AMSTERDAM Reuters - Apple said on Saturday it would allow developers of dating apps in the Netherlands to offer non-Apple payment options to their users, complying with an order from the country's market regulators to do so by January 15 or face fines.
The country's Authority for Consumers and Markets found in a decision on December 24 that Apple had abused its market position by requiring dating app developers like Tinder to use Apple's in-app payment system.
Apple's practice of requiring developers to pay commissions of 15 - 30% for digital goods purchases has come under scrutiny by regulators and lawmakers around the world, but the Dutch ruling only applies in the Netherlands and only for dating apps.
In a post on Saturday, Apple said it would comply with the decision to introduce two optional new entitlements that are exclusively applicable to dating apps on the Netherlands App Store that provide additional payment processing options for users, but it also warned that Apple would not be able to help with safety or refunds of payments that take place outside its systems because it won't be aware of them.