The European Union has opened full-fledged investigations into Apple Inc., Alphabet Inc.'s Google, and Meta Platforms Inc.'s compliance with the stringent new legislation limiting the influence of big tech. These companies are feeling the heat. The European Commission said on Monday that the first investigations under the bloc's Digital Markets Act would focus on Google's and Apple's policies regarding their app stores, as well as any potential bias in Google's search results towards its own services and Apple's practice of making it more difficult for users to select browsers other than Safari.
New subscription fees
The investigation into the new membership costs for Meta's Facebook and Instagram platforms may impose a substantial fine of up to 10% of global revenue, or up to 20% in the event of recurrent breaches. Our suspicion is that the solutions proposed by the three corporations do not fully adhere to the DMA, said EU antitrust chief Margrethe Vestager. We should not take these lightly.
Apple's Price Structure and Amazon's Market Rankings
Apple's new price structure for third-party app stores and Amazon's marketplace ranking strategies may come under increased scrutiny for Apple, Google, and Meta. Oliver Bethell, Google's director of competition, stressed the tremendous adjustments the company has made in Europe, while Apple voiced confidence in its compliance with the DMA. The company created its products to meet regulatory requirements, according to a representative for Meta.
Ongoing antitrust probes at Apple
The Justice Department and sixteen attorneys general recently filed a lawsuit in addition to the ongoing antitrust probes Apple is facing in the US. Many have questioned if the commission is "jumping the gun" given the timing of the EU probes, which began so soon after the DMA went into effect. Vestager said, "I definitely don't think that this is rushed; it is very timely," in defence of the timing.
Six tech giants
The DMA imposes new restrictions and requirements on six major tech companies: Apple, Google, Amazon, Meta, ByteDance Ltd., the company that owns TikTok, and Microsoft Corp. This entails Apple opening up its ecosystem of iPhone apps so that consumers can obtain programmes from the internet and other online retailers. On the other hand, Google continues to investigate Meta's Facebook Marketplace and is addressing its fourth EU abuse of dominance complaint.
As the probes continue, the tech giants are bracing themselves for potential fines and further investigation as regulators aim to rein in their power and ensure fair competition in the digital marketplace.
Image Source: Multiple Agencies
(Inputs from agencies)
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