FEATURE
In June of last year, the European
Commission opened investigations
into the App Store and Apple Pay for
anticompetitive practices. The App
Store investigation was prompted
by accusations from Spotify, among
others, who have alleged – similarly to
the Epic case – that Apple uses its clout
to stifle competition; on the Apple Pay
side, the suggestion is that Apple plays
unfairly with other payment apps by
reserving use of its NFC chips for its
own built-in software. No deadline
has been set for the investigations’
conclusions, but there is certainly
a good chance we’ll have further
developments in 2021.
Meanwhile, in the US, Apple has
found itself questioned by lawmakers
over issues related to privacy and
competition in the App Store. Apple
CEO Tim Cook was summoned before
Congress in the summer, along with
the leaders of several other tech firms,
though Apple received somewhat less
probing than the likes of Facebook
and Google. But that doesn’t mean
that there won’t be more to come: with
a new administration poised to take
office, Apple may find itself lumped
together with many of its counterparts
in Big Tech in an environment where
the government is far more interested
in regulating and legislating behaviour.