Apple hit with $162 million fine over privacy tool
The French case was triggered by complaints from several associations for online advertisers, publishers and internet networks accusing Apple of abusing its market power
Apple was hit with a 150 million euro ($162.4 million) fine by French antitrust regulators on Monday for abusing its dominant position in mobile app advertising on its devices via a privacy control tool.
The fine — the first by any antitrust regulator over Apple's App Tracking Transparency tool — comes a year after the European Union hit the company with a 1.8 billion euro antitrust fine for thwarting rival music streaming services on its App Store.
The ATT tool lets iPhone and iPad users decide which apps can track their activity. Digital advertising and mobile gaming companies complained it made it more expensive and difficult for brands to advertise on Apple's platforms.
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"While we are disappointed with today's decision, the French Competition Authority has not required any specific changes to ATT," Apple said in a statement.
The French case, which covered the period 2021 to 2023, was triggered by complaints from several associations for online advertisers, publishers and internet networks accusing Apple of abusing its market power.
"While the objective pursued by ATT is not in itself open to criticism, the way it is implemented is neither necessary nor proportionate to Apple's stated objective of protecting personal data," the regulator said in a statement.
It added that the privacy tool "particularly penalised smaller publishers," as they depend to a large extent on the collection of third-party data to fund their businesses.
Alliance Digitale, the Syndicat des Regies Internet (SRI), the Union des Entreprises de Conseil et d'Achat Média (Udecam) and the Groupement des Éditeurs de Services en Ligne, which had complained to the French watchdog, said the decision was a significant victory for advertisers.
