TECH NEWS – The situation for the Cupertino-based tech giant is not so simple. Proceedings are ongoing against Apple in several areas.
Third parties generally have free access to Android devices’ NFC-based contactless payment technology. However, Apple Pay only began offering relatively unrestricted access to its NFC technology in the EU in 2024 after facing significant pressure from the European Commission. Additionally, Apple has provided access to its NFC technology to Swiss third-party payment providers since at least the end of 2024. Switzerland, which is not a member of the EU, launched a competition investigation against Apple Pay through the Swiss Competition Commission. The preliminary investigation will determine if other mobile payment app providers can effectively compete with Apple Pay for contactless in-store payments using iOS devices and if the conditions for granting access comply with Swiss competition law.
In the Epic case, a court recently ordered Apple to allow third-party payment methods and enable Fortnite’s return. A 2021 ruling also called on Apple to remove barriers to third parties, a directive that the tech giant has largely ignored. On April 30, Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers found Apple guilty of willfully violating the order and prohibited the company from collecting commissions on all purchases made outside the App Store. Apple appealed the decision. The U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals now agrees with the spirit of Judge Gonzalez’s order but finds that the penalty imposed on Apple is excessive in some respects. The court notes that the commission ban is not a sufficiently limited civil penalty.
“Accordingly, we reverse the April 30 Order in part and remand it to the district court. Otherwise, we affirm the April 30 Order. However, Apple is not in the clear just yet. The court has asked the tech giant to meet with Epic to determine an appropriate commission rate for external payments. Otherwise, a competent court will make the determination. Importantly, Apple cannot collect commissions on payments outside the App Store until the determination has been finalized. Note, however, that Epic appears unwilling to compromise. The company’s CEO, Tim Sweeney, recently stated in an interview that he cannot imagine any justification for assessing a percentage of developer revenue here. This situation has set a legal precedent, prompting consumers in other markets to demand similar privileges. For example, Epic recently asked the Australian court to allow its apps to be sideloaded onto Apple devices without paying any commission,” the ruling claims.
Apple was recently designated a “gatekeeper” under the EU’s Digital Markets Act (DMA) because it exceeded the minimum user threshold and maintained its monopoly in the App Store. This designation applies to organizations that can block competition due to their market dominance. To qualify, an organization must have a market capitalization of €75 billion or generate at least €7.5 billion in revenue from the EU over the past three fiscal years. It must also have at least 45 million monthly active end users and more than 10,000 annual active business users in the last financial year. Furthermore, the organization must have met the second criterion in each of the last three financial years. The EU also granted gatekeeper status to Apple’s iOS and iPadOS systems. As part of the consequential remedies, the EU forced Apple to allow third-party app stores to appear on its devices.
In March 2024, Apple amended its terms for app developers operating in the EU in response to coordinated pressure. Those who signed up for the amended program can now pay Apple a lower percentage of their total revenue from apps. According to the DMA, organizations must notify the EU immediately when they meet the criteria for gatekeeper status. Apple has notified the EU that its Maps and Ads services meet the threshold required for the official designation. The EU now has 45 days to decide whether to impose further antitrust remedies on these two services. If approved, Apple will have six months to implement the necessary antitrust measures.
Apple has agreed to pay hundreds of millions of dollars in damages in an antitrust lawsuit filed in a Dutch court. Two Dutch consumer foundations, Right to Consumer Justice and App Store Claims, accused Apple of abusing its dominant position by charging external app developers excessive fees.
Regardless, Poland’s antitrust regulator, UOKiK, has launched an official investigation into Apple for allegedly violating its ATT rules to display personalized ads on its platforms, including the App Store. Under the ATT framework, Apple assigns an anonymous identifier (without personal data) to each device. Under ATT, Apple assigns an anonymous identifier (without personal data) to each device. Third-party app developers can then ask users for consent to track their activity using this identifier. However, the Polish competition authority recently claimed that Apple does not request user consent under the ATT framework for its own apps and platforms. If Apple’s apps and platforms are not subject to the ATT framework, then it can theoretically use the identifier to serve personalized ads to users without asking for consent.
Finally, a group of approximately 55 Chinese consumers filed a formal antitrust complaint against Apple with the Chinese market regulator. They argue that Apple maintains a monopoly on app distribution and payment methods in China while allowing payments outside the App Store and third-party app stores in other markets.
Source: WCCFTech, ESA, Paddle, Bloomberg, Thomson Reuters, The Verge, 9to5mac, Macfarlanes
