Apple Set to Be First EU Tech Giant Charged Under Digital Markets Act

TapTechNews on June 14, the Financial Times reported that Apple will become the first large tech company in the EU to be charged under the Digital Markets Act.

Three sources said that the European Commission has determined that Apple has not fulfilled the obligation of allowing app developers to 'direct' users to use services other than its AppStore without charging them, and it is expected that the official will issue an announcement in the next few weeks.

In addition to Apple, the European Commission is also conducting investigations against Google Alphabet and Microsoft to determine whether the two companies comply with competition rules.

Insiders said that the regulator has only made preliminary investigation results, and Apple still has the possibility to take remedial measures, which may lead to the EU regulator re-evaluating its decision.

Referring to TapTechNews' previous report, with the release of iOS 17.4, Apple has launched many measures to meet the requirements of the EU's Digital Markets Act, including allowing the use of alternative app stores, providing new business terms for developers, and supporting third-party browser engines, etc.

However, Apple's new policy has been criticized by many large companies such as Meta, Epic and Spotify, who believe that Apple is being slick and it is malicious compliance.

Apple lawyer Kyle Andeer said that Apple is more considering these changes from the perspective of the user experience rather than that of the developers':

I think we're approaching it from the user's perspective. It's not to say that we don't pay attention to the impact on developers, but I think from our perspective, the first priority is that we will very carefully examine the impact of all these changes on the user experience that we have provided to customers through the iPhone for 15 or 16 years.