The United States Department of Justice (DOJ) is suing Apple, accusing the iPhone maker of violating antitrust laws.
The lawsuit, filed today in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey, claims that Apple is "illegally maintaining a monopoly" over the smartphone market, harming both developers and consumers. From gatekeeping rivals and restricting such competition on its platform would provide less competition and options for consumers.
Justice Department Sues Apple for Monopolizing Smartphone Markets
— U.S. Department of Justice (@TheJusticeDept) March 21, 2024
?: https://t.co/sQuqVnTzaX pic.twitter.com/9ipWckqfvc
DOJ alleges that Apple employed an anti-competitive strategy that harms consumers with higher prices and "less innovation," as Attorney General Merrick Garland explained at a press conference today. Garland also referenced other anti-competitive practices, such as the 30% "app store tax," which has been a hot topic of contention since 2020, and the "green bubbles" that signify when an iPhone user receives a message from an Android smartphone owner.
The "green bubble" comment is interesting as Apple announced late last year that it would launch RCS or Rich Communication Services on iPhones next year. However, the company has been vague on how it will work but said that it does not mean it was "opening up iMessage" to other platforms. For those unfamiliar with RCS, it is a messaging standard used for Android phones, something Apple has resisted supporting, to the point that smartphone competitors Google and Samsung have taunted Apple over the lack of RCS on iPhones.
An Apple spokesperson provided a statement to IGN regarding today's announcement. You can check that out below.
Apple's Prior History in Antitrust Law
It would not be the first time the DOJ pursued legal action against the California-based company for violating antitrust laws. In 2012, the DOJ and 33 U.S. states sued Apple and a group of publishers for conspiring to increase the price of eBooks; a year later, a judge found the iPhone maker guilty of violating antitrust law.
Yet, today's lawsuit is interesting because Apple was, up until this point, the only one out of the four tech companies the DOJ did not sue after Apple, Amazon, Google, and Meta were named in a 2020 report on tech antitrust published by the House Antitrust Subcommittee. The over 400-page report criticized these four tech companies for violating various antitrust laws, from buying competitors to consolidating and preferencing their services, among other things.
Over the last several years, Apple and Google have faced scrutiny for how they gatekeepers their platform away from the competition. Most notably, both were sued by Fortnite creator Epic Games, accusing the two of engaging in antitrust behavior on its iOS App and Google Play Stores, though the outcomes of those have varied.
Taylor is a Reporter at IGN. You can follow her on Twitter @TayNixster.
