EU Court Upholds Apple's Gatekeeper Designation for App Store and iOS
The ruling confirms that the EU can enforce competition rules on Apple's core platform services, limiting the company's ability to challenge the gatekeeper designation and required interoperability.
Reporting from 1 source: GIGAZINE.
The EU General Court dismissed Apple's lawsuit challenging its designation as a gatekeeper under the Digital Markets Act. The court upheld the European Commission's decision that the App Store across Apple devices constitutes a single core platform service, and that iOS meets the gatekeeper criteria. Apple's claims regarding iMessage were ruled inadmissible. The ruling means Apple must comply with DMA obligations to ensure fair competition.
The EU General Court has ruled against Apple's attempt to overturn its gatekeeper designation under the Digital Markets Act. The court upheld the European Commission's decision that the App Store, across iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple TV, and Apple Watch, is a single core platform service. Apple had argued each device's App Store should be considered separate, but the court found the differences are device characteristics, not enough to distinguish multiple services. The court also dismissed Apple's claims about iMessage as inadmissible, since iMessage is not designated as a gatekeeper. The ruling means Apple faces full DMA obligations, including potential fines of up to 10% of global annual revenue for non-compliance.
Synthesized by Yomimono from the 1 cited source below, including Japanese-language reporting where cited, then editorially reviewed before publishing.