The European Union has fined Apple half a billion euros for failing to comply with digital competition rules.
Meta also received a fine of €200 million (£171 million) for breaching Europe’s Digital Markets Act (DMA) –a set of rules introduced in 2022 to prevent tech giants from monopolising digital markets.
Apple’s €500 million penalty was for restricting app developers from directing users to alternative, potentially cheaper purchasing options outside of its App Store.
Meta’s fine was for requiring Facebook and Instagram users within the EU to choose between viewing targeted advertising or paying for a subscription service to remove ads.
The Commission stated that Meta's practice of requiring users to consent to the use of their personal data for personalised advertising or opt for a paid, ad-free experience violated EU regulations.
“Apple and Meta have fallen short of compliance with the DMA by implementing measures that reinforce the dependence of business users and consumers on their platforms,” said Teresa Ribera, the commission’s executive vice-president for clean, just and competitive transition.
“As a result, we have taken firm but balanced enforcement action against both companies, based on clear and predictable rules. All companies operating in the EU must follow our laws and respect European values.”
The fines are likely to anger the US government, and could have an impact on tensions between the United States and the EU, particularly over tariffs and trade.
US President Donald Trump and his administration have been critical of EU regulation on tech firms, and see fines imposed by Brussels on big US businesses as a form of taxation.
In a statement, Apple said it would appeal against the fine and accused the commission of “unfairly targeting” it.
“Today’s announcements are yet another example of the European Commission unfairly targeting Apple in a series of decisions that are bad for the privacy and security of our users, bad for products, and force us to give away our technology for free,” Apple said.
“We have spent hundreds of thousands of engineering hours and made dozens of changes to comply with this law, none of which our users have asked for. Despite countless meetings, the commission continues to move the goalposts every step of the way.
“We will appeal and continue engaging with the commission in service of our European customers.”
Meta’s chief global affairs officer, Joel Kaplan, claimed the European Commission was “attempting to handicap successful American businesses”, while holding European companies to different standards.
“This isn’t just about a fine; the Commission forcing us to change our business model effectively imposes a multi-billion-dollar tariff on Meta while requiring us to offer an inferior service,” he said in a statement.
“By unfairly restricting personalized advertising the European Commission is also hurting European businesses and economies.”
Additional reporting from agencies
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