The EU launched an antitrust investigation and lawsuit against Apple, arguing that Apple used its monopoly position in the iOS system to limit the choices of competitors and consumers, and undermined market fairness and innovation. The EU requires Apple to open up its iOS system to third parties, including app stores, payment systems, and browser engines. These changes will affect iPhone users in the European Union, giving them more freedom to choose app stores, payment methods, services, and more.
Apple has refuted the EU's antitrust lawsuit, saying the EU's allegations are "contrary to fair competition" because Apple's goal is to provide users with a simple and secure way to pay, and Apple Pay is just one of the many options for European consumers to use mobile payments. Apple also said that Spotify has become the world's largest ** subscription service, that it wants to enjoy all the benefits of the App Store, but is not willing to pay anything for it, and that its complaints are based on its own financial interests, not for the benefit of users. Apple also pointed out that its App Store offers a huge opportunity for developers to reach hundreds of millions of users around the world, and that it has the lowest commission rate in the industry, and that only a few developers have to pay these commissions.
Recently, however, Apple was forced to open up its iOS system in the EU to allow third-party app stores and browser engines. According to Apple's blog post on its official website, in order to meet the requirements of the European Union's Digital Markets Act (DMA), Apple will make a series of changes to the iOS system in the EU by March 2024.
These changes include allowing developers to create third-party app stores and distribute apps there, subject to a security audit through Apple's notary system and a €1 million letter of credit issued by a Grade A financial institution. It also includes changes to the fee model for developers, including lower commissions on the App Store, core technology fees, and allowing third-party payment systems. It also includes an open NFC system for iPhones, allowing users to customize which apps wake by default when a card reader is detected, rather than the Wallet app that comes with iOS. It also includes opening up third-party browsers and in-app browsers on iOS, allowing the use of browser engines other than WebKit, such as Chromium and Gecko. These changes will allow iPhone users in the EU to have more freedom to choose app stores, payment methods, services, etc., breaking Apple's closed ecosystem, but they may also bring some security and privacy risks.
After all, Apple is still defeated in front of the EU.