German Regulators Accuse Apple Of Harassing Power On App Tracking Tools

JAKARTA - The German antitrust authority has accused Apple of abusing its market power through application tracking tools and providing special treatment to itself. This move could result in daily fines for iPhone makers if they fail to change their business practices.

This action follows a three-year investigation by the Federal Cartel Office ( Federal Cartel Office) into Apple's App Tracking Transparency (ATT) feature, which allows users to block advertisers from tracking them on various apps.

The US tech giant stated that the feature allows users to control their privacy, but has drawn criticism from Meta Platforms Inc., app developers, and startups whose business models rely on advertising tracking.

"ATT makes it much more difficult for competing app publishers to access relevant user data for advertising," Andreas Mundt, Cartel Office President, said in a statement quoted by VOI from Reuters.

Apple defended the feature in a written statement and added that the company "holds higher standards for itself than those applied to any third-party developer."

"We will continue to engage constructively with the Federal Cartel Office to ensure users remain transparent and control over their data," Apple added.

Apple is required to respond to concerns outlined in Germany's indictment or face further proceedings and daily fines if it fails to do so before the final verdict, which is likely to come this year or more likely next year.

The case was sparked by complaints from associations representing publishers, broadcasters, advertisers, their agencies, and advertising technology companies.

"Today's allegations are critical. Apple's actions have created artificial intransparentness in its ecosystem resulting in fewer choices, higher app costs, and lower protection against advertising scams, while increasing Apple's revenue from services," said Thomas H\"opppner, partner at Hausfeld's law firm, representing complainants.

"For the first time, it has been clarified that Apple cannot rely on artificial privacy arguments to limit competition on a large scale for its own benefit," he said.

Companies found to have violated German antitrust rules are at risk of being fined up to 10% of their annual turnover.