iPhone manufacturer Apple could face billions in fines: The EU Commission in Brussels announced in a preliminary statement on Monday that the US company’s App Store violates the competition rules for digital companies that have been in force since March. According to the Commission’s assessment, Apple is preventing app developers from selling their products via alternatives to the App Store.
The terms and conditions for the App Store prohibit providers such as Netflix or Spotify from providing information about prices in their apps and from taking out subscriptions directly in the app. Apple also charges fees that go “beyond what is absolutely necessary.”
This is the first time that the EU competition authorities have made specific allegations under the Digital Markets Act, which came into force at the beginning of March. Brussels now has until the end of March next year to complete the investigations. If the allegations are confirmed, Apple could face billions in fines.
With the Digital Markets Act (DMA), the EU wants to limit the market power of so-called gatekeepers of the Internet. In addition to Apple, the regulations also apply to Google’s parent company Alphabet, Amazon, TikTok’s parent company Bytedance, Meta and Microsoft. Investigations are already underway against Google and Meta.
