Apple CEO Tim Cook Communicates Concerns About App Store Restrictions To Japanese Prime Minister: Report

Apple CEO Tim Cook has asked Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida to consider user protection when regulating smartphone app distribution, Nikkei reported on Friday citing sources.

Apple has faced intense scrutiny over it App Store the practice of charging 30 percent for payments and subscriptions and disallowing Iphone use application from third-party app stores.

Cook asked Kishida to ensure that regulations around app distribution do not undermine user privacy and security, the report added.

Apple and the Japanese prime minister’s office did not immediately respond to Reuters’ requests for comment.

Earlier this month, Apple said it had invested more than $100 billion (nearly Rs 8,27,100) in its supply network in Japan over the past five years, when Cook visited the country.

Revenue from Apple’s services business, which includes the App Store, has grown at a breakneck pace over the past few years and now hovers around $19 billion (nearly Rs 1,57,144) per quarter.

It’s a report A few days ago, Apple’s Japanese unit is being charged an additional $98 million (nearly Rs. 810 crore) in taxes for the bulk sale of iPhones and other Apple devices to foreign tourists that have been paid to foreign tourists. Exemption from the consumption tax is incorrect, the Nikkei reported.

Citing unidentified sources, Nikkei reported on Tuesday that bulk purchases of iPhones by foreign buyers were detected at several Apple stores with at least one transaction involving one individuals buy hundreds of handsets at the same time.

Japan allows tourists staying less than six months to purchase items without paying the 10% consumption tax, but the tax exemption does not apply to purchases for the purpose of resale.

According to Nikkei, Apple Japan is said to have filed an amended tax return.

In response to Reuters’ request for comment, the company only said in an email that duty-free purchases are not currently available at its stores. The Tokyo Regional Taxation Bureau declined to comment.

© Thomson Reuters 2022