The European Union (EU) announced on Monday that Apple's iPad operating system, iPadOS, will be subjected to more stringent regulations under the Digital Markets Act (DMA), aimed at reigning in the dominance of major digital companies.
Designating iPadOS as a "core" service under the DMA places it alongside other Apple products already under scrutiny, including iOS for iPhones, the App Store, and the Safari browser, which were included since September.
As per the DMA regulations, companies designated as "gatekeepers" must comply with various rules, including facilitating interoperability with competitors' communication services and restricting data sharing among products of the same parent company.
Apple's inclusion in the list of gatekeepers puts it in the company of tech giants such as Google parent Alphabet, Amazon, TikTok owner ByteDance, Meta, and Microsoft.
This move marks another chapter in the ongoing conflict between the EU and Apple over the bloc's digital legislation. Apple has been vocal in its criticism of the DMA, citing concerns over user privacy and security.
The European Commission stated that iPadOS was designated as a core service due to its role in locking users into the iPad ecosystem. It highlighted Apple's leverage of its ecosystem to discourage users from switching to alternative operating systems and its influence over business users, particularly in sectors like gaming apps.
Apple has been given a six-month deadline to comply with the DMA gatekeeper regulations. Margrethe Vestager, the EU's competition commissioner, emphasized that the decision aims to ensure fairness and competition across various platforms.
In response, Apple affirmed its commitment to engaging with the European Commission to comply with the DMA while prioritizing the delivery of high-quality products and services to its European customers. However, it raised concerns about the privacy and data security risks posed by the DMA.
This announcement comes amid an ongoing commission investigation into Apple's App Store practices under the DMA, particularly regarding developers' ability to offer deals outside the platform free of charge.
More: https://techxplore.com/news/2024-04-eu-apple-ipad-stricter.html
