How Apple and Meta violated the EU’s Digital Markets Act
According to the European Commission, the DMA regulates gatekeepers, defined as “large digital platforms providing so called core platform services,” by forcing them to comply with their obligations and prohibitions. The goal of the law is to make the digital market more contestable and fairer to smaller rivals in the digital markets of Europe.
In the European Commission’s press release on the matter, they stated that Apple was fined for breaching its anti-steering obligation by imposing restrictions that kept app developers away from the advantages provided by alternative distribution channels. Additionally, the company kept consumers in the dark about these alternative offers by preventing developers from directly telling consumers about the offers.
Apple failed to prove that these restrictions were objectively necessary, and the Commission ordered the company remove the technical and commercial restrictions on steering. The fine of €500 million takes into account the gravity and duration of non-compliance.
Apple has also been issued a cease-and-desist. The order gives them until late June to make changes to the product. If they fail to comply, the Commission can fine for every additional day the breach the law.
Meta faces fines for the ‘Consent or Pay” model they introduced in November 2023, which gave Facebook and Instagram, users who consented to being tracked, a free service funded by advertising revenue. Other users could avoid ads by paying €5.99 a month on the Web or €7.99 a month on its apps. With this model, users chose between consenting to personal data combination for personalised advertising or paying a monthly subscription for an ad-free service.
This violated the DMA by not giving users the “required specific choice to opt for a service that uses less of their personal data but is otherwise equivalent to the ‘personalised ads’ service.” Furthermore, the model did not permit users to exercise their right to freely consent to the combination of their personal data. Meta’s fine of €200 million takes into account the time period between March 2024, when the DMA obligations became legally binding, and November 2024.
After multiple exchanges with the Commission, Meta introduced a new model in November 2024 with free personalised ad models that offers a new option to use less personal data when displaying advertisements. The Commision is currently assessing the new version, and requests that Meta provide proof of the impact the new model has in practice.
Both Apple and Meta are required to comply with the Commission’s decision within 60 days, the Commission continues its engagement with the two companies to ensure compliance.
– By Gwyneth Lee
