Apple has failed in its attempt to challenge a ruling by a German court, which upheld a regulatory decision subjecting the company to stricter antitrust oversight.
In its ruling, Germany’s Federal Court of Justice upheld the classification of the iPhone-maker as a company with significant market power.
This will allow antitrust regulators greater flexibility to scrutinise its business practices.
In doing so, the court supported the German cartel office’s 2023 designation of Apple as a “company of paramount cross-market significance for competition”.
“The products and services that Apple offers are highly vertically integrated, closely interconnected and largely reserved for users of Apple devices,” the court said, as reported by BNN Bloomberg.
“This is the basis for what the company itself calls the Apple ecosystem.”
The ruling places Apple alongside other tech giants such as Google parent Alphabet and Facebook owner Meta, which are also subject to potential measures to curb their dominance in Germany.
This decision aligns with a global trend where regulators aim to open markets to rival start-ups and offer consumers more choices, reported Reuters.
The European Commission’s Digital Markets Act (DMA), which became law in 2023, serves as a benchmark in these efforts.
In March 2024, the European Union (EU) initiated an investigation into Apple, Alphabet, and Meta under the DMA legislation.
Recently, it was reported that Apple along with Meta Platforms could potentially face fines for breaching the DMA.
The company, however, expressed disagreement with the German court’s decision.
“It [the decision] neglects the value of a business model that places the privacy and security of users at its centre,” an Apple representative was quoted by Reuters as saying.
The court’s decision not to consult with the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg, as requested by Apple’s legal team, further solidifies the ruling.
Apple’s App Store has been under particular scrutiny in Europe due to concerns over data collection practices.
Andreas Mundt, president of Germany’s national competition regulatory agency, welcomed the court’s decision.
Mundt, as reported by Reuters, said: “This means that the highest court has confirmed that Apple is subject to stricter abuse control.
“Our ongoing review of Apple’s tracking regulation for third-party apps is therefore on a solid footing, and we are working flat out on this case and other cases against the major internet companies.”
“Apple loses German court battle – faces stricter oversight” was originally created and published by Verdict, a GlobalData owned brand.
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