Companies given two months to comply or face fines
Meta criticises the decision
Apple to appeal EU fine
BRUSSELS, April 23 (Reuters) - Applewas fined 500 million euros ($570 million) on Wednesday and Meta 200 million euros, as European Union antitrust regulators handed out the first sanctions under landmark legislation aimed at curbing the power of Big Tech.
The sanctions follow a year-long investigation by the European Commission, the EU executive, into whether the companies comply with the Digital Markets Act that seeks to allow smaller rivals into markets dominated by the biggest companies.
The EU competition watchdog said Apple must remove technical and commercial restrictions that prevent app developers from steering users to cheaper deals outside the App Store.
It said Meta’s binary pay-or-consent model introduced in November 2023 breached the DMA.
The model gives Facebook and Instagram users who consent to be tracked a free service that is funded by advertising revenues. Alternatively, they can pay for an ad-free service.
Meta is discussing with the EU a new version introduced in November last year. The companies have two months to comply with the orders or risk fines.
Apple avoided a fine in a separate investigation into its browser options on iPhones after making changes that allow users to switch to a rival browser or search engine more easily. Regulators said these comply with the DMA and closed the investigtion on Wednesday.
The iPhone maker was still charged with breaching the DMA rules by hindering users from downloading alternative app stores and apps from the web in a practice known as sideloading.
Regulators criticised Apple’s conditions, saying these disincentivise developers from using alternative app distribution channels on iOS and also requires them to opt for business terms that include a new fee called Apple’s Core Technology Fee.
The EU regulator also dropped Meta’s Marketplace’s designation as a DMA gatekeeper because the number of users fell below the threshold.
The Digital Markets Act has finally flexed its muscles. For the first time ever, it has been used to punish companies not compliant with the law.
The Digital Markets Act (DMA) came into effect two years ago, but no companies were sanctioned under the law until now. The European Union has slapped a hefty fine on Apple and Meta for violating the DMA.
The EU accused Apple of restricting alternative app marketplaces on its iOS platform, essentially reinforcing the dependency of both developers and consumers on the Apple Store. The Commission demands that Apple allow third-party app stores and supports sideloading applications, something the company staunchly opposes. Notably, regulators are unhappy with Apple’s Core Technology Fee. Apple has been fined €500 million for breaching the law. The company criticized the fine, arguing that these demands amount to a requirement to “give away our technology for free,” even as it has made some strides in improving user flexibility around default settings.
Meta incurred a fine of €200 million. The EU alleges that Meta’s “consent or pay” model violates DMA rules by failing to obtain genuine consent from users for data merging. In this controversial setup, users are left with the option to either allow data collection, or purchase a subscription for services like Facebook and Instagram. Meta has criticized the EU’s approach, claiming it is stifling successful American businesses and effectively imposing a multibillion-dollar tariff that leads to an “inferior service.”
dit is een footje voor die tech bedrijven.
ze hebben in de EU regelmatig boetes maar die bedrijven voelen dat niet.
ze moeten een paar honderd miljard boetes geven dan doen ze het nooit meer.
EDRi hekelt “lage boetes” Europese Commissie aan Apple en Meta
De Europese Commissie heeft Apple en Meta gisteren boetes van respectievelijk 500 en 200 miljoen euro opgelegd wegens het overtreden van de Digital Markets Act (DMA), maar burgerrechtenbeweging EDRi maakt zich zorgen of de “lage boetes” wel het gedrag van de techbedrijven zullen veranderen.
“Wij maken ons zorgen over de lage boetes, een schijntje voor Big Tech-bedrijven zoals Meta en Apple, zoals een recent onderzoek laat zien. Beide bedrijven hebben een verleden van het spelen van compliance-spelletjes met toezichthouders, waarbij ze het slechts als een formaliteit beschouwen”, aldus EDRi, die vindt dat Brussel hogere boetes had moeten opleggen. “Met hun werkwijze maken Apple en Meta het bijna onmogelijk voor mensen om controle over hun eigen digitale leven te hebben, allemaal omwille van bedrijfswinsten.”
Meta will call it a tariff in order to confuse the public into thinking this was due to the current tariff war and not for actually being in violation of any law. The smoke and mirrors will be brought out in force to make this seem unjust.
