Jan 13 (Reuters) - Apple's ( AAPL ) new fees for app

developers have come under fresh scrutiny from the European

Union's antitrust regulators on concerns it could inflate costs

for software makers, Bloomberg news reported on Monday, citing

people familiar with the matter.

The regulators have recently circulated a new round of

questionnaires focusing on Apple's ( AAPL ) new "core technology fee",

the report said.

EU's fresh scrutiny also comes at a time when Big Tech

bosses have urged President-elect Donald Trump to challenge EU's

regulatory scrutiny against American technological firms.

Apple ( AAPL ) and the European Commission did not immediately

respond to Reuters' requests for comment. The company's shares

were down 1.8% in early trading.

The new charge of 0.50 euros ($0.5102) per installed app

levied on developers was introduced by the company to comply

with the bloc's Digital Markets Act (DMA).

The DMA imposes what the world's largest tech platforms can

and cannot do, and can impose fines up to 10% of a company's

annual revenue.

Regulators are checking whether the re-jigged levies could

be passed on to consumers, or if developers may have to tweak

their own business models due to Apple's ( AAPL ) new fee structure, the

report said.

They also asked whether the firm's prediction that the new

system will help reduce costs for developers is accurate or not.

The Cupertino, California-based company has faced mounting

pressure from regulators in the U.S. and Europe over the fees it

charges third-party developers distributing apps through the App

Store. It says 85% of developers on its App Store do not pay any

commission at all.

($1 = 0.9801 euros)