EU Demands Immediate Action Plan From Apple Over In-App Purchases

Apple is in the hot seat again over its in-app purchase policy; the European Commission has criticized the company for not outlining any “concrete and immediate” plans to stop users from being misled by “free” apps, BBC reports.

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While users can download tons of popular apps for free, the majority offer in-app purchases, which means you spend real money, for example, to make quick progress in the app. From the EU’s perspective, Apple isn’t playing fair, as it fails to convey the real cost of the games or apps that offer in-app purchases.

The EU commission isn’t only after Apple, it also targets Google, but it’s singled out Apple for not making a commitment to change.

Apple, on the other hand, believes exactly the opposite: it does more than others in the industry, the company states. Fact is, with iOS 8 Apple will be adding new features such as Ask to Buy, granting parents more control over what their kids purchase in the App Store.

Back in December the EU commission asked app vendors to make steps to ensure that apps advertised as free are not misleading consumes about the true cost, and to provide an email address whereby consumers can contact them in case of complaints or queries, etc.

The move comes after in-app purchase horror stories made waves across the globe. One of the most shocking cases was when a father reported his own son for fraud after the kid ran up a huge bill for in-app purchases while playing ’free’ games.

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