Apple CEO Tim Cook questioned on App store policies; claims 'we treat all developers same'

Chief Executive officer (CEO) of Apple Tim Cook was questioned about the company's App Store policies during the antitrust hearing by the United States Judiciary Antitrust Subcommittee held on Wednesday. During the hearing, Cook claimed that his company 'treats all developers the same'.

However, the company has faced severe allegations regarding the hidden App Store practices and commissions as much as 30 percent. Developers also accused Apple of making App Store rules unavailable and changing them as per the company's convenience. The Developers further accused the company of enforcing rules that benefit the company. They also revealed that Apple discriminates between larger and smaller app developers.

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'Apple Treats All Developers The Same'

Defending the developer's allegations at the hearing, Tim Cook said that Apple treats all developers the same with 'transparent rules'. He also added that the company deeply cares about privacy and that all rules apply equally to each developer. Furthermore, he also maintained that Apple does not involve itself in any favoritism, whether the developers are large or small. He further went on to say that Apple does not retaliate or bully developers who do not agree to the App Store guidelines as it's strongly against company culture. 

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When questioned about the reasons why Apple wasn't increasing its App Store commissions and fees, Cook said that there is a competition to attract both from the developer standpoint and the customers. Apple CEO also mentioned that the commission for subscriptions is 30 percent in the first year and 15 percent in the following year.

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About the Antitrust hearing

Apart from Tim Cook, three more Big Tech CEOs-Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg, Amazon’s Jeff Bezos and  Google's Sundar Pichai faced the US Congress antitrust hearing. According to the reports, four CEOs faced US lawmakers virtually in Washington and answered questions involving accusations, data scoop, and unfair market advantage. Critics have accused the companies of becoming powerful by gobbling up scores of rivals, stifling competition and innovation, and raising prices for consumers.

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