Apple Faces Antitrust Probe Into Pre-Installed Apps, App Store, and More in Germany

Germany's Federal Cartel Office, the Bundeskartellamt, today initiated proceedings against Apple on the claims of anti-competitive behavior related to the App Store, its products, and other services, according to a press release.

homescreen ios14
The proceeding against Apple announced today will determine whether the Cupertino tech giant holds a "paramount significance across markets" and whether, through its ecosystem, Apple holds enough power to make it difficult for "other companies" to challenge it.

Andreas Mundt, president of Bundeskartellamt, issued the following statement on the initial proceedings:

We will now examine whether with its proprietary operating system iOS, Apple has created a digital ecosystem around its iPhone that extends across several markets. Apple produces tablets, computers and wearables and provides a host of device-related services. In addition to manufacturing various hardware products, the tech company also offers the App Store, iCloud, AppleCare, Apple Music, Apple Arcade, Apple TV+ as well as other services as part of its services business. Besides assessing the company’s position in these areas, we will, among other aspects, examine its extensive integration across several market levels, the magnitude of its technological and financial resources and its access to data. A main focus of the investigations will be on the operation of the App Store as it enables Apple in many ways to influence the business activities of third parties.

The press release is short on specifics on what the outcome of its investigation may lead to; however, the office says that if it determines a company to be of importance across markets, it may prohibit that company from "engaging in anti-competitive practices."

The office says it has received "various complaints relating to potentially anti-competitive practices," particularly related to the recent rollout of ATT or the App Tracking Transparency framework. In April, nine industry associations representing companies like Facebook and publisher Axel Springer filed an antitrust complaint to the federal office, claiming that Apple's ATT framework will severely hurt publishers and their bottom lines, deeming it a threat to their business.

According to the press release, another complaint that the office received related to the pre-installation of Apple's own apps on its devices. The office directly references section 19a of the German Competition Act, which states "the abuse of a dominant position by one or several undertakings is prohibited" as a potential clause that Apple may be violating.

Russia recently took the first major step against Apple for the pre-installation of its own apps, requiring the company to show users a screen to download government-approved apps during initial device setup. Similar legislation being proposed in the U.S. Congress would require Apple to give users the ability to delete all pre-installed Apple apps, instead of a select handful that users may currently delete.

The Bundeskartellamt also lists ongoing disputes regarding Apple's in-app purchasing system, which gives the tech giant a 30% commission of all purchases made and the restriction that apps may only be distributed on Apple devices through the company's ‌App Store‌ and not other third-party app marketplaces.

Update: Apple has provided us with this statement in response to the investigation.

Apple is proud to be an engine for innovation and job creation, with more than 250,000 jobs supported by the iOS app economy in Germany. The App Store's economic growth and activity have given German developers of all sizes the same opportunity to share their passion and creativity with users around the world while creating a secure and trusted place for customers to download the apps they love with the privacy protections they expect. Germany is also home to Apple's largest engineering hub in Europe, and a new €1bn investment in our European Silicon Design Center in Munich. We look forward to discussing our approach with the FCO and having an open dialogue about any of their concerns.

Top Rated Comments

Psychicbob Avatar
36 months ago
Ummm, that’s the main reason I buy Apple devices. It’s all integrated, I can see all my stuff across multiple devices etc. I buy into Apple because it IS ring fenced and controlled!
Score: 45 Votes (Like | Disagree)
W2u7Yw4HaD Avatar
36 months ago
Why is this not a problem with cars? How come I can't install and sideload any apps inside my car system? Tesla doesn't allow me to install some kind of carplay app or even have perhaps a music streaming service of my choice.. Honestly, I'm not sure this is all in the best interest of consumers.. Yes, the competition is good.. But if the cars get taken over by virus's and starting killing people, is that ok also? I continue to think the walled garden is a good choice.. Even if it limits dev's in some ways.. You know when they used to sell retail software in stores, the stores/wholesale pipeline took over 75% of the profits.. And was that not a problem before??
Score: 33 Votes (Like | Disagree)
itsmeaustend Avatar
36 months ago
Do these people want phones to come with 0 apps or what? How about we write our own OS while we’re at it?
Ridiculous.
Score: 18 Votes (Like | Disagree)
lorca2770 Avatar
36 months ago

Finally the governments around the world are going after the monopolistic dominance of the big tech. Long overdue.
First, learn and read what a monopoly is, then talk. Don’t let your preferences and sympathies dominate your reasoning. There are 1000’ of companies manufacturing phones that you can choose from.
Score: 14 Votes (Like | Disagree)
sinoka56 Avatar
36 months ago

Piracy is never a good thing.
How about installing apps that are against App Store rules? Side loading is not just piracy.
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
LFC2020 Avatar
36 months ago

Yup.

I think that's the most reasonable compromise. Add a setup screen where you get to pick default apps. Randomize those apps, and either have them curated (that comes with the problem: who does the curation?) or perhaps auto-generated based on App Store popularity.

Something like this, but for more types of apps:


If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it ? if people want spyware and malware, android is over there ?
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

reset password request iphone

Warning: Apple Users Targeted in Phishing Attack Involving Rapid Password Reset Requests

Tuesday March 26, 2024 4:34 pm PDT by
Phishing attacks taking advantage of Apple's password reset feature have become increasingly common, according to a report from KrebsOnSecurity. Multiple Apple users have been targeted in an attack that bombards them with an endless stream of notifications or multi-factor authentication (MFA) messages in an attempt to cause panic so they'll respond favorably to social engineering. An...
maxresdefault

Apple to Launch New iPad Pro and iPad Air Models in May

Thursday March 28, 2024 11:07 am PDT by
Apple will introduce new iPad Pro and iPad Air models in early May, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Gurman previously suggested the new iPads would come out in March, and then April, but the timeline has been pushed back once again. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. Apple is working on updates to both the iPad Pro and iPad Air models. The iPad Pro models will...
Generic iOS 18 Feature Purple

iOS 18: What to Expect From 'Biggest' Update in iPhone's History

Wednesday March 27, 2024 11:10 am PDT by
At least some Apple software engineers continue to believe that iOS 18 will be the "biggest" update in the iPhone's history, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Below, we recap rumored features and changes for the iPhone. "The iOS 18 update is expected to be the most ambitious overhaul of the iPhone's software in its history, according to people working on the upgrade," wrote Gurman, in a r...
maxresdefault

Apple Announces WWDC 2024 Event for June 10 to 14

Tuesday March 26, 2024 10:02 am PDT by
Apple today announced that its 35th annual Worldwide Developers Conference is set to take place from Monday, June 10 to Friday, June 14. As with WWDC events since 2020, WWDC 2024 will be an online event that is open to all developers at no cost. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. WWDC 2024 will include online sessions and labs so that developers can learn about new...
apple maps 3d feature

Apple Maps May Gain Custom Routes With iOS 18

Tuesday March 26, 2024 3:10 pm PDT by
Apple may be planning to add support for "custom routes" in Apple Maps in iOS 18, according to code reviewed by MacRumors. Apple Maps does not currently offer a way to input self-selected routes, with Maps users limited to Apple's pre-selected options, but that may change in iOS 18. Apple has pushed an iOS 18 file to its maps backend labeled "CustomRouteCreation." While not much is revealed...
General iOS 17 Feature Orange Purple

Apple Releases Revised Versions of iOS 17.4.1 and iPadOS 17.4.1 With Updated Build Number

Wednesday March 27, 2024 5:59 am PDT by
Apple on late Tuesday released revised versions of iOS 17.4.1 and iPadOS 17.4.1 with an updated build number of 21E237, according to MacRumors contributor Aaron Perris. The updates previously had a build number of 21E236. The revised updates are available for all iPhone and iPad models that are compatible with iOS 17 and iPadOS 17, but they can only be installed via the Finder app on macOS...
applephilschiller

Apple's Phil Schiller Works 80 Hours a Week Overseeing App Store

Wednesday March 27, 2024 2:03 pm PDT by
With the App Store and app ecosystem undergoing major changes in the European Union, The Wall Street Journal today shared a profile on App Store chief Phil Schiller, who is responsible for the App Store. Though Schiller transitioned from marketing chief to "Apple Fellow" in 2020 to take a step back from Apple and spend more time on personal projects and friends, he is reportedly working...