Tim Cook Meets EU Antitrust Chief Ahead of iPhone App Sideloading Deadline

Apple CEO Tim Cook yesterday met the European Union's antitrust chief, Margrethe Vestager, at Apple Park amid a series of disputes between the organizations.

margrethe vestager and tim cook
The meeting focused on European competition policy and digital regulation. On X (formerly Twitter), Vestager explained that she stressed Apple's impending obligation to allow users to install third-party app stores and sideload apps under the Digital Markets Act (DMA). They also spoke about ongoing investigations involving Apple, such as a complaint raised by Spotify against Apple Music, but Vestager declined to provide more specific detail of the discussion.

Apple is facing a range of challenges in the EU, such as a $14 billion tax dispute and a potential deal to open up the iPhone's NFC technology to payment services from rival companies. Most strikingly, new EU rules such as the DMA designate major tech companies as "gatekeepers" and compel them to open up their various services and platforms to other companies and developers. The DMA is expected to force Apple to make significant changes to the way the App Store, FaceTime, and Siri work in Europe. For example, Apple will be obliged to give developers the ability to promote their offers outside the ‌‌‌‌App Store‌‌‌‌ and use third-party payment systems.

Note: Due to the political or social nature of the discussion regarding this topic, the discussion thread is located in our Political News forum. All forum members and site visitors are welcome to read and follow the thread, but posting is limited to forum members with at least 100 posts.

Popular Stories

New Things Your iPhone Can Do in iOS 18

18 New Things Your iPhone Can Do in iOS 18.2

Wednesday November 13, 2024 2:09 am PST by
Apple is set to release iOS 18.2 next month, bringing the second round of Apple Intelligence features to iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 models. This update brings several major advancements to Apple's AI integration, including completely new image generation tools and a range of Visual Intelligence-based enhancements. There are a handful of new non-AI related feature controls incoming as well....
M4 MacBook Pros Thumb

M4 MacBook Pro Uses Quantum Dot Display Technology

Thursday November 14, 2024 4:19 pm PST by
The M4 MacBook Pro models feature quantum dot display technology, according to display analyst Ross Young. Apple used a quantum dot film instead of a red KSF phosphor film, a change that provides more vibrant, accurate color results. Young says that Apple has opted for KSF for prior MacBook Pro models because it doesn't use toxic element cadmium (typical for quantum dot) and is more...
AirPods Crackling Feature

Apple Customers Sue Over Unfixed AirPods Pro Crackling Issue

Wednesday November 13, 2024 11:01 am PST by
A trio of Apple customers this month filed a class action lawsuit against Apple, accusing the Cupertino company of violating California consumer protection laws and false advertising for continuing to sell AirPods Pro models that had ongoing issues with crackling or static sounds. A few months after the AirPods Pro came out in October 2019, buyers began to complain about crackling, rattling, ...
google gemini

Google Releases Standalone Gemini AI App for iPhone

Thursday November 14, 2024 2:54 am PST by
Google has launched its dedicated Gemini artificial intelligence app for iPhone users, expanding beyond the previous limited integration within the main Google app. The standalone app offers enhanced functionality, including support for Gemini Live and iOS-specific features like Dynamic Island integration. The new app allows iPhone users to interact with Google's AI through text or voice...
airtag purple

New AirTag Rumored to Launch in Mid-2025 With These Features

Sunday November 17, 2024 5:18 am PST by
Apple released the AirTag in April 2021, so it is now three over and a half years old. While the AirTag has not received any hardware updates since then, a new version of the item tracking accessory is rumored to be in development. Below, we recap rumors about a second-generation AirTag. Timing Apple is aiming to release a new AirTag in mid-2025, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman....

Top Rated Comments

TJ82 Avatar
11 months ago
Matching haircuts. Good start!
Score: 36 Votes (Like | Disagree)
oofio2461 Avatar
11 months ago
We have a right to do anything with the hardware WE buy. Apple is too over-controlling over the things we can and cant do.
Score: 24 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Spanky Deluxe Avatar
11 months ago
I'm unlikely to use side loading on my iPhone but the feature should be there. Call it 'installing' or something new aged like that. The place I *really* want this though is on the iPad.
Score: 23 Votes (Like | Disagree)
ashdelacroix Avatar
11 months ago

We have a right to do anything with the hardware WE buy. Apple is too over-controlling over the things we can and cant do.
Whilst I agree with this to a large extent, the problem here is that the EU isn't then merely "on the side of the consumer": it is the victim of billions of euros' worth of lobbying from Google, Microsoft and many others, to help bring down Apple a peg or two.

What we are seeing is not some pro-consumer EU but an EU at the bidding of corporations that want to "open up" Apple devices: open them up to third-party services such that Messages would be forced to integrate with Facebook's WhatsApp platform and Google's RCP Android services. You'll notice this would be to the prime benefit of Facebook and Google rather than to some one-man band with a little messaging service.

Even if Messages is not singled out in this way (I'm hearing conflicting information on whether Apple is a "gatekeeper" for this purpose), then it's still important to see how this is not merely a consumer protection but a boon to other billion-dollar corporations who seek to bring down Apple, its specific culture and its secure, walled garden (a garden I suspect 95% of Apple consumers rather like).
Score: 21 Votes (Like | Disagree)
citysnaps Avatar
11 months ago

I'm unlikely to use side loading on my iPhone but the feature should be there.
I'm OK with that as long as the iPhone owner bears responsibility for any adverse consequences that comes to them personally, or their iPhone, as a result.
Score: 15 Votes (Like | Disagree)
WarmWinterHat Avatar
11 months ago

jail cook if he refuses to allow sideloading worldwide.
Under what law, and explain exactly what laws apply worldwide?

Think before you post ridiculous stuff.


while I agree, if only this were true.
You never own software, it’s always a license.
Even windows, Microsoft can technically revoke your access on your PC at any time if they want to.
Then give us access to the bare hardware, without an OS. We can't get that, either, even at the end of a products lifespan/updates.

Microsoft can revoke your access to Windows, not to the computer itself. I can blow away Windows anytime I want and install another licensed copy, Linux, xBSD, whatever.
Score: 14 Votes (Like | Disagree)