Canadian app says removal from App Store reflects broader anticompetitive practices.
Canadian application Rave, a platform that allows groups to watch videos synchronously from different locations, has filed a complaint against Apple with Brazil’s antitrust regulator (CADE).
The filing, submitted last week to Brazil’s competition authority, is one of several coordinated actions the company has launched worldwide against what it describes as an offensive by the U.S. technology giant.
In a statement, Rave said it had also filed complaints challenging Apple’s practices in the United States, Canada, the Netherlands and Russia, in addition to Brazil.
The requests seek to restore users’ access to the Rave app and defend free competition among app developers. In Brazil, the case will be reviewed by Cade’s General Superintendence, which will assess whether there is sufficient evidence to open an investigation and potentially recommend sanctions or seek settlements.
The Canadian app became widely known during the pandemic for allowing synchronized video streaming (known as co-viewing) while also creating a communication channel for the group watching together remotely.
“They grew significantly during the pandemic and have a substantial number of downloads and users,”
Marcela Mattiuzzo, a lawyer at Brazilian law firm VMCA representing Rave, told Valor.
Apple did not comment on the complaint.
The legal actions began after Apple removed the Canadian app from its App Store at the end of 2025, without providing explanations that Rave considered convincing regarding the reasons for the decision.
“This is not simply a dispute between Rave and Apple, but an example of the conflicts developers face with Apple and evidence of the structural problem in the way it controls the app store and acts unilaterally,”
said Mattiuzzo. According to the lawyer, the central issue is that the app competes directly with Apple’s own SharePlay feature, which is limited to iPhone and iPad devices.
Rave, by contrast, allows shared viewing experiences across different operating systems.
“At the limit, Rave represents a threat to Apple because it offers an escape valve from the closed ecosystem the company has built,” Mattiuzzo said. “It reflects the logic of a closed ecosystem that prevents communication with users on other devices.”
In addition, because Rave’s business model is entirely advertising-based — users are not charged for access — Apple also does not collect any fees from the app. Apple only receives commissions when users make payments within the app.
Source: Valor International
