The European Union today, on the 23rd of April 2025, has fined the two biggest tech giants of the industry, Meta and Apple, for €500 million and €200 million, respectively. The two companies failed to comply with the digital competition rules of the union, which led to them being fined. The Union concluded that Apple prevented the developers from steering its customers outside its App Store to access cheaper deals. On the other hand, Meta was fined because of its “pay or consent” system. If you are someone who wants to know more about the fine imposed on Meta and Apple, the following article is for you.
Are There Chances Of A Further Rise In The Fines Imposed On Meta And Apple?
There are possibilities of a further increase in the fines imposed on Apple and Meta in case they fail to comply within the next 60 days. The European Union has threatened both tech giants with periodic penalty payments. The fines imposed today on both Apple and Meta are the first under the Digital Markets Act that came into effect only last year. This Act ended up forcing the world’s most prominent tech firms to open up to competition in the European Union. Teresa Ribera, Antitrust Commissioner, stated that the fines imposed send a strong as well as clear message. It insists that the bloc has officially taken firm yet balanced enforcement decisions.
How Did Apple React To The Fines Imposed?
The investigations that led to the imposition of this fine began back in March 2024. They are being considered comparatively modest if we take into consideration the fines the Union imposed on Apple back in March. When the company committed similar offenses on its App Store, the European Union fined it €1.8 billion. The Union informed Apple in its preliminary findings that it was a breach of the DMA. Therefore, the company is at risk of a pretty hefty fine for not letting its competitors provide alternatives for its App Store.
However, Apple clearly stated that it is going to appeal the fines and that the imposition of fines is yet another example of the EU targeting Apple unfairly. It further added that the series of decisions is bad for the privacy as well as the security of its users, bad for its product, and forces the company to give away its technology for free.
How Did Meta React To The Fines Imposed?
Meta, on the other hand, accused the EU of attempting to handicap a successful American business and allowing Chinese and European companies to operate on different standards. Joel Kaplan, Meta’s chief global affairs officer, stated that the EU is forcing the company to change its business model. The commission is imposing multi-billion-dollar tariffs on it and requiring it to offer inferior service. The fine imposed on Meta is because of the “pay or consent” policy of the company, which was severely opposed in Europe. The policy basically requires users to pay to avoid data collection or allow sharing their data to use Meta apps for free.
However, the commission concluded that Meta does not offer users an equivalent and less personalized version of their platforms. It does not allow the users to freely consent to the combination of their personal data either. Meta reportedly presented a new version, which is currently under assessment by the EU.
EU’s Investigation Against Apple Closed
The European Union has officially closed its investigation against Apple over its user choice obligations. This happened after the company agreed to comply with the DMA and made it easier for users to select their own default browsers. Apple has also allowed users to remove pre-installed applications such as Safari.
