'Brutal Battle' Expected as Regulators Close in on Apple Around the World

Experts anticipate a "brutal battle" between Apple and global regulators amid concerns about how the company may "exaggerate" its privacy and security claims for commercial gain and curtail interoperability to keep users locked into a "walled garden."

aapl logo banner
Global experts and leaders of competition policy convened at the Data, Technology, and Analytics Conference 2022 last week, hosted by the UK's Competition and Market Authority (CMA). The CMA's event came just weeks after it published its year-long study into Apple and Google's mobile ecosystems, which found that Apple and Google have an "effective duopoly" on mobile ecosystems that allows them to "exercise a stranglehold over these markets," including on operating systems, app stores, and web browsers.

"Without interventions," the press release claims, "both companies are likely to maintain, and even strengthen, their grip over the sector, further restricting competition and limiting incentives for innovators." The regulator subsequently sought to launch a wide-reaching "market investigation reference" into restrictions on mobile browser engines and cloud gaming on Apple's platforms.

Apple was represented at the conference by Chief Privacy Officer Jane Horvath, who discussed the importance of privacy in the context of competition and how privacy is a "cross-functional pursuit" at the company. She discussed examples of how privacy was a vital consideration when developing the Health app and the Apple Watch years before they debuted, as well as the journey toward App Tracking Transparency. Horvath also responded to the argument that Apple's privacy efforts may conveniently protect the position of a powerful incumbent.

Competition law Professor Dr. Damien Geradin of Tilburg University and Geradin Partners talked about the balance and understandings required when enforcing competition rules. With reference to the CMA's recently published Market Study, he said Apple often uses privacy and security "to justify the status quo and resist regulatory intervention, even when needed."

He explained that it is right for companies to protect the quality of their platforms, but that this can overstep the mark where there are conflicts of interest. Geradin concluded that it is vital regulators "distinguish between legitimate privacy and security claims and those that are pretextual or simply exaggerated."

Geradin went on to outline his expectations for how disputes between companies and regulators will pan out in the coming years as regulators around the world prepare to enforce unprecedented new rules for big tech companies. He was highly skeptical that there will be amicable collaboration between regulators and companies:

It will not go smoothly... I've seen studies commissioned by gatekeepers that were truly mindboggling... I think also that the DMA will trigger litigation, designation will trigger litigation, the DMU regime – tonnes of litigation. So I like the idea of [collaboration]... but in practice this will be a brutal battle. I'm betting on it. And if things can be done in a nice and smooth manner, I love it, but my prediction... is that this will be very, very challenging if you look at the rules in the DMA about the App Store – each and every of them will be challenged. There will be resistance to implement.

And I think it's legitimate in a way, if you disagree with a regulation, to challenge it and to push your view point, at the same time, I think there comes a moment where you need to implement and we're not there yet.

Writer and activist Cory Doctorow discussed how companies like Apple become both "durable and very big" with regards to competition. He used the example of how in the early 2000s Apple was forced to use interoperability to innovate and break Microsoft's dominance, when Steve Jobs ensured that Apple reverse-engineered Microsoft file formats to create the iWork Suite and allow Macs to proliferate in Microsoft-dominated networks.

What had been a walled garden had now become a feed-lot where Apple could go and gorge itself on Microsoft's formerly pent-up customers and that was a turning point for the Mac... and once you've got off the ladder you pull it up behind you and so... it's now very important that Apple stop anyone from doing unto Apple as Apple did unto Microsoft because Apple is the good kind of trillion-dollar cuddly company and Microsoft was the bad kind of trillion-dollar cuddly company. And it's true, it's often the case that Apple has your interests at heart, but sometimes they don't and one of the ways to make sure that they do is to have the option to leave.

Doctorow said that upholding interoperability is therefore vital to encourage companies to act in the interests of users and prevent abuses of market power.

Click to skip directly to Cory Doctorow.

Apple's ecosystem is increasingly coming under intense scrutiny by governments around the world, including in the United States, the United Kingdom, Japan, South Korea, the European Union, and more, with a clear appetite from global regulators to explore requirements around issues like app store policies, app sideloading, and interoperability amid concerns about competition.

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.

Popular Stories

maxresdefault

Five Features Coming to AirPods Pro 3

Friday June 27, 2025 10:52 am PDT by
Apple hasn't updated the AirPods Pro since 2022, and the earbuds are due for a refresh. We're counting on a new model this year, and we've seen several hints of new AirPods tucked away in Apple's code. Rumors suggest that Apple has some exciting new features planned that will make it worthwhile to upgrade to the latest model. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. Heal...
iPhone Car Key WWDC 2025

Apple Announces 13 Automakers Planning to Offer iPhone Car Keys

Friday June 27, 2025 11:42 am PDT by
In 2020, Apple added a digital car key feature to its Wallet app, allowing users to lock, unlock, and start a compatible vehicle with an iPhone or Apple Watch. The feature is currently offered by select automakers, including Audi, BMW, Hyundai, Kia, Genesis, Mercedes-Benz, Volvo, and a handful of others, and it is set to expand further. During its WWDC 2025 keynote, Apple said that 13...
anker power bank recall

