Spotify unhappy with Apple's policies for not letting customers buy audiobooks i...

Spotify unhappy with Apple's policies for not letting customers buy audiobooks in the app

Apple has been rejecting Spotify’s app updates for a while now – three times to be exact. Apple’s reasoning for the rejection is that the updates violate the company’s guidelines regarding online purchases.

Spotify has had its fair share of conflicts with Apple, including its coalition with Epic Games, Deezer, and other companies against Appstore policies of taking a 30% of in-app fees around two years ago; hence, the feud isn’t something new. This time, however, Spotify is running into a problem regarding adding an email button in the app that allows customers to receive emails for online purchases.

The issues arose when Apple allowed its developers to share details regarding purchases and payment options outside the iOS app through tools like emails. To this, Spotify reacted by saying:

“The Audiobooks purchase flow that Apple’s rules force us to provide consumers today is far too complicated and confusing — confusing because they change the rules arbitrarily, making them impossible to interpret.”

According to reports, Apple rejected Spotify’s audiobook purchasing system thrice. Although Apple initially approved the initial update – that removed instructions on purchasing an audiobook through Spotify Web – since Spotify’s legal team was also involved, it rejected later updates. To avoid the conflict, Spotify had to remove the price of the audiobooks and sell them outside the app through an email link. So consumers who wanted to buy an audiobook would select the audiobook and receive an email containing details about the book. However, Spotify later updated that Apple does not show an option to purchase an audiobook in the app anymore.

An Apple spokesperson commented that there was no issue regarding the addition of audiobooks, rather, it was the encouragement of customers to buy audiobooks outside the app. The spokesman said:

“We provided them with clear guidance on how to resolve the issue, and approved their app after they made changes that brought it into compliance.”

If Spotify decides to comply with Apple’s policies, it will have to pay 30% of its earnings to Apple and follow Apple's "complicated" system. However, that does not sit right with Spotify as it shares its concerns on its “Time to Play Fair” website.

Source: New York Times via Engadget and MacRumors