Apple reportedly will get sued by DOJ Thursday; tech rivals say Apple failed to follow judge's orders

Apple reportedly will get sued by DOJ Thursday; tech rivals say Apple failed to follow judge’s orders،

The US Department of Justice is ready to take legal action against Apple tomorrow. The suit allegedly accuses Apple of violating antitrust laws by preventing the company's competitors from accessing certain hardware and software features of the iPhone. News of the lawsuit, which will be filed in federal court, was first published by Bloomberg Wednesday. While Apple has been sued by the DOJ twice in the past 14 years, this lawsuit is a bit different since it accuses Apple of using illegal methods to help the iPhone dominate certain markets.

Last January, we told you that the DOJ was about to file a lawsuit accusing Apple of making it difficult for rival companies to compete with the iPhone. At the time, some of the problems raised by The New York Times include Apple's decision to exclude competitors from its iMessage platform, why the Apple Watch works better with the iPhone than other smartphones, and how Apple's mobile payment system prevents third-party companies from competing with Apple .

DOJ could file antitrust lawsuit against Apple as early as tomorrow - Apple to be sued by DOJ on Thursday; Tech rivals say Apple didn't follow judge's orders

DOJ could file antitrust action against Apple as early as tomorrow

Some of these issues have been resolved in the EU with the passage of the Digital Markets Act (DMA), which requires Apple in all 27 EU countries to allow the use of third-party in-app payment platforms , and to allow Apple to authorize third-party financial services. companies to work with the iPhone's mobile payment system and opens the iPhone to non-WebKit-powered mobile browsers. Last month, Bloomberg reported that Apple had met with DOJ officials in an effort to convince the agency not to file an antitrust lawsuit. If Bloomberg is right about what will happen on Thursday, Apple has failed.

Developers can now insert a unique link into their app directing customers to third-party payment processing platforms. However, Apple still takes a 12-27% cut on these purchases, which is 3 percentage points less than the 15-30% cut Apple takes for transactions going through its own payment processing platform through the application.

Epic complains about the fees Apple still charges even when third-party payment platforms are used. The game developer is also unhappy with the one-link limit allowed by the tech giant and says the iPhone maker should be held in contempt of court. Microsