The DOJ is looking to take a bite out of Apple
Image: Screenshot; NBC
The US Justice Department, along with 16 states and the District of Columbia, filed an antitrust lawsuit against Apple yesterday, alleging that the tech giant’s policies around its products are harming consumers.
The suit, the third legal action Apple has faced from the US gov’t since 2009 but by far the most broad, takes aim at the company’s “walled garden” – which is basically a way of saying that its iPhone-centric product suite is designed in a way that anyone stopping to smell the Apple flowers can’t just pick one off the vine and then vault over a hydrangea bush to easily extricate themselves from the situation.
Some of the ways Apple is harming consumers, per the suit:
- Blocking super apps. These apps – similar to WeChat in China and Elon Musk’s purported plan for X – enable consumers to access a wide variety of services across platforms and devices. Without them, consumers switching platforms (i.e., Apple → Android) are forced to set up new ways to access the same services.
- Making it harder to message across platforms so consumers gravitate toward iPhones. Android users can’t access iMessage, which is more secure than SMS, causing all their iPhone friends to have to live with those dreaded green bubbles.
- Diminishing the functionality of non-Apple smartwatches. Apple has limited the functions of third-party smartwatches, so that users who purchase the Apple Watch face substantial out-of-pocket costs if they don’t keep buying iPhones.
- Limiting third-party digital wallets. Apple has restricted access to a chip in the iPhone that allows for contactless payments. And credit cards can only be added to the iPhone by using Apple's own Apple Pay service.
Apple’s response: The company has long argued that it restricts access to some user data and some of the iPhone's hardware for privacy and security reasons.
One interesting thing: The government in this case is using similar arguments to the claims it made against Microsoft in the ‘90s, in a seminal lawsuit that argued the company was tying its web browser to the Windows operating system, the NY Times reports.
👀 Looking ahead… This antitrust case could take years to play out in court before a resolution. But it ultimately could force Apple to make changes to some of its most valuable product lines – the iPhone ($200 billion in sales in 2023), the Apple Watch (part of its $40 billion wearables businesses), and services ($85 billion).
📊 Flash poll: In your opinion, is Apple harming consumers with its walled garden model?
See a 360° view of what media pundits are saying →
Sprinkles from the Left
- Some commentators argue that any potential remedy to the DOJ’s antitrust concerns against Apple shouldn’t force the tech giant to add complication, friction, and insecurity to a device that became successful because it was able to engineer away all of those things.
- Others contend that Apple has a long history of documented anti-consumer and anti-worker behavior, and that antitrust action against the tech giant is long overdue and should be encouraged.
- “The US Shouldn’t Force Apple to Make a Worse iPhone” –Dave Lee, Bloomberg
- “It’s Time To Take A Bite Out Of Apple’s Monopoly” –Aidan Smith, Common Dreams
- “Green bubbles, Apple Pay and other reasons why America says Apple is breaking the law” –David Goldman, CNN
Sprinkles from the Right
- Some commentators argue that the Justice Department’s evidence that Apple harms US consumers is far from compelling, and that the tech giant shouldn’t be forced to change its practices to become inter-operable when consumers can choose Android.
- Others contend that Big Tech firms like Apple require rigorous antitrust scrutiny given their power to snuff out challenges to their dominance, collect mountains of customers’ personal data, and control what we hear and read.
- “Biden Fires an Antitrust Shot at Apple” –WSJ Editorial Board
- “Siri, Does Apple Violate Antitrust Law?” –Former Attorney General William Barr (R)
- “Conservatives must use antitrust to rein in big tech monopolies” –Michael R. Davis, Fox News
Share this!
Recent Discussion stories
Discussion
| March 20, 2024Guaranteed basic income programs are growing in popularity
💵 Over the past four years, a growing number of US cities and counties have experimented with guaranteed basic income programs that aim to combat poverty by providing direct, unconditional payments to lower-income Americans.
Discussion
| March 18, 2024Athletes sue NCAA over transgender women participating in female sports
⚖️ Last week, a group of 16 female college athletes sued the NCAA, alleging that the organization violated their Title IX rights by allowing transgender women to compete in the category of their affirmed gender.
Discussion
| March 15, 2024Some US lawmakers are pushing for a four-day workweek
📅💼 This week, a trio of lawmakers led by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) unveiled a bill that would establish a standard four-day workweek in the US without any reduction in pay.
You've made it this far...
Let's make our relationship official, no 💍 or elaborate proposal required. Learn and stay entertained, for free.👇
All of our news is 100% free and you can unsubscribe anytime; the quiz takes ~10 seconds to complete