U.S. Antitrust Legislation Would Require Users to Be Able to Delete All Pre-Installed Apple Apps [Updated]

Update: Bloomberg inaccurately interpreted the original comments and has since drastically changed the wording of its article. The original Bloomberg piece said that Apple would be prohibited from pre-installing its own apps on iPhones.

The updated Bloomberg article has been rewritten to clarify that the antitrust legislation prohibits Apple from preventing users from removing Apple-created apps on their Apple devices, which is quite different.

Under the legislation, users would need to be permitted to remove any Apple-created app. Apple already allows many of its own apps to be deleted, but core apps like Messages, Photos, and Phone cannot be removed. The bill does NOT prevent Apple from pre-installing its own apps, it prevents Apple from blocking users from deleting pre-installed apps. Our original article is below.


Apple would not be permitted to sell iPhones with its own apps installed under proposed U.S. antitrust legislation that was released last week. Representative David Cicilline confirmed the self-preferencing ban in a discussion with reporters, details of which were shared by Bloomberg.

app store blue banner
Rather than pre-installed apps, Apple would have to offer other app options for consumers to download. Right now, iPhones come with a range of free Apple-designed apps from Messages and FaceTime to Calendar and Notes.

"It would be equally easy to download the other five apps as the Apple one so they're not using their market dominance to favor their own products and services," said Cicilline.

Preventing Apple from selling iPhones with its own apps installed would drastically change the iPhone's setup process, making it considerably less streamlined, more complicated, and potentially more expensive if customers were prompted to purchase or subscribe to third-party apps and services to replicate the functionality that Apple provides at no cost.

According to Cicilline, this would also apply to Amazon Prime because Amazon's ability to sell its own products over third-party products disadvantages some sellers.

U.S. House lawmakers last week debuted sweeping bipartisan antitrust legislation in the form of five different bills aimed at major tech companies like Apple, Amazon, Facebook, and Google. The bills would apply to businesses that have a market capitalization of $600 billion and at least 50 million monthly active users in the United States.

If passed, these bills would overhaul competition laws that have not been revisited for decades and would lead to significant changes in the tech industry. The House Judiciary Committee will review the five bills at a hearing next week.

Note: Due to the political or social nature of the discussion regarding this topic, the discussion thread is located in our Political News forum. All forum members and site visitors are welcome to read and follow the thread, but posting is limited to forum members with at least 100 posts.

Top Rated Comments

idmean Avatar
36 months ago
Ridiculous. That’s what it is.
Score: 141 Votes (Like | Disagree)
DocMultimedia Avatar
36 months ago
No camera app. No calendar app. No photos app. No weather app. No wallet, notes, home, FaceTime,...

What a ludicrous bill. Who will define an "apple app"?
Score: 91 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Absolute Trainwreck Avatar
36 months ago
this is what happens when the show is run by old people whose technical expertise extends to sometimes logging into aol to check their mail. Can’t wait till we age out of that generation honestly
Score: 82 Votes (Like | Disagree)
SueperDrive Avatar
36 months ago
This is definitely not user friendly.
Score: 75 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Serban55 Avatar
36 months ago
and after that google, samsung and the others...this is hard to believe that will happen...
An empty phone...from where do you install the apps since that implies the app store will not to be on the iphone since app store is an APP by apple
The IQ level is very low...and it will not happen
Maybe Cicilline is trolling us
Score: 74 Votes (Like | Disagree)
_Spinn_ Avatar
36 months ago
How is this a win for consumers? Shipping a phone that is missing basic functionality because you have to hunt for the apps in the store is a terrible experience.
Score: 70 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

iPhone 16 Camera Lozenge 2 Perspective Gray

Five Key Upgrades Coming to iPhone 16

Friday March 15, 2024 1:45 pm PDT by
The iPhone is Apple's top-selling product, and it gets an update every year. In 2024, we're expecting the iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Pro lineup, with an arguably more interesting feature set than we got with the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Pro. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. Capture Button All four iPhone 16 models are set to get a whole new button, which will be...
iphone se 4 modified flag edges

iPhone SE 4 Expected to Depreciate Heavily

Tuesday March 12, 2024 9:04 am PDT by
Resale value trends suggest the iPhone SE 4 may not hold its value as well as Apple's flagship models, according to SellCell. According to the report, Apple's iPhone SE models have historically depreciated much more rapidly than the company's more premium offerings. The third-generation iPhone SE, which launched in March 2022, experienced a significant drop in resale value, losing 42.6%...
apple wallet drivers license feature

Apple Said iPhone Driver's Licenses Would Expand to These 8 U.S. States… Two Years Ago

Thursday March 14, 2024 7:33 am PDT by
In just four U.S. states, residents can add their driver's license or ID to the Apple Wallet app on the iPhone and Apple Watch, providing a convenient and contactless way to display proof of identity or age at select airports, businesses, and venues. Adoption of the feature has been slow since Apple first announced it in September 2021, with IDs in the Wallet app only available in Arizona,...
airpods 3 orange

Two New AirPods 4 Models Expected to Launch in September or October

Sunday March 17, 2024 7:56 am PDT by
Apple suppliers will begin production of two new fourth-generation AirPods models in May, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Based on this production timeframe, he expects the headphones to be released in September or October. Gurman expects both fourth-generation AirPods models to feature a new design with better fit, improved sound quality, and an updated charging case with a USB-C...
When To Expect New iPads Feature 1

Apple to Announce New iPads on March 26, Rumors Claim

Monday March 18, 2024 4:02 am PDT by
Apple is widely expected to release new iPad Air and OLED iPad Pro models in the next few weeks. According to new rumors coming out of Asia, the company will announce its new iPads on Tuesday, March 26. Chinese leaker Instant Digital on Weibo this morning 日发布%23">claimed that the date will see some sort of announcement from Apple related to new iPads, but stopped short of calling it an...
OLED iPad Air

iPad Air Next on Apple's OLED Tablet Roadmap Following iPad Pro

Friday March 15, 2024 3:30 am PDT by
The iPad Air will be the next Apple tablet to adopt OLED display panel technology following its upcoming OLED iPad Pro models, according to an updated forecast from research firm Omdia (via The Elec). "In 2028, we expect the iPad Air to go OLED as well, with the iPad Air using single-stack and the iPad Pro using two-stack tandem OLEDs," said Omdia researcher Kang Min-soo, speaking on...
Walmart MacBook Air M1

Walmart Begins Selling MacBook Air With M1 Chip for $699 in U.S.

Friday March 15, 2024 6:57 am PDT by
Walmart today announced that it has started selling the MacBook Air with the M1 chip in the U.S., with pricing set at a very reasonable $699. The laptop can be ordered now on Walmart.com, and it will be available soon at select Walmart stores. This is the first time that customers can purchase a Mac that is sold directly by Walmart, the company said in a press release. Some other retailers...