The European Union (EU) is investigating tech giants Apple, Google, and Meta for potential violations of new digital competition rules. If found in breach, these companies could face fines of up to 10% of their annual global sales, according to the European Commission.
The Commission has warned that Apple, Google, and Meta may not be adhering to the new digital competition rules, opening investigations that could result in significant fines.
These investigations come just 18 days after tech giants were compelled to comply with the Digital Markets Act, opening up their services to competitors.
The EU executive body will examine Alphabet, the parent company of Google, and Apple’s efforts to allow developers to direct consumers to offers outside their app stores. Additionally, Google will be investigated to determine if its search results favor shopping, flight bookings, or other specialized search services over competitors.
Google’s lawyer, Oliver Bethell, stated that the company has made significant changes to its operations in Europe and will continue to defend its approach in the coming months.
Furthermore, Apple will be scrutinized for its measures allowing users to exert more effort in customizing their devices by uninstalling software or changing default settings, or by using choice screens to prompt users to select a browser or search engine for their phones.
The Commission stated that Apple’s actions, including the design of the web browser selection screen, may prevent users from exercising their choice of services genuinely within the Apple ecosystem.
The committee raised concerns that Meta’s payment or consent model for social media platforms like Facebook or Instagram, which requests subscription fees to avoid ad tracking, may not provide a genuine alternative when users face a binary choice between paying or not paying for the service.
Thierry Breton, the EU’s Internal Market Chief, expressed serious doubts that consent is truly free when faced with a binary choice, either payment or non-payment for the service.
Matt Ballarde, a spokesperson for Meta, stated that subscriptions as an alternative to advertising “is a well-established business model in many industries.”
The committee has 12 months to conclude these investigations, and companies could face fines of up to 10% of their annual global sales if the Commission finds violations.
The EU is also examining Amazon to ascertain if it favors its private label products over third-party sellers on its platform. Additionally, it will scrutinize Apple’s new fee structure and other terms and conditions for downloading apps from outside its app store.
