Enforcers Interested in Whether Digital-Subscription Rules Stifle Competition
WASHINGTON—U.S. antitrust enforcers have begun looking at the terms Apple
Inc. set this week for media companies who want to sell their content
on its popular iPad and other devices, according to people familiar with
the matter.
The Justice Department and Federal Trade Commission's interest in
Apple's new subscription service is at a preliminary stage, and might
not develop into either a formal investigation or any action against the
company. But it comes as Apple has attracted growing antitrust scrutiny
in the U.S. and Europe.
A spokeswoman for the European Commission, the European Union's
executive arm, said Thursday that the commission was aware of the new
subscription service and was "carefully monitoring the situation."
The Justice Department and the FTC are both interested in examining
whether Apple is running afoul of U.S. antitrust laws by funneling media
companies' customers into the payment system for its iTunes store—and
taking a 30% cut, the people familiar with the situation said. The
agencies both enforce federal antitrust laws and would have to decide
which one of them would take the lead in the matter.
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