Brussels: The European Union advanced its antitrust case against the multinational tech giant Apple on Monday. EU accused the company of abusing its top position by limiting access to technologies allowing contactless payment, Associated Press reported.
Since 2020, EU Commission has been investigating Apple, and it has filed a preliminary report that Apple is restricting competition by preventing mobile wallet app developers from accessing the necessary hardware and software on Apple devices.
EU Commissioner Margrethe Vestager said, "Apple has built a closed ecosystem around its devices and its operating system, iOS. And Apple controls the gates to this ecosystem, setting the rules of the game for anyone who wants to reach consumers using Apple devices. By excluding others from the game, Apple has unfairly shielded its Apple Pay wallets from the competition."
However, the commission has not revealed how large the fines could be if Apple is found guilty of charges.
Meanwhile, Apple issued a statement and said that it would continue to engage with the commission to ensure European consumers have access to the payment option of their choice with safety and security.
The commission said that Apple's practice produces an exclusionary effect on competitors, leading to less innovation and less choice for iPhone users. A Statements of Objections were sent to Apple, the formal step into suspected violations of EU antitrust, regarding the same, the commission added.
The current case is among the several cases the EU opened against Apple. The organization is probing whether the firm violated its antitrust laws by distorting competition for music streaming by imposing unfair rules for rival services in its App Store.