The European Commission has fined Apple and Meta a collective €700m (£599m) for breaching various clauses of the Digital Markets Act (DMA).
The Commission found that Apple breached its anti-steering obligation and that Meta breached its DMA obligations give consumers the choice of a service that uses less of their personal data.
Apple was fined €500m (£428m) and Meta was fined €200m (£171m).
Apple
Under the DMA, app developers distributing their apps via Apple’s app store should be able to inform customers, at no cost, of alternative offers outside the app store, steer them to those offers and allow them to make purchases. The Commission found that Apple fails to comply with this obligation.
The Commission outlined that due to a number of restrictions imposed by Apple, app developers cannot fully benefit from the advantages of alternative distribution channels outside the app store.
Similarly, consumers cannot fully benefit from alternative and cheaper offers as Apple prevents app developers from directly informing consumers of such offers.
The Commission stated that Apple has “failed to demonstrate that these restrictions are objectively necessary and proportionate”.
Along with the fine imposed, the European Commission has ordered Apple to remove the technical and commercial restrictions on steering and to refrain from “perpetuating the non-compliant conduct in the future”.
Meta
Under the DMA, gatekeepers must seek users’ consent for combining their personal data between services and users who do not consent must have access to a less personalised but “equivalent” alternative.
Under Meta’s binary ‘consent or pay’ advertising model introduced in November 2023, EU users of Facebook and Instagram had a choice between consenting to personal data combination for personalised advertising or paying a monthly subscription for an ad-free service.
The Commission found that Meta did not give 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.
Meta’s model also, according to the Commission, did not allow users to exercise their right to freely consent to the combination of their personal data. Both factors are not compliant with the DMA,
In November last year, Meta introduced another version of the free personalised ads model, which offered a new option that reportedly uses less personal data to display advertisements. The commission is currently assessing this new option, and has requested that Meta provide evidence of the impact this new model has in practice.
The European Commission’s decisions taken against Apple and Meta are the first non-compliance decisions adopted under the DMA.
Along with the decision to impose a fine, the Commission found that Meta’s online intermediation service, Facebook Marketplace, should no longer be designated under the DMA as it no longer meets the relevant designated thresholds.
Teresa Ribera, executive vice-president for Clean, Just and Competitive Transition at the European Commission, said this ruling sends a “strong and clear message”.
“The DMA is a crucial instrument to unlock potential, choice and growth by ensuring digital players can operate in contestable and fair markets. It protects European consumers and levels the playing field.
“Apple and Meta have fallen short of compliance with the DMA by implementing measures that reinforce the dependence of business users and consumers on their platforms.
“As a result, we have taken firm but balanced enforcement action against both companies, based on clear and predictable rules. All companies operating in the EU must follow our laws and respect European values,” Ribera added.
Jonathan Compton, partner at law firm DMH Stallard, outlines his thoughts of the decision. “The DMA is aimed at the prevention of large companies from using their market dominance to distort or prevent competition,” he said.
“Apple was asked – and failed – to provide customers with a ‘steer’ to alternative core service providers. Meta failed to comply with the obligation to remove its consent or pay model. Under this model, Meta users could consent to the use of their data or, if they refused, were asked to pay a subscription.
“Whether the Trump administration will choose to impose additional tariffs on the EU is open to question. The US President has no love for the EU and has fiercely criticised the DMA.
“For its part, the Commission has not backed away from the fight so far and has the market power to counter US moves.”
