Brussels, 02/04/2015 (Agence Europe) - According to a report in the Financial Times on Thursday 2 April, the European Commission is examining the relationship between Apple, record companies and digital music companies to verify whether the US giant is using its influence to illegally restrict free music services financed by advertising. Questionnaires are reported to have been sent to record companies and digital music companies. Apple is planning to launch its own online music service in the summer that would offer unlimited listening but, unlike Spotify, it would not be free and financed by advertising. The Commission is concerned that Apple could use its influence to persuade labels to abandon free, ad-supported services such as Spotify, which depend on licences with music companies for their catalogues. The collection of information does not automatically lead to the opening of a formal investigation. The Financial Times also reports that the Commission's several-year investigation into Google is nearing completion. (Elodie Lamer)