Rave Inc., the developer of the popular cross-platform co-viewing app Rave, has filed antitrust lawsuits against Apple in the United States, Canada, Brazil, the Netherlands, and Russia. The company claims Apple improperly removed its app from the App Store to stifle competition with Apple’s own SharePlay feature.
The lawsuits, announced Thursday, challenge what Rave describes as Apple’s “unilateral and anticompetitive decision” to boot the app, which has surpassed 225 million downloads. Rave allows users on iOS, Android, Windows, and macOS devices to synchronously watch videos, movies, and TV shows together in real time while chatting or using voice communication.
According to the complaints, Apple’s action harms consumers by limiting choice in co-viewing services and raising switching costs between iPhone and rival smartphones. Rave alleges that its cross-platform functionality threatened Apple’s closed iOS ecosystem, prompting the removal to protect Apple’s dominance in smartphone co-viewing through its iPhone-only SharePlay service.
“Apple’s pretextual removal of Rave from the App Store has harmed consumers significantly by limiting choice and effectively preventing Apple customers from co-viewing and connecting with non-Apple customers,” said Michael Pazaratz, CEO of Rave, in a statement. “Apple’s actions denied users access to a product they enjoy, disrupted the communities built on Rave and impaired Rave’s ability to compete fairly based on the strength of its product.”
Pazaratz added that the case extends beyond Rave, warning that unchecked gatekeeper power by platforms like Apple discourages innovation among app developers. “As long as Apple’s ‘gatekeeper’ power remains unchecked, no developer operating within Apple’s ecosystem can ever be secure,” he said.
The move comes amid broader global scrutiny of Apple’s App Store policies, including ongoing disputes with developers and regulators over alleged monopolistic practices. Apple has not yet publicly commented on the new lawsuits.
Rave is seeking restoration of its app to the App Store in the relevant jurisdictions and remedies to promote fair competition for developers and greater choice for consumers.
MacDailyNews Take: Apple has not publicly commented on the removal or the new lawsuits. However, the company routinely enforces App Store guidelines on:
• Fraud or deceptive practices.
• Inadequate content moderation (especially for user-generated or shared content that could include explicit material, scams, or illegal content).
• User safety and privacy risks.
Independent reports and user discussions around the time of removal highlighted potential issues with Rave, including:
• Unmoderated public chat rooms.
• Reports of pornography, scams, and even child sexual abuse material (CSAM) concerns.
• Malware detections or security flags on other platforms (e.g., Windows Defender, Google Play Protect, Kaspersky, Bitdefender).
Apple’s Developer Program License Agreement gives it broad discretion to remove apps “with or without cause” to protect the ecosystem.
This is the same predictable playbook we’ve seen time and again: Developers flock to the App Store for its massive, high-spending user base, rock-solid security, and curated experience. Then, when Apple enforces rules — often for very good reasons — the rejected parties run to regulators and courts screaming monopoly. It’s not competition they want; it’s a free ride on Apple’s dime while demanding special treatment.
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