European Union

With the release of iOS 18.1 beta 2, Apple has apparently opened up access to Apple Intelligence for English speakers located in the European Union, something that was not possible in previous versions. One of the reasons Apple limited region access to Apple Intelligence was that it only supports US English. Another reason Apple Intelligence was previously not available in the EU was because ...

Despite pushback from Apple, the European Parliament in January voted overwhelmingly for new rules to establish a common charging standard for mobile device makers across the European Union. This article explores what form the EU laws might ultimately take and how they could affect Apple device users in Europe and elsewhere. What Exactly is the EU Calling For? To reduce cost, electronic...

Apple has filed an appeal against the European Union's Digital Markets Act interoperability requirements, calling the rules "deeply flawed" and a threat to user security (via The Wall Street Journal). Apple submitted its challenge to the EU's General Court in Luxembourg on May 30, targeting the Commission's March decision that requires Apple to make iOS more compatible with rival products...

Apple has been given until June 22 to bring the App Store into full compliance with the European Union's Digital Markets Act (DMA) or face recurring financial penalties following a €500 million fine imposed in April. The European Commission yesterday published its complete 67-page ruling outlining Apple's violations of the DMA's anti-steering provisions. The Commission concluded that Apple's ...

Apple is planning to give users in the EU the ability to set a default voice assistant other than Siri, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman and Drake Bennett. In a lengthy report about Apple's artificial intelligence shortcomings today, Gurman and Bennett said Apple plans to introduce this change across multiple software platforms, which likely means the iPhone, iPad, and Mac at a minimum. ...

Apple today clarified that it has not blocked Epic Games from updating the iOS Fortnite app in the European Union, but it is not planning to allow ‌Epic Games‌ to offer Fortnite in the United States App Store at the current time. In a statement to Bloomberg, Apple said that ‌Epic Games‌ tied its U.S. ‌App Store‌ submission to the update that was also being submitted to the ‌Epic Games‌ Store ...

Update: According to Apple, the user-disclosure screens have been live on the EU App Store since the beginning of Apple’s DMA Compliance Plan back in March 2024. The screen is not new. Original story follows. Apple has begun placing prominent warning labels on EU App Store listings that use alternative payment methods. The warning symbols appear as a red exclamation mark in a triangle,...

Apple's $570 million fine from the EU has triggered a sharp rebuke from the White House, which called the fine a form of economic extortion, Reuters reports. The fine was announced on Wednesday by the European Commission, following a formal investigation into Apple's compliance with the bloc's Digital Markets Act (DMA), a landmark piece of legislation aimed at curbing the market dominance of ...

The European Commission has fined Apple 500 million euros ($570 million) and Meta 200 million euros ($230 million) for violating the Digital Markets Act (DMA), in the first penalties ever issued under the new EU tech regulation. Apple was penalized for restricting app developers from informing users about alternative payment options outside the App Store. The Commission said it had...

Apple is on the cusp of releasing iOS 18.4, which brings Apple Intelligence to the European Union for the first time. However, iPhone Mirroring and SharePlay Screen Sharing is still missing from Apple's RC build of the operating system in the EU because of regulatory concerns. Apple this week seeded to developers and beta testers its RC (Release Candidate) build of iOS 18.4, which is meant...

The European Commission is set to close its year-long investigation into Apple's default browser choice screen on iPhones in the EU after the company made changes to comply with the requirements in the Digital Markets Act (via Reuters). The Commission launched a non-compliance investigation in March last year under the DMA, concerned that Apple's design of the web browser choice screen could ...

The European Commission today announced the decisions of its interoperability proceedings to assist Apple in complying with its obligations under the EU's Digital Markets Act (DMA), but Apple has come out swinging, calling them "bad for our products and bad for our European users." The DMA, which came into force last year, requires major platform holders or "gatekeepers" like Apple to...

The European Union plans to levy a "modest" fine against Apple for violating the Digital Markets Act (DMA), reports Reuters. Last year, the European Commission decided that Apple has not complied with the anti-steering rules outlined in the DMA, and that it has not done enough to allow developers to inform customers about lower prices available outside of the App Store. Back in June, then ...

iPhone and iPad users in the European Union now have access to another alternative app store with the official launch of Aptoide, a gaming marketplace. Aptoide has been around for quite some time as an app marketplace on Android devices, but the company began working on an iOS marketplace when Apple added support for sideloading apps last year. The marketplace has been in testing in a beta...

Apps that have not complied with the trader requirement in the European Union have been removed from the App Store, Apple informed developers today. The apps that have been removed will not be allowed back in the ‌App Store‌ until trader status is provided and verified by Apple. Disclosing trader status is a requirement of the Digital Services Act (DSA) in the EU. Developers who distribute...

In the European Union, the Digital Markets Act allows developers to distribute iOS apps through alternate app stores. While Apple checks those apps for malware and other malicious content, there are few restrictions on subject matter, unlike Apple's own App Store. As a result, EU users can now download the first dedicated native pornography app created for the iPhone. Called Hot Tub, the app ...

The European Union is "reassessing" its investigations into big U.S. tech companies like Apple, Meta, and Google, claims Financial Times, though a spokesperson from the European Commission has denied that such a review is taking place. Tech CEOs like Apple's Tim Cook and Meta's Mark Zuckerberg have been cozying up to president-elect Donald Trump as he prepares to take office, and Financial...

Apple has released a report highlighting its concerns about how some companies could "weaponize" the EU's Digital Markets Act (DMA) interoperability requirements to access sensitive user data. The report came on the same day that the European Commission began consulting on the proposed measures for requesting interoperability with Apple's iOS and iPadOS operating systems. The DMA, which came ...

Apple continues to roll out its Apple Intelligence features to Mac users in the European Union who are using macOS Sequoia 15.2 with supported settings and languages. However, the broader launch for iPhone and iPad users has been delayed due to regulatory considerations. The company has confirmed that Apple Intelligence will arrive for EU iPhone and iPad users in April 2025. The rollout will ...

Norwegian payment service Vipps has become the world's first company to launch a competing tap-to-pay solution to Apple Pay on iPhone, following Apple's agreement with European regulators to open up its NFC technology to third parties. Starting December 9, Vipps users in Norway can make contactless payments in stores using their iPhones. The service initially supports customers of SpareBank...

The European Commission has ended its antitrust investigation into Apple's App Store rules for ebook and audiobook apps, following the withdrawal of a complaint by an ebook distributor. Originally launched in June 2020, the investigation was sparked by a complaint from Rakuten's Kobo subsidiary. Kobo had argued that Apple's mandatory 30% commission on App Store purchases made it virtually...

The European Union has notified Apple that it may be violating EU anti-geo-blocking regulations with practices regarding its media services, giving the company one month to respond. The European Commission, in conjunction with the Consumer Protection Cooperation (CPC) Network, today announced that it has formally notified Apple regarding potential breaches of the EU's anti-geo-blocking...