Apple Inc. is taking heat from the European Union as it investigates the tech company's acquisition of music streaming app Shazam.
Growing Concerns
On Monday, April 23, the European Commission, an institution of the European Union, opened an in-depth investigation into this acquisition. It stated in its official press release that it was very concerned about the outcome if both Apple and Shazam merge. The business governing body recognizes that both are very significant players in the digital music market. However, it also is concerned about the data that Apple would acquire from Shazam if the transaction happens.
The European Union organization believes that Apple would use Shazam's data to find out the people who use their competitors and the technology company could potentially target them to transfer over to Apple Music. It is concerned that Apple's potential power play could shrink the European Economic Area by giving customers fewer options of music streaming services.
A 90-Day Notice
The European Commission will now have 90 working days to investigate how the potential Apple and Shazam merger could affect Apple Music's business rivals. It has until Tuesday, Sept. 4, to conduct the investigation and to see if there are additional alarms in this potential business deal.
"The way people listen to music has changed significantly in recent years, with more and more Europeans using music streaming services. Our investigation aims to ensure that music fans will continue to enjoy attractive music streaming offers and won't face less choice as a result of this proposed merger," said Commissioner Margrethe Vestager.
Other Apple News
As the European Commission investigates the potential business deal, Apple has made some other announcements recently. On April 20, the company revealed that there are a "limited number" of 13-inch MacBook Pro models that need new batteries. However, customers would only receive batteries if they purchased MacBook Pros that were sold between October 2016 and October 2017.
On April 19, Apple CEO Tim Cook revealed to the Sydney Morning Herald the idea that merging a MacBook with an iPad would not work. He believes that some of Apple's devoted clientele would not buy the blended product.
Also, Apple unveiled 'Daisy,' a recycling robot. Daisy can disassemble nine different versions of the iPhone. Once Daisy is done breaking apart the iPhones, the recycled parts will be reused into different Apple products.
The $400 Million Deal
The Verge reported that Apple announced its intention to buy the music streaming service in December 2017. Apple purchased the music streaming service for $400 million. Before Apple bought the app, Shazam had problems making profits as it only made $54 million in revenue sales in 2016.
Tech Times reached out to Apple for a comment on this story.
