What just happened? Apple is complying with Europe's immediate legal requirements while positioning itself to influence the longer-term debate. For the European Commission, however, the dispute highlights a broader effort to rein in corporate power in the digital economy, even in the face of opposition from some of the world's largest companies.
Apple is pressing European regulators to roll back sweeping rules designed to curb the power of major technology companies, warning that the legislation is weakening consumer protections and stifling innovation rather than enhancing them.
The company has renewed its objections to the European Union's Digital Markets Act, which came into force last year to limit the dominance of the world's largest internet platforms.
In a post outlining its position, Apple said it is complying with the law while simultaneously urging the European Commission to reconsider certain requirements, which the company argues have caused lasting harm to both consumers and businesses. In a separate filing, Apple went further, calling for the act to be repealed or significantly scaled back.
Apple's opposition centers on measures obliging so-called "gatekeeper" platforms – defined as firms with at least €7.5 billion in annual European sales or a market capitalization of €75 billion or more – to give rivals greater access to their systems and data.
The DMA applies to services including Apple's Safari browser, Alphabet's Google Search, Amazon's marketplace, and Meta Platforms' Facebook. Penalties under the legislation can reach up to 10 percent of a company's global revenue, or 20 percent for repeat violations.
Apple has warned that the law is producing unintended consequences. The requirement to allow sideloading, or installing apps from outside Apple's App Store, exposes users to higher risks of malware and fraud. The company also objected to rules mandating compatibility with third-party payment systems and enabling outside firms to request access to user data, which Apple argues could undermine the privacy protections on which it has built its brand.
"The DMA is leading to a worse experience for Apple users in the EU," the company said in its public statement. "It's exposing them to new risks and undermining the seamless way Apple products work together. Instead of driving innovation, it is rewarding companies that seek to harvest consumer data or gain free access to Apple's technology."
The European Commission has dismissed Apple's complaints, insisting that the law will remain in place. Thomas Regnier, spokesperson for technology sovereignty at the Commission, said the DMA is designed to expand consumer choice in Europe and level the playing field for smaller companies.
"Apple has contested every aspect of the DMA since its application," Regnier told reporters. "We understand that large corporations want to protect their profit models, but the purpose of this regulation is to ensure competition and fairness in digital markets, not to preserve entrenched business structures."
Brussels has already exercised these powers. In April, the Commission fined Apple $588 million, finding that the company unfairly restricted developers from steering users toward alternative purchasing options outside its App Store. Apple is appealing the decision. Other large platforms, including Meta, have also faced hundreds of millions of euros in penalties since the DMA came into force.
The European Union has made digital oversight a central part of its economic policy for more than a decade, with cases spanning Google's search and advertising practices, Apple's tax arrangements in Ireland, and Amazon's use of marketplace data. Brussels has imposed more than $8 billion in fines on Google alone, while also ordering Apple to pay back €13 billion in disputed taxes.
Beyond Europe, the rules have also drawn strong political reactions. President Donald Trump, a vocal critic of EU regulation of American technology firms, threatened in August to impose tariffs and export restrictions on advanced technology in response to European enforcement and new digital taxes, framing the measures as unfairly targeting US companies.