Italy’s competition authority, the Autorita Garante della Concorrenza e del Mercato (AGCM), has imposed a fine of €98.6 million on U.S. technology giant Apple, accusing the company of abusing its dominant position in the mobile app market through the operation of its App Store.
AGCM Findings on App Store Dominance
In a statement issued on Monday, the AGCM said Apple holds “absolute dominance” in its dealings with third-party app developers through the App Store. According to the regulator, this position allowed Apple to impose unilateral conditions that were detrimental to developers and in violation of European competition rules.
The watchdog concluded that Apple’s conduct restricted fair competition by placing disproportionate obligations on third-party developers, particularly in relation to user data collection and advertising practices, Reuters news report said.
Probe Launched in 2023
The investigation was opened in May 2023 and focused on changes Apple introduced from April 2021. The AGCM alleged that Apple penalised third-party app developers by applying a more restrictive privacy policy to them, while maintaining greater flexibility for its own services.
At the centre of the case is Apple’s App Tracking Transparency, or ATT, framework. Under ATT, developers must request explicit user consent before tracking activity across apps and websites for advertising purposes.
Concerns Over App Tracking Transparency Rules
According to the AGCM, Apple required third-party developers to obtain specific consent for data collection and data linking through the ATT prompt imposed by the company. The regulator said these terms were enforced unilaterally and were not proportionate to the stated goal of protecting user privacy.
“The terms of the ATT policy are imposed unilaterally, they are detrimental to the interests of Apple’s business partners and are not proportionate to achieving the objective of privacy,” the AGCM said, adding that the process does not comply with privacy regulations.
The authority also noted that developers were forced to duplicate consent requests for the same purpose, creating additional friction and potentially disadvantaging third-party apps in comparison with Apple’s own offerings. AGCM conducted its investigation in coordination with the European Commission and other international antitrust regulators.
Apple’s Response and Planned Appeal
Apple said it strongly disagrees with the decision and argued that the ruling disregards the importance of privacy protections offered by ATT. The company said ATT was designed to give users a clear and simple way to decide whether apps can track their activity across other apps and websites. Apple added that the rules apply equally to all developers, including Apple itself, and reiterated its commitment to defending strong privacy protections for users. The company confirmed it will appeal the AGCM’s decision.
