Global Courant
European Commission Executive Vice-President for a Europe fit for the digital age (competition), Margrethe Vestager, holds a press conference on “Apple on App Store rules for music streaming providers” on April 30, 2021 in Brussels, Belgium. (Photo by Dursun Aydemir/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)
Dursun Aydemir | Anadolu | Getty Images
The European Union launched an investigation on Monday Apple, Alphabet And Metain his first investigation under the sweeping new technology legislation in the Digital Markets Act.
“Today, the Commission opened non-compliance investigations under the Digital Markets Act (DMA) into Alphabet’s rules on Google Play steering and self-preference on Google Search, Apple’s rules on steering in the App Store and the selection screen for Safari and Meta’s ‘payment or consent model’,” the European Commission said in a statement.
The first two investigations focus on Alphabet and Apple and relate to so-called anti-steering rules. Under the DMA, technology companies cannot prevent companies from informing their users about cheaper options for their products or about subscriptions outside of an app store.
“The way Apple and Alphabet have implemented the DMA anti-steering rules appears to violate the letter of the law. Apple and Alphabet will still charge various recurring fees and continue to restrict steering,” says Margrethe Vestager, EU competition chief. , he said during a press conference on Monday.
Apple has already breached EU rules. This month, the company was fined 1.8 billion euros ($1.95 billion) after the European Commission found that Apple had imposed restrictions on app developers that prevented them from informing iOS users about alternative and cheaper music subscription services that are available outside the app.
In a third investigation, the Commission said it is examining whether Apple has met its DMA obligations to ensure users can easily delete apps on iOS and change default settings. The investigation also focuses on whether Apple actively gives users choices that allow them to change the default services on iOS, such as for the web browser or search engine.
The Commission said it is “concerned that Apple’s actions, including the design of the web browser selection screen, may deter users from effectively exercising their choice of services within the Apple ecosystem.”
Apple said it believes it is in compliance with the DMA.
“We are confident that our plan is consistent with the DMA, and we will continue to work constructively with the European Commission as it conducts its investigations. Teams at Apple have created a wide range of new developer capabilities, features and tools to comply with regulations,” an Apple spokesperson told CNBC on Monday.
The fourth investigation focuses on Alphabet, as the European Commission investigates whether the company’s display of Google search results “may lead to self-preference toward other Google services, such as Google Shopping, over comparable competing offerings.”
“To comply with the Digital Markets Act, we have made significant changes to the way our services operate in Europe,” Oliver Bethell, director of competition at Alphabet, said in a statement.
“We have worked with the European Commission, stakeholders and third parties at dozens of events over the past year to receive and respond to feedback and balance competing needs within the ecosystem. We will continue to defend our approach in the coming months.”
Alphabet pointed to a blog post from earlier this month in which the company outlined some of these changes — including giving Android phone users the ability to easily change their default search engine and browser, and making it easier for people to see comparisons. sites related to shopping or flights in Google searches.
Meta-research
The fifth and final study focuses on Meta and its so-called ‘pay and consent’ model. Last year Meta introduced one ad-free subscription model for Facebook and Instagram in Europe. The Commission is investigating whether offering the subscription model without advertising or agreeing to the terms and conditions for the free service violates the DMA.
“The Commission is concerned that the binary choice imposed by Meta’s ‘pay or consent’ model may not provide a real alternative in the event that users do not consent, thus defeating the purpose of preventing the accumulation of personal data by gatekeepers is achieved.”
Thierry Breton, EU Commissioner for the Internal Market, said at a press conference that Meta should offer “free alternative options” for its services that are “less personal.”
‘Gatekeepers’ is a label for large technology companies that are required to comply with the DMA in the EU.
“We will continue to use all available tools should any gatekeeper attempt to circumvent or undermine the DMA’s obligations,” Vestager said.
Meta said subscriptions are a common business model across industries.
“Subscriptions as an alternative to advertising are a proven business model across many industries, and we designed Ad-Free Subscriptions to meet several overlapping regulatory obligations, including the DMA. We will continue to work constructively with the Commission,” a Meta spokesperson said. CNBC said this on Monday.
Tech giants are at risk of fines
The Commission said it plans to complete its investigations within 12 months, but Vestager and Breton stressed at Monday’s briefing that the DMA is not setting a firm deadline for the investigation’s timeline. The regulators will inform the companies of their preliminary findings and explain what measures they are taking or what the gatekeepers should take to address the Commission’s concerns.
If a company is found to have violated the DMA, the Commission can impose fines of up to 10% of the technology companies’ total global turnover. For repeated violations, these fines can increase to 20%.
The Commission said it is also seeking facts and information to clarify the question Amazon could favor its own brand products over competitors on its e-commerce platform. The Commission is further studying Apple’s new pricing structure and other conditions for alternative app stores.
This month, the tech giant announced that users in the EU would be able to download apps from websites instead of through its own App Store – a change that Apple has resisted for years.
The EU investigation into Apple and Amazon does not include official investigations.
