Apple faced a significant setback from the European Union on Wednesday, with the EU court upholding regulations aimed at curbing big tech companies. The legal dispute revolves around rules that classified its operating system iOS and app stores as gatekeepers, subjecting them to various obligations to ensure fair competition in the tech sector.
These rules are stipulated in the EU Digital Markets Act (DMA), which outlines a list of “dos and don’ts” for big tech firms. Non-compliance could result in fines amounting to 10 percent of a company’s global annual turnover. Since its implementation in 2023, the DMA has attracted legal responses from various tech companies, including Apple, Meta, and ByteDance.
The new ruling will strengthen the position of EU antitrust regulators against Apple’s growing criticism over these regulations. The tribunal dismissed Apple’s actions regarding its designation as a gatekeeper for the App Store and iOS, stating that irrespective of the devices in question, those stores serve the same purpose – to connect app developers with end users to facilitate software application distribution.
The tribunal also reiterated the inadmissibility of Apple’s action regarding the iMessage service. In response, Apple issued a statement citing that the decision to uphold DMA erodes privacy protections. The company believes the DMA’s mandate goes beyond what is lawful and proportionate, threatening decades of privacy and security protections it has built and leaving users vulnerable to new risks.
Despite the ruling, Apple still has an opportunity to file an appeal in Europe’s court, the Court of Justice of the European Union. The legal challenge began in 2024 when the EU Commission classified all its five App Stores on iPhones, iPads, Mac computers, Apple TVs, and Apple Watches as a single platform service under the DMA.