decade ago allowing mass actions over alleged breaches of competition law.
But the cases have been bogged down by protracted legal arguments over process, and payouts so far have largely been seen as disappointing for claimants.
The case against Apple — led by “class representative” Rachael Kent, a lecturer at King’s College London — was the first such case against a Big Tech group to go to trial before the CAT. Apple’s chief financial officer Kevan Parekh testified this year.
Kent said in a statement following the ruling: “Every in-app purchase, subscription and paid download was inflated by Apple’s anti-competitive practices.”
She added: “This is a landmark victory — not only for App Store users, but for anyone who has ever felt powerless against a global tech giant.”
In a 396-page ruling on Thursday, the CAT said “the process for resolving any questions relating to the calculation” of damages would be determined at a subsequent hearing, as soon as next month.
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The Falcons and the Power of Inclusive Rugby » allblacks.com
Rugby is for everyone — and the Falcons are living proof.
In the NZR+ special feature, Gay & Inclusive Rugby: The NZ Falcons, viewers are invited behind the scenes as Aotearoa’s pioneering gay and inclusive rugby club…
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Neon Movie From Chloe Okuno Adds Four To Cast
EXCLUSIVE: Harry Lawtey (Industry), Jodie Turner-Smith (Tron: Ares), Viola Prettejohn (The Testament of Ann Lee), and Burn Gorman (upcoming Frankenstein) have joined Olivia Cooke in Brides, the new Neon horror film from Chloe Okuno, which…
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Reform’s only Black branch chair quits over ‘harmful’ migration debate | Reform UK
The only Black branch chair of Reform UK has left the rightwing populist party, saying the tone of Britain’s migration debate is “doing more harm than good”.
Neville Watson, from north London, told the Guardian he had not experienced any…
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Music video for ‘Cardboard’ original song features DNEG Animation crew!
Cardboard marks the latest collaboration between DNEG Animation and Locksmith Animation. Directed by Jean-Philippe Vine (Ron’s Gone Wrong), it tells the tale of a overwhelmed, single dad pig who is faced with a choice: dwell on the past and his…
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Government approves 474-acre Ashford solar farm development
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Evolution Power said the site has high sunlight levels Solar farm developers have received government approval to build on a 474-acre (192 hectare) site in Kent.
The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero granted development consent for the Stonestreet Green Solar project near Ashford on Thursday.
Developer Evolution Power said the solar panel and battery storage scheme would “make a significant contribution” to the UK’s clean energy targets.
Kent Wildlife Trust, Weald of Kent MP Katie Lam and local parish councils were among those to raise concerns about the scheme’s impact on the rural landscape and biodiversity.
The site, north of Aldington, will be able to power up to 42,000 homes once complete, according to Evolution Power.
The firm said the site’s biodiversity would be “greatly enhanced” and soil condition improved during Stonestreet Green Solar’s lifespan.
It cited a nearby grid connection and high sunlight levels in the area among reasons the site was chosen.
The company’s director Conor McNally said it would “look forward to progressing the project in due course” following the consent order.
Evolution Power claimed in its application that construction would take one year and create the equivalent of 132 jobs.
The government is responsible for permitting the development, rather than Ashford Borough Council, as it will have a generating capacity greater than 50 megawatts.
The Planning Inspectorate said it received the application in June 2024.
“Local people, the local authority and other interested parties were able to participate in this six-month examination,” the agency said.
Over 300 representations were received.
The Planning Inspectorate said it “listened and gave full consideration to all local views and the evidence gathered” before it recommended consent was granted.
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Tesla recalls more than 63,000 Cybertrucks because the front lights are too bright
Tesla is recalling more than 63,000 Cybertrucks in the U.S. because the front lights are too bright, which may cause a distraction to other drivers and increase the risk of a collision.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said that the recall includes certain Cybertrucks with a model year between 2024 and 2026. The vehicles were made between Nov. 13, 2023, and Oct. 11, 2025, with operating software versions prior to 2025.38.3.
The agency said that Tesla is not aware of any collisions, injuries, or fatalities related to the condition.
Tesla, which is run by billionaire Elon Musk, is issuing a free software update to correct the issue.
Earlier this month, federal regulators opened yet another investigation into Tesla’s self-driving feature after dozens of incidents in which the cars ran red lights or drove on the wrong side of the road, sometimes crashing into other vehicles and causing injuries.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said in a filing that it was looking into 58 incidents in which Teslas reportedly violated traffic safety laws while using the company’s so-called Full Self-Driving mode, leading to more than a dozen crashes and fires and nearly two dozen injuries. The new probe adds to several other open investigations into Tesla technology that could upend Musk’s plans to turn millions of his cars already on the road into completely driverless vehicles with a over-the-air update to their software.
In March U.S. safety regulators recalled virtually all Cybertrucks on the road. The NHTSA’s recall, which covered more than 46,000 Cybertrucks, warned that an exterior panel that runs along the left and right side of the windshield can detach while driving, creating a dangerous road hazard for other drivers, increasing the risk of a crash.
On Wednesday Tesla reported a fourth straight decline in quarterly profit, even as sales rose. The automaker reported third-quarter earnings plunged 37% to $1.4 billion, or 39 cents a share, from $2.2 billion, or 62 cents a share, a year earlier. That marked the fourth quarter in a row that profit dropped. And even the revenue rise, a welcome relief from a sales plunge earlier in the year due to anti-Musk boycotts, came with a significant caveat: Customers rushed to take advantage of a $7,500 federal EV tax credit before it expired on Oct. 1, possibly stealing sales from the current quarter.
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