EU Reportedly Planning to Charge Apple for Violating Digital Markets Act

The European Commission plans to charge Apple for violating the Digital Markets Act after determining that the iPhone maker is not complying with obligations to allow app developers to "steer" users to offers outside of the App Store without fees, according to the Financial Times, which cites three people familiar with the matter.

App Store vs EU Feature 2
It appears that the EU is taking issue with Apple's Core Technology Fee, but the exact charges that it allegedly plans to bring against Apple are unclear.

Apple could face non-compliance fines of up to 5% of its average daily worldwide revenue, which is currently just over $1 billion, according to the report.

The report said the EU's findings are preliminary, so Apple may still have time to make any necessary changes on iOS before the charges are formally laid by regulators. In the event the EU moves forward with the charges, they would be formally announced by the European Commission over the "coming weeks," the report added.

Apple made major changes to the App Store, Apple Pay, Safari, and more on the iPhone in the EU as part of iOS 17.4 earlier this year. Apple now allows alternative app marketplaces, but it still charges a Core Technology Fee. Apple also introduced a default web browser selection screen in Safari, now allows third-party web browsers to use web engines other than its own WebKit engine on the iPhone, and now allows third-party mobile wallet apps to access the iPhone's NFC chip for contactless payment functionality.

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

iOS 18 Siri Personal Context

Report Reveals Internal Chaos Behind Apple's Siri Failure

Thursday April 10, 2025 7:15 am PDT by
A new report from The Information today reveals much of the internal turmoil behind Apple Intelligence's revamped version of Siri. Apple apparently weighed up multiple options for the backend of Apple Intelligence. One initial idea was to build both small and large language models, dubbed "Mini Mouse" and "Mighty Mouse," to run locally on iPhones and in the cloud, respectively. Siri's...
Apple 2025 Thumb 1

10 Products Still Coming From Apple in 2025

Friday April 11, 2025 4:14 pm PDT by
Apple may have updated several iPads and Macs late last year and early this year, but there are still multiple new devices that we're looking forward to seeing in 2025. Most will come in September or October, but there could be a few surprises before then. We've rounded up a list of everything that we're still waiting to see from Apple in 2025. iPhone 17, 17 Air, and 17 Pro - We get...
M6 MacBook Pro Feature 1

Waiting for the Perfect MacBook Pro? 2026 Might Be the Year

Thursday April 10, 2025 4:19 am PDT by
Apple in October 2024 overhauled its 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro models, adding M4, M4 Pro, and M4 Max chips, Thunderbolt 5 ports on higher-end models, display changes, and more. That's quite a lot of updates in one go, but if you think this means a further major refresh for the MacBook Pro is now several years away, think again. Bloomberg's Mark Gurman has said he expects only a small...
maxresdefault

The MacRumors Show: New iOS 19, iPhone 17, and Apple Watch Ultra 3 Leaks

Friday April 11, 2025 7:13 am PDT by
On this week's episode of The MacRumors Show, we catch up on the latest iOS 19 and watchOS 12 rumors, upcoming devices, and more. Subscribe to The MacRumors Show YouTube channel for more videos Detailed new renders from leaker Jon Prosser claim to provide the best look yet at the complete redesign rumored to arrive in iOS 19, showing more rounded elements, lighting effects, translucency, and...
Alleged iOS 19 Icons Front Page Tech

iOS 19 Leak Reveals Alleged New Design With Rounder App Icons, Floating Tab Bar, and More

Monday April 7, 2025 3:13 pm PDT by
YouTube channel Front Page Tech is back today with another video that provides a closer look at iOS 19's alleged design changes. The video contains re-created renders of iOS 19, which are allegedly based on real footage of the software update, provided by sources within Apple. Overall, iOS 19 is expected to have a more glass-like, visionOS-inspired design, with added translucency for user...
iPhone 17 Pro 3 4ths Perspective Aluminum Camera Module 1

iPhone 17 Pro Launching Later This Year With These 12 New Features

Sunday April 13, 2025 7:52 am PDT by
While the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of April 2025: Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro models have a titanium frame, and the iPhone ...
Apple Northbrook

Apple Store in Chicago Area Permanently Closing Later This Month

Wednesday April 9, 2025 9:56 am PDT by
Apple will be permanently closing its store at the Northbrook Court shopping mall in the Chicago suburb of Northbrook on April 26, the company has announced. Apple has added the following notice to the store's web page:Thank you Northbook. Apple Northbrook is closing on April 26 at 7pm. We're still here for you. Please visit apple.com/retail to find your nearest store.Apple Northbrook opened ...
iOS 18

iOS 18.5 Includes Two Changes So Far

Wednesday April 9, 2025 9:09 am PDT by
Apple released the first beta of iOS 18.5 last week, and so far the software update includes only two minor changes. The changes are in the Mail and Settings apps. In the Mail app, you can now easily turn off contact photos directly within the app, by tapping on the circle with three dots in the top-right corner. In the Settings app, there is some new AppleCare+ information. For ...
apple intelligence black

NYT: Apple's AI Struggles Began with 2023 Chip Budget Dispute

Friday April 11, 2025 4:33 am PDT by
Apple's current struggles with Apple Intelligence and Siri began in early 2023 when AI head John Giannandrea sought approval from CEO Tim Cook to purchase more AI chips for development, according to a new report from The New York Times. Cook initially approved doubling the team's chip budget, but CFO Luca Maestri reportedly reduced the increase to less than half that amount, and instead...

Top Rated Comments

turbineseaplane Avatar
11 months ago
Fantastic news

It's time to start with some ramifications for the continual blatant disregard for the spirit of the EU regulations and their intent

Apple apparently thinks they can just make a mockery of regulations
It's time to remind them who's in charge in a jurisdiction (not them)
Score: 63 Votes (Like | Disagree)
turbineseaplane Avatar
11 months ago
If your idea for a multinational tech company is "leave a very large market", rather than comply with regulations of said market....

I'd question your organizational leadership ideology, quite frankly
Score: 44 Votes (Like | Disagree)
DaSal Avatar
11 months ago
Good. Apple needs to comply with European law if it sells products in Europe. Just like how European countries have to comply with US law to operate in the US. It's kind of bizar how many people in this thread seem to imply that US companies somehow don't have to respect local laws. Why wouldn't they? That's how business works in every country. Any company always has to comply with the local laws of the country in which they're operating. Why would it be any different for Apple?

People also seem to be forgetting that there's also an antitrust case against Apple in the US, for many of the same reasons as in the EU.

The idea of Apple pulling out of the EU is, simply, absurd. The costs of complying are minuscule compared to the profits they'd lose if they pulled out of the EU.

Also, anyone in this thread who's enjoying playing on an emulator on their iOS device should be thanking the EU for these laws, since the Digital Markets Act is the only reason Apple now allows emulators in the App Store.
Score: 44 Votes (Like | Disagree)
turbineseaplane Avatar
11 months ago

Tickle me surprised, government not liking the outcomes of legislation, expected to be handled by company.
"Company blatantly disregarding the clear and easy to understand intent and spirit of the regulation"
Score: 37 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Apple Mac Daz Avatar
11 months ago
It was always heading this way sooner than later
Score: 31 Votes (Like | Disagree)
cocky jeremy Avatar
11 months ago
Get out, Apple. It will never end if you don't. These morons hate success.
Score: 29 Votes (Like | Disagree)