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Apple Hit With $115 Million Fine in Italy Over App Store Privacy Rules

MarketDash Editorial Team
1 day ago
Italy's competition watchdog has fined Apple $115.53 million for allegedly abusing its dominant position in the mobile app market, claiming the tech giant imposed unfair privacy requirements on third-party developers through its App Tracking Transparency framework.

Apple Inc. (AAPL) is having another expensive week in Europe. Italy's Competition Authority (AGCM) just slapped the iPhone maker with a 98.6 million euro fine, which translates to about $115.53 million, for what regulators say amounts to App Store bullying.

What Apple Allegedly Did Wrong

The AGCM's beef with Apple centers on how the company wields its "absolute dominance" over third-party app developers. According to Italian regulators, Apple crossed a line when it rolled out new privacy policies in April 2021 that treated outside developers far more harshly than its own apps.

Here's the specific complaint: Apple required third-party developers to use its App Tracking Transparency (ATT) prompt to get ad-related consent from users. Sounds reasonable on the surface, right? But the AGCM says Apple imposed unilateral and disproportionate terms that damaged partners and forced them to request duplicate consents without any clear privacy benefit. In other words, Apple made developers jump through extra hoops that didn't actually make users safer, just made life harder for anyone not named Apple.

The investigation kicked off in May 2023 and was conducted alongside the European Commission and other international competition authorities. It was, in the regulator's words, "highly complex," which is bureaucrat-speak for "this took forever and involved a lot of people."

Apple hasn't responded to requests for comment on the fine.

Apple's European Regulatory Headache Continues

If this feels like déjà vu, that's because Apple has become something of a regular fixture in European antitrust proceedings. Back in July, the company appealed a much larger €500 million ($586 million) fine from the European Union over App Store practices. That case focused on Apple preventing app developers from telling customers about cheaper alternatives outside the App Store and pushing them toward in-app purchases instead.

Then in November, things got even more complicated. Apple confirmed that both Apple Ads and Apple Maps hit the revenue thresholds under the EU's Digital Markets Act, which could result in them being labeled as "gatekeepers." That designation would trigger strict pro-competition obligations and potentially more regulatory oversight.

Around the same time, Apple and Meta Platforms Inc. (META) were reportedly working toward settlements with EU lawmakers on their respective antitrust cases. Both companies were in final-stage negotiations to modify various business practices after getting hit with a combined €700 million ($772 million) in fines back in April for violating the Digital Markets Act.

The pattern here is pretty clear: European regulators have decided that Big Tech platforms need to play by different rules, and they're willing to write very large checks to enforce that view.

How Apple Stock Is Performing

Despite the regulatory turbulence, Apple stock has held up remarkably well. Year-to-date, shares have climbed 12.23%, and on Friday they rose 0.54% to close at $273.67.

The company continues to score well on key performance metrics, placing in the 75th percentile for momentum and the 85th percentile for quality, reflecting strong fundamentals even as it navigates an increasingly hostile regulatory environment in Europe.

Back to Stock Market News

Apple Hit With $115 Million Fine in Italy Over App Store Privacy Rules

MarketDash Editorial Team
1 day ago
Italy's competition watchdog has fined Apple $115.53 million for allegedly abusing its dominant position in the mobile app market, claiming the tech giant imposed unfair privacy requirements on third-party developers through its App Tracking Transparency framework.

Apple Inc. (AAPL) is having another expensive week in Europe. Italy's Competition Authority (AGCM) just slapped the iPhone maker with a 98.6 million euro fine, which translates to about $115.53 million, for what regulators say amounts to App Store bullying.

What Apple Allegedly Did Wrong

The AGCM's beef with Apple centers on how the company wields its "absolute dominance" over third-party app developers. According to Italian regulators, Apple crossed a line when it rolled out new privacy policies in April 2021 that treated outside developers far more harshly than its own apps.

Here's the specific complaint: Apple required third-party developers to use its App Tracking Transparency (ATT) prompt to get ad-related consent from users. Sounds reasonable on the surface, right? But the AGCM says Apple imposed unilateral and disproportionate terms that damaged partners and forced them to request duplicate consents without any clear privacy benefit. In other words, Apple made developers jump through extra hoops that didn't actually make users safer, just made life harder for anyone not named Apple.

The investigation kicked off in May 2023 and was conducted alongside the European Commission and other international competition authorities. It was, in the regulator's words, "highly complex," which is bureaucrat-speak for "this took forever and involved a lot of people."

Apple hasn't responded to requests for comment on the fine.

Apple's European Regulatory Headache Continues

If this feels like déjà vu, that's because Apple has become something of a regular fixture in European antitrust proceedings. Back in July, the company appealed a much larger €500 million ($586 million) fine from the European Union over App Store practices. That case focused on Apple preventing app developers from telling customers about cheaper alternatives outside the App Store and pushing them toward in-app purchases instead.

Then in November, things got even more complicated. Apple confirmed that both Apple Ads and Apple Maps hit the revenue thresholds under the EU's Digital Markets Act, which could result in them being labeled as "gatekeepers." That designation would trigger strict pro-competition obligations and potentially more regulatory oversight.

Around the same time, Apple and Meta Platforms Inc. (META) were reportedly working toward settlements with EU lawmakers on their respective antitrust cases. Both companies were in final-stage negotiations to modify various business practices after getting hit with a combined €700 million ($772 million) in fines back in April for violating the Digital Markets Act.

The pattern here is pretty clear: European regulators have decided that Big Tech platforms need to play by different rules, and they're willing to write very large checks to enforce that view.

How Apple Stock Is Performing

Despite the regulatory turbulence, Apple stock has held up remarkably well. Year-to-date, shares have climbed 12.23%, and on Friday they rose 0.54% to close at $273.67.

The company continues to score well on key performance metrics, placing in the 75th percentile for momentum and the 85th percentile for quality, reflecting strong fundamentals even as it navigates an increasingly hostile regulatory environment in Europe.