Brussels, Belgium – The European Commission has finalized its interoperability procedures for Apple, designed to ensure the tech giant complies with the Digital Markets Act (DMA). The move, however, has been met with fierce resistance from Apple, who argues that the decisions are bad for our products and bad for our users in Europe.
The DMA, which came into effect last year, designates large platform holders like Apple as gatekeepers, requiring them to grant third-party developers equal access to iOS and iPadOS system tools and functionalities. The Commission’s initial focus is on the interoperability of iOS with third-party connected devices, such as smartwatches, headphones, and virtual reality headsets.
The decisions outline how Apple should provide effective interoperability for functions like notifications, device pairing, and connectivity. These measures aim to allow device manufacturers and app developers easier access to iPhone functionalities – for example, displaying notifications on smartwatches. They also aim to facilitate faster data transfer, such as peer-to-peer Wi-Fi connections and near-field communication (NFC), and simpler device setup, including pairing.
A second procedure addresses Apple’s processes for handling interoperability requests from developers and third parties for iOS and iPadOS. The Commission believes developers will benefit from a swift and fair process, accelerating the availability of a wider range of choices for European consumers, including innovative services and hardware that interoperate with iPhones and iPads.
These specific decisions followed extensive communication with Apple and consideration of feedback from a public consultation launched in December 2024.
However, Apple strongly disagrees with the Commission’s assessment. The company contends that the DMA effectively requires it to hand over its intellectual property to competitors, including those who rely on copying the business models of others. Apple argues that this intervention allows officials or third parties to micromanage the development of the iPhone, hindering its ability to introduce new technologies in Europe.
Furthermore, Apple has expressed concerns that some data-driven companies are using the DMA to circumvent EU data protection standards and seek unrestricted access to user devices. In a December 2024 report, Apple specifically cited Meta, highlighting potential privacy and security risks.
To comply with the DMA, Apple has established a dedicated portal for EU developers to request greater interoperability with iOS and iPadOS. The company argues that its existing offering of over 250,000 application programming interfaces (APIs) already provides third-party developers with robust interoperability tools while protecting user data.
Today’s decision puts us on a bureaucratic treadmill, slowing Apple’s ability to innovate for European users and forcing us to make new features available to companies who don’t have to follow the same rules, Apple stated in a press release. It’s bad for our products and bad for European users. We will continue to work with the European Commission to help them understand our concerns on behalf of our users.
Apple maintains that it has cooperated extensively with the Commission to comply with the DMA, dedicating as many as 500 engineers to the effort. The company’s future actions and the EU’s response will be closely watched as this dispute unfolds, potentially setting a precedent for how technology companies operate within the European Union.
References:
- IT之家. (2024, March 19). 欧盟敲定苹果需实施的互操作性措施，后者强烈反对. [EU finalizes interoperability measures for Apple, the latter strongly opposes]. Retrieved from [Insert original URL here] (Replace with the actual URL of the IT之家 article).
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