Apple officially announced that it is delaying the rollout of new features in the European Union, citing concerns that the Digital Markets Act (DMA) compromises user security and product functionality.
Apple Claims DMA Risks User Experience
“It’s been more than a year since the Digital Markets Act was implemented. Over that time, it’s become clear that the DMA is leading to a worse experience for Apple users in the EU. It’s exposing them to new risks, and disrupting the simple, seamless way their Apple products work together. And as new technologies come out, our European users’ Apple products will only fall further behind,” the company stated in a formal release.
European Commission Fires Back at Apple
The European Commission has dismissed Apple’s complaints, characterizing the company’s resistance as a long-standing pattern of non-cooperation. “We are not surprised by Apple’s lobbying paper to repeal the DMA because Apple has contested every little bit of the DMA since its entry into application,” said EC spokesperson Thomas Regnier during a press briefing on Thursday.
Regnier further criticized the tech giant’s stance, noting, “This undermines the company’s narrative of wanting to be fully cooperative with the Commission. We facilitated DMA compliance when we came up with the specification decisions and we told Apple how they could be compliant when it comes to interoperability. After two months, Apple came back and asked us to scrap everything.”
Prioritizing Choice Over Security Concerns
Addressing the security claims raised by the tech giant, the Commission maintained that the legislation does not force companies to sacrifice their internal standards. “Nothing in the DMA requires companies to lower their privacy standards, or their security standards,” Regnier added. “It is just about giving our users more choice, opening up the European market and allowing companies to compete on an equal footing.”