PSA: Anker Recalls Multiple Power Banks Due to Fire Risk

Friday June 27, 2025 4:16 pm PDT by
Popular accessory maker Anker this month launched two separate recalls for its power banks, some of which may be a fire risk. The first recall affects Anker PowerCore 10000 Power Banks sold between June 1, 2016 and December 31, 2022 in the United States. Anker says that these power banks have a "potential issue" with the battery inside, which can lead to overheating, melting of plastic...
Chase Sapphire Reserve Apple Perk Feature

Chase Sapphire Reserve Card Introduces New Perk for Apple Customers

Wednesday June 25, 2025 2:08 pm PDT by
Chase this week announced a series of new perks for its premium Sapphire Reserve credit card, and one of them is for a pair of Apple services. Specifically, the credit card now offers complimentary annual subscriptions to Apple TV+ and Apple Music, a value of up to $250 per year. If you are already paying for Apple TV+ and/or Apple Music directly through Apple, those subscriptions will...
iPhone 17 Pro Blue Feature Tighter Crop

iPhone 17 Pro Launching in a Few Months With These 12 New Features

Thursday June 26, 2025 2:00 am PDT by
Apple's next-generation iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are around three months away, and there are plenty of rumors about the devices. Apple is expected to launch the iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Air, iPhone 17 Pro, and iPhone 17 Pro Max in September this year. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models:Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an...
A18 Pro Chip

New MacBook With A18 Pro Chip Spotted in Apple Code

Monday June 30, 2025 8:05 am PDT by
Apple is developing a MacBook with the A18 Pro chip, according to findings in backend code uncovered by MacRumors. Earlier today, Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo reported that Apple is planning to launch a low-cost MacBook powered by an iPhone chip. The machine is expected to feature a 13-inch display, the A18 Pro chip, and color options that include silver, blue, pink, and yellow. MacRumors...
macbook air spacegray purple

Apple Planning to Launch Low-Cost MacBook Powered By iPhone Chip

Monday June 30, 2025 3:20 am PDT by
Apple is planning to launch a low-cost MacBook powered by an iPhone chip, according to Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo. In an article published on X, Kuo explained that the device will feature a 13-inch display and the A18 Pro chip, making it the first Mac powered by an iPhone chip. The A18 Pro chip debuted in the iPhone 16 Pro last year. To date, all Apple silicon Macs have contained M-series...
CarPlay Ultra Climate Controls

Here's Which Vehicle Brands Will and Won't Offer Apple's CarPlay Ultra

Friday June 27, 2025 9:52 am PDT by
Apple last month announced the launch of CarPlay Ultra, the long-awaited next-generation version of its CarPlay software system for vehicles. There was news this week about which automakers will and won't offer CarPlay Ultra, and we have provided an updated list below. CarPlay Ultra is currently limited to newer Aston Martin vehicles in the U.S. and Canada. Fortunately, if you cannot...
apple watch ultra 2 new black

Apple Watch Ultra 3 Finally Coming After Two-Year Hiatus

Tuesday June 24, 2025 3:40 am PDT by
Apple will finally deliver the Apple Watch Ultra 3 sometime this year, according to analyst Jeff Pu of GF Securities Hong Kong (via @jukanlosreve). The analyst expects both the Apple Watch Series 11 and Apple Watch Ultra 3 to arrive this year (likely alongside the new iPhone 17 lineup, if previous launches are anything to go by), according to his latest product roadmap shared with...

Top Rated Comments

I7guy Avatar
40 months ago
The death of privacy will be bureaucrats regulating privacy.
Score: 44 Votes (Like | Disagree)
now i see it Avatar
40 months ago
“Lock-in” has become a meme. Countless people switch back & forth between Android & iOS all the time. There’s no lock-in, just laziness.
Score: 24 Votes (Like | Disagree)
jav6454 Avatar
40 months ago
Of course such battle will come in the form of lawsuits against government by companies other than just Apple. Everyone aiming for a piece of the pie.

The pie here is data collection, money and dominance of the market. No, no government official cares about the people; otherwise, they'd actually engage local constituents on a way forward.
Score: 21 Votes (Like | Disagree)
incoherent_1 Avatar
40 months ago
A viable competitor against Apple and Google in the smartphone field would be great. Lower prices, better features, and less lock-in. I'd probably still stick with Apple, but we'd all benefit.

That said, the way to get there is not through regulations drafted by government bureaucrats.
Score: 19 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Chaos215bar2 Avatar
40 months ago

A viable competitor against Apple and Google in the smartphone field would be great. Lower prices, better features, and less lock-in. I'd probably still stick with Apple, but we'd all benefit.

That said, the way to get there is not through regulations drafted by government bureaucrats.
Then what, pray tell, is the way to get there, if not through regulation?
Score: 18 Votes (Like | Disagree)
antnythr Avatar
40 months ago

may "exaggerate" its privacy and security claims for commercial gain and curtail interoperability to keep users locked into a "walled garden."
Of course this is what Apple is going to do. It's not that the claims that all their lock-in have no merit, it's that they are highly exaggerated. That's always been the issue. The world gets along just fine on MacOS, but all of a sudden it's an issue on the phone (where coincidentally they just so happen to have billions of dollars on the line from their lock on the garden doors).
Score: 16 Votes (Like | Disagree)