Apple shares tumbled on Monday after European regulators hit the tech giant with a big antitrust fine over music streaming. This latest setback raises the question: How can Apple get its groove back? The European Commission dished out a $1.95 billion fine — claiming Apple violated competition laws in the music streaming market. It’s one of the biggest penalties ever given to a tech company by the executive arm of the European Union. Apple has prevented rival streaming developers from informing iOS users about cheaper music subscriptions outside of its App Store, European regulators alleged. Apple plans to appeal the fine and said in a heated response that Spotify, a company headquartered in Europe, has been the “primary advocate for this decision” and the “biggest beneficiary.” Apple and Spotify have rival audio streaming services. “Spotify has the largest music streaming app in the world, and has met with the European Commission more than 65 times during this investigation,” the American iPhone maker said in a statement. “Spotify has a 56 percent share of Europe’s music streaming market — more than double their closest competitor — and pays Apple nothing for the services that have helped make them one of the most recognizable brands in the world.” Jim Cramer said Monday that European regulators view Apple and other American companies as cash cows. “Every six months, they ask for a check from our Big Tech companies,” he added. AAPL YTD mountain Apple (AAPL) year-to-date performance Shares of Apple dropped 2.5% on Monday as the European Commission’s fine announcement added to a series of recent woes for the company. So far this year, the stock has dropped 9% versus the S & P 500 ‘s 7.5% year-to-date advance. Apple has also been this year’s worst performer among our Super Six . Even Alphabet , which has been battling its own setbacks, has only declined roughly 4.5% year to date. The rest of them — Amazon , Meta Platforms , Microsoft and Nvidia — have…
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