App-go away

The Ministry of Digital Development prohibits mobile operators from making financial transactions to Apple from April 1

Topping up iBalance using a mobile phone account becomes impossible. Formally, this is the result of a battle over one of the many claims against the company. Behind the scenes there are fines, removal of applications and other accusations not only from the authorities, but also from users who are clearly unhappy with such a collaboration. But the reality, as usual, is more complicated.

If you just opened the news today, it seems that there is sudden pressure on one of the pillars of the global industry. However, it all started a long time ago. Even if we rewind to the last couple of years, one of the main episodes in the history of payments occurred now back in 2023. At the request of the Federal Antimonopoly Service, Apple must pay a billion-dollar fine for the fact that it is impossible to pay for anything other than Apple Pay in applications. The company traditionally pays whatever is demanded and challenges decisions, but in the current circumstances the outcome is predictable .

Another ongoing episode is related to Yarovaya’s law on the landing of user data. The company desperately refuses to store the data of Russians at their place of residence, which in reality is most likely technically practically impossible. Yes, Apple ID, along with payment information, has many regional differences, but it's all within a single infrastructure. There is a feeling that moving specific accounts to a specific region is even more difficult than releasing a new iPhone. However, the Tagansky District Court on duty on this issue is not very concerned about this.

Further - in the same spirit. Penalty for failure to remove prohibited content. Which one is not important in the grand scheme of things. And if in the case of the payment system there is some room for conversation (Apple is really clamping down on its infrastructure for external interventions), then the rest is exclusively local realities, which are somehow sad to discuss .

But these are all stories for those who are somehow connected with the industry. The mass user is interested in the systematic removal of applications needed today from the App Store at the request of Roskomnadzor.

Indignation is growing - how is it that the company we love so much is following the lead of the Russian authorities and depriving us of almost everything.

Which is ultimately unpleasant, but in reality it’s not entirely true: the local version of the store still has quite similar programs that, in fact, make it easy to set up a connection: there’s nothing special or unusual there.

To give you a sense of at least some kind of retribution for all this, know that Britain fined Apple Distribution International for paying the online cinema Okko, which until recently belonged to Sber. The amount is ridiculous compared to everything else - 390 thousand pounds for violating sanctions . As they say, it’s a small thing, but for some it’s nice.

Based on the listed facts, one gets the feeling that Apple, if not directly cooperating with the Russian authorities, then firmly holds on to the local market. And the claims from all sides, by the way, are more than fair. But this is an illusion, which can only be overcome by moving away from the current events, zooming out with two fingers and looking first at what is happening in Europe, and then at the whole world as a whole.

Meanwhile, there is about the same thing, including claims regarding payments - the largest of the fines, $1.84 billion, precisely for restrictions that do not allow the provision of alternative payment methods for services like Spotify. For business, this is a significant issue: Apple takes a 30% commission, so it costs a lot of money - both legal costs and changes in the operation of applications when the user goes to the site to pay by alternative means.

And this is just a short list of complaints. Apple is being sued both in its home country in the United States over similar antitrust claims, and in some Canada over the case of slowing down older iPhone models. Almost the largest fine in India. There is even an investigation in the Congo.

Yes, and they are not indifferent to the products of a well-known company that continues its work, no matter what. New models of equipment are coming out, operating system updates are still exciting. And before the end of the year, a lot of interesting things await us - regardless of the number of cases and lawsuits.

From this we can draw two conclusions: global and local. The first is physically expressed in the fact that the legal department of Yabloko is most likely comparable to any of the technology departments. Attacks on the company occur once a week around the world. Most cases are not in the moment, but in the process - appeal, cassation, one instance, another - and so on. There is more than enough work. And these fines are a tip to the waiter. For a company that has about $30 billion in cash alone, paying one fine or another is a matter of technique. Now let's return to Russia.

No matter how sad it may be to realize, Apple doesn’t care about Russia at all. For Apple, this is a third world country, work with which takes place on autopilot somewhere deep in the system of a giant corporation.

Country-centricity is not a vice, but a property. We sit here like this and think that we are special, at the center of the world, everyone cares about us, and if something happens, it is directed against us personally. But in reality, Russia is just another region, and given the current restrictions, even more problematic than many others. And if you consider that Apple operates all over the world, Russia passes through the comma. Around after Congo.

So we return to our sheep, which are now becoming a little more difficult to pay for, and think about how to live further.

To begin with: at the beginning of 2026, having a Russian account in the infrastructure is possible and convenient at some points, but somehow strange - it is cursed in all respects. No fancy apps, no convenient payment. Of course, changing the region requires some kind of effort, apparently also moral - how am I, a Russian patriot, with the American App Store? But this is a question of the availability of entertainment and banal convenience, including paying for services and topping up your account. Gift cards, which only the lazy haven’t written about in recent days, are a great solution. And there is no need to ask anyone to buy it at the checkout of a foreign supermarket - the sale of codes for any denomination from any service has long become a developed and diverse business.

But if this is not enough, putting pressure on the parent company may well not be the worst decision. The chances are slim, but why not try. Hey, Apple, you are technically for everything good, kind, eternal, but you cooperate with the Kremlin! You have every opportunity to give us unlimited access to the Internet through iCloud Private Relay.

You have the opportunity not to comply with the decisions of the Tagansky Court - there are no risks: your colleagues from Google, who have a fine with a number of zeros that have long been indescribable, do not suffer at all about this. In the end, you can speak out - no matter what the issue.

However, the reality is a little sadder. No matter how you view your competitors, there is no alternative to Apple. Dreams of sovereignty no longer involve creating your own device, and everyone, young and old, still dreams of a new iPhone, which has long been more than just a smartphone. But the goal of the company itself is not the happiness of you and me, but profit. Including those notorious 30% of payments that the whole world is struggling with. And which Russia finally won - with an elegant ban.