Introduction

On March 26, a California judge threw out a class action lawsuit against Apple that alleged the company was imposing constraints on third-party crypto payments.

Judge Vince Chhabria ruled that the complaint had significant issues, such as insufficiently proving agreements between Apple and other payment services. He questioned the claim that these agreements limited decentralized crypto transactions and may not violate antitrust laws.

The plaintiffs failed to establish a solid connection between Apple's alleged anti-competitive conduct and the harms they suffered, leading to the dismissal of their antitrust arguments. They asserted that inflated fees on specific third-party apps were a result of Apple's agreements.

Moreover, the lawsuit faced challenges in defining the relevant market, as Zelle, a payment app mentioned, was not included in the market scope.

Despite the judge's recognition of the case's shortcomings, the plaintiffs have been given a 21-day window to revise their lawsuit. Failure to do so by the deadline will result in the dismissal without the possibility of refiling.

Centralization and decentralization were key points of the lawsuit initially filed in November 2023. It claimed that Apple's guidelines prevented apps like PayPal's Venmo, Google Pay, Cash App, and Apple Cash from supporting decentralized crypto transactions.

Apple's defense, seeking the dismissal of the lawsuit in February, reiterated similar arguments upheld by the judge. They refuted the factual accuracy of the claims made by the plaintiffs, highlighting that there are apps in the App Store enabling decentralized crypto transactions.

Regarding App Store Guideline 3.1.5, Apple's defense clarified that the regulation mandates third-party apps to conduct transactions through approved exchanges but does not prohibit apps that facilitate decentralized crypto transactions. The plaintiffs had previously argued that this rule hindered decentralization by mandating exchanges' involvement.