While the Epic Games v. Apple antitrust suit is all but finished now, the iPhone maker may soon face another antitrust lawsuit, this time from the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ).
As reported by Bloomberg, who spoke with people familiar with the DOJ’s potential suit, it could come as soon as March, though the timing could slip.
Bloomberg reports that antitrust enforcers alleged Apple imposed software and hardware limitations on products like the iPhone and iPad that impede rivals from competing. The DOJ’s concerns echo those raised by music streamer Spotify, Bluetooth tracker company Tile, and messaging service Beeper. The Justice Department and Apple lawyers have reportedly met three times to discuss the potential suit.
The DOJ has been probing Apple since 2019 but chose to prioritize cases against Google. The U.S. government is also pursuing cases against Meta and Amazon.
The news comes after the U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear appeals from Apple and Epic Games in an antitrust lawsuit over App Store policies around in-app payments. That lawsuit mostly went in Apple’s favour, with the judge ruling that the company hadn’t violated federal antitrust law.
However, Apple was forced to allow developers to use alternative payment systems — Apple announced after the Supreme Court decision that it would still charge a 27 percent fee for most digital purchases or a 12 percent fee on subscriptions. Epic plans to contest the move, calling the change inadequate.
The DOJ reportedly was waiting on the Supreme Court’s decision before making its move.
Moreover, the department has been watching Apple’s moves in Europe as the European Union (EU) prepares its Digital Markets Act (DMA). New rules under the DMA will apply to the App Store, but Apple is appealing. Depending on how everything plays out, Apple may be forced to open up the App Store in Europe, which could lead the company to split the European App Store from the store in other regions.
Source: Bloomberg
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