Apple Escapes Immediate EU Fines, But Penalties Still Likely

Apple will not face immediate financial penalties from the European Commission if it fails to meet its Digital Markets Act (DMA) compliance deadline on June 26, despite previously receiving a €500 million fine for violations related to the App Store.

App Store vs EU Feature 2
The European Commission confirmed to Euronews that financial sanctions against Apple will not be automatically imposed once the company's 60-day grace period expires. The Commission spokesperson said that any further penalties will only follow a formal analysis of Apple's current conduct and a procedural exchange of findings between the regulator and the company.

Apple's grace period began in April 2025 and was part of an enforcement action taken after the Commission fined the company €500 million for breaching provisions of the DMA that require gatekeeper platforms to allow developers to inform users of alternative purchase options outside the platform's ecosystem. According to the Commission, Apple had prevented developers from steering users to alternative offers, thereby limiting user choice and competition in contravention of the DMA.

The DMA designates Apple as a "gatekeeper" platform subject to heightened obligations due to its entrenched market position. The legislation's objective is to promote fair competition and user choice by curbing exclusionary practices in digital markets. Apple, Meta, Alphabet, Amazon, ByteDance, and Microsoft are among the companies formally designated as gatekeepers under the regulation.

If Apple is ultimately found to remain non-compliant after the Commission's review, it may face periodic penalty payments of up to 5% of its average daily worldwide turnover for each day of continued violation. The DMA also allows for single-instance fines of up to 10% of annual global revenue, doubled for repeat offenses.

The European Commission has not provided a timeline for when its preliminary assessment of Apple's compliance will be completed, nor has it indicated when further enforcement actions might be taken. Until such a determination is made, Apple remains under the threat of potential financial penalties, but will not face immediate sanctions. The Commission's approach, as described to Euronews, is part of an "ongoing exchange" rather than a definitive compliance ruling.

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Top Rated Comments

Abazigal Avatar
14 weeks ago

Fully untrue. As an example, if the iPhone was as open as the Mac the EU would have no recourse. There are many things Apple could do, they just aren’t willing to do those things. The $3 trillion corporation isn’t a victim here.
I suspect that if the iPhone was as open as the Mac, it probably wouldn't have been anywhere near as successful as it is today. Just look at the state of android and the google play store today (higher incidence of piracy, malware and less developer support despite having greater market share). It's hard to take a look at that and go "Yeah, that's totally in the best interests of the consumer. Apple should totally copy that..."
Score: 13 Votes (Like | Disagree)
cocky jeremy Avatar
14 weeks ago

Apple are the biggest company in the world and in direct, sole control over an entire industry worth hundreds of billions of dollars. That is too much power in one hand.

I won't post it again but AT&T once owned the entire communications infrastructure of the USA and their break-up fostered all sorts of innovations, from cordless telephones to the very open internet we write on.

Had the US state not intervened then the entire internet would be like the App Store now, a closed platform of corporate rules instead of an open platform of free expression. That wouldn't have been a good thing.
Apple doesn't own the internet, and they don't want to. They just want total control over their own platform, and they should have it without a bunch of old, tech illiterate morons trying to hold them down.
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
I7guy Avatar
14 weeks ago

You'd prefer the entire internet lives under the totalitarian yoke of a massive corporation rather than existing as an infinite number of free communities?! The sheer number of innovations that sprang up from the AT&T case is uncountable. Apple wouldn't event exist!
Nobody can make such assumptions by revisionist history. The sheer number of innovations that lucent labs and what came out of what is now bell works in holmdel nj, was game changing for society. Anyway I don't support the dma. I don't care how big apple is, nobody is forced to buy their products and services. They are popular for a reason and it is not due to any act of congress.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
I7guy Avatar
14 weeks ago
Doesn’t matter what Apple does. There will always be way to determine Apple is not j compliance with some part of its ecosystem.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
contacos Avatar
14 weeks ago
This seems like such a wishy washy law that just writes itself as it pleases them. It’s kind of insane.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Ctrlos Avatar
14 weeks ago

Nobody can make such assumptions by revisionist history. The sheer number of innovations that lucent labs and what came out of what is now bell works in holmdel nj, was game changing for society. Anyway I don't support the dma. I don't care how big apple is, nobody is forced to buy their products and services. They are popular for a reason and it is not due to any act of congress.
They make great products but they do still operate a hideous amount of lock-in. Every time Safari suggest a strong password you'll never remember if asked to type it on another device you've put an extra lock on the gate. It's helpful, but it's also insidious.
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)