OREANDA-NEWS. The Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS) of the Russian Federation fined Apple $ 12 million, the company must pay this amount for abuse of dominant position. This is stated in the message of the service.

The message says: "On April 26, 2021, the FAS Russia imposed a turnover fine on Apple Inc. in the amount of RUB 906,299,392.16 (over USD 12 million) for violating antimonopoly laws."

As the antimonopoly agency recalls on its website, the proceedings against Apple were launched at the request of the Russian manufacturer of cybersecurity and data protection software, Kaspersky Lab.

The FAS decided that Apple overused its dominant position as the owner of the App Store - the only platform where iOS applications are legally available, and at the same time the developer of its own software solutions.

Kaspersky Lab complained in 2019 that Apple unreasonably refused to place the parental control program Kaspersky Safe Kids (KSK) in the App Store after it introduced its own Screen Time feature in iOS 12 with similar capabilities. In August 2020, the FAS found the American corporation guilty.

In addition to the fine, the FAS also ordered Apple to remove from its rules the provisions that allow it to prevent third-party applications from entering the App Store for any reason, even if they meet all the requirements. Such provisions, the Russian regulator believes, contradict antimonopoly legislation. In addition, the FAS obliged Apple to provide third-party applications with all the same capabilities as its own, as well as to ensure that developers of parental control software can distribute applications in the App Store without losing important functions.

Apple has appealed the decision of the antimonopoly department in court, and while the proceedings are ongoing, the execution of the FAS order has been suspended.