EU fines Apple and Meta for breaching fair competition rules – The Guardian

The European Commission has fined Apple €500m (£429m) and Meta €200m for breaking rules on fair competition and user choice, in the first penalties issued under one of the EU’s landmark internet laws.The fines under the EU Digital Markets Act (DMA), which is intended to ensure fair business practices by tech companies, are likely to provide another flashpoint with Donald Trump’s administration, which has fiercely attacked Europe’s internet regulation.The commission fined Apple €500m for restricting app developers from distributing apps outside the company’s App Store. It said app developers could not fully benefit from alternative channels, so consumers could not discover cheaper offers.The commission ordered the company to remove the restrictions within 60 days or risk further fines. Apple said it would appeal against the fine.Meta, the owner of Facebook and Instagram, was fined €200m over its “consent or pay model” introduced in November 2023, which was an attempt to comply with EU data privacy rules.Under this model, EU users of Facebook and Instagram had a choice between consenting to their data being used for advertising, or paying a fee for an ad-free service. The commission said this approach was not compliant with the DMA, arguing that users should be
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