Italy

Tap to Pay on iPhone today launched in Italy, allowing individual sellers, major retailers, and small businesses to use the ‌iPhone‌ as a contactless payment terminal. Retailers are able to take advantage of the NFC chip in the ‌iPhone‌ to accept credit and debit card payments, as well as Apple Pay and other digital payment options. Tap to Pay on ‌iPhone‌ does not require additional hardware ...

An administrative court in Italy today scrapped a €173.3 million ($170.4 million) fine leveled at Apple and Amazon last year for alleged anti-competitive cooperation when selling Apple and Beats products, Reuters reports. In November 2021, Italy's antitrust watchdog hit Apple and Amazon with a €200 million ($196 million) fine in the culmination of an investigation that began in 2020 over...

Apple and Google were today fined 10 million euros ($11 million) by Italy's Competition Authority for allegedly using user data for commercial purposes without their explicit consent, an apparent violation of Italy's Consumer Code. The authority claims that both Apple and Google utilize user data they collect through their services for promotional and economic activity without the user's...

Apple and Amazon were today fined a total of more than 200 million euros ($225 million) by Italy's antitrust authority for alleged anti-competitive cooperation in the sale of Apple and Beats products, reports Reuters. The fines are the culmination of an investigation that began last year over allegations that the two companies had been blocking the sale of Apple and Beats devices to...

In July of this year, Apple began testing its revamped Maps experience across Italy, following rollouts in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Portugal, and Spain. Apple has now officially launched those Maps improvements in Italy, San Marino, Vatican City, and Andorra, according to MacStories. The update brings a raft of previously unavailable Maps features to the...

Apple has previewed Apple Via del Corso, its newest retail location in a vibrant center of Rome, Italy. Apple says the store preserves the grand Palazzo Marignoli, paying homage to Rome's rich history of art and culture, and making it one of the company's most significant restoration projects. Sitting next to the Piazza San Silvestro public square, the store is spaced over two floors...

Italian consumer association Altroconsumo today announced that it has launched a class action lawsuit [PDF] against Apple for planned obsolescence (via Reuters). Altroconsumo is seeking damages of 60 million euros on behalf of Italian consumers who were "tricked" by the practice, with the lawsuit covering the iPhone 6, ‌iPhone‌ 6 Plus, ‌iPhone‌ 6s, and ‌iPhone‌ 6s Plus."When consumers buy...

Apple has been slapped with a 10 million euro ($12 million) fine by Italy's antitrust watchdog for unfair commercial practices related to its iPhone marketing in the country. One of the Apple ads cited in the Italian watchdog's proceedings (credit: setteBIT) Specifically, Apple is being charged for misleading claims in promotional messages about how deep and how long iPhones can be submerged...

Italy's antitrust regulator has today opened another inquiry into Apple for allegedly improper commercial practices with regards to cloud computing services (via Reuters). The investigation will also look into the practices of Google and Dropbox, in addition to Apple. The L'Autorit Garante della Concorrenza e del Mercato (AGCM) did not release further information or state how long the...

Apple and Amazon are under investigation by Italy's antitrust regulator over allegations that the two companies have been blocking the sale of Apple and Beats devices to resellers in order to stifle competition (via Reuters). The L'Autorit Garante della Concorrenza e del Mercato (AGCM) is looking into the allegation, which has been made by legal but unauthorized resellers who could...

Apple CEO Tim Cook today announced on Twitter that Apple is making a substantial donation that includes medical supplies to Protezione Civile in Italy, with the funds set to help first responders, medical personnel, and volunteers working to combat the spread of the coronavirus in the country. Apple last week said that it has made multiple donations to the global COVID-19 response to help...

Apple is closing all of its retail stores in Italy as the coronavirus outbreak in the country continues to spread, with the stores set to be shuttered as of March 12. Apple's website for Italian stores says that due to precautionary health measures currently in force, retail locations will remain closed until a later date. Italian customers are instructed to get online support for their...

"Today at Apple" sessions have been suspended at all Apple Stores in Italy through at least March 19, as noted by setteBIT and iMore, presumably as a precautionary measure due to the ongoing COVID-19 coronavirus outbreak. Italy has been hit particularly bad by the coronavirus outbreak, with nearly 4,000 infections reported in the country, according to the latest data compiled by Johns Hopkins...

Apple will temporarily close one of its retail stores in Italy as the government grapples with the spread of COVID-19 in the country, which has experienced the worst outbreak of coronavirus in Europe so far. Image via SetteBIT Apple Oriocenter in the province of Bergamo will be closed on March 7 and 8, according to Apple's regional website, on orders from the Italian government. The...

Last year, the Italian Competition Authority hit Apple with a 10 million euro fine over "dishonest commercial practices" related to an iPhone performance management system it introduced in iOS 10.2.1 without informing customers. The antitrust watchdog said the update was a form of planned obsolescence. As a result of the investigation, Apple has been forced to add a consumer protection...

Nearly one year after reports began circling about Apple's throttling of older iPhones with degraded batteries, Italy's antitrust authority is now fining Apple 10 million euros (about $11.5 million USD) for "planned obsolescence" of its smartphones (via The Korea Herald). The fine on Apple follows Italy's investigation into iPhone battery slowdowns that began back in January, and the Italian...

Apple Pay Cash, Apple's mobile peer-to-peer payments service, could be available sooner rather than later in some European markets. French tech blog iPhon.fr reports today that an iPhone user in France discovered screens on his new Apple Watch and iPhone XS Max overnight inviting him to set up Apple Pay Cash using a credit card issued by a French bank. Similar reports are also coming in from...

Apple today premiered this week's opening of Apple Piazza Liberty in the center of Milan, Italy. Set to open its doors on Thursday, the retail location features a dramatic glass fountain that serves as the entrance to the store and a backdrop to the large outdoor amphitheater. The piazza, clad in Beola Grigia, a stone used throughout Milan, will be open to the public 24 hours a day and will...

Apple Maps now includes transit information for Estonia and the city of Rome, Italy, enabling users in the areas to navigate with public transportation. In Rome, transit data covers the city's public metro lines, buses, and tram routes, as well as the local Trenitalia network which includes the Leonardo Express that connects Roma Termini station and Roma Fiumicino airport in Lazio....

Italy and South Korea on Thursday joined a growing list of countries in which class-action lawsuits and government investigations into Apple's iPhone battery slowdowns are underway. Italy's antitrust body revealed it had opened a probe into allegations that Apple used iOS updates to slow older smartphones and push clients into buying new models (via Reuters). The Italian watchdog said Apple...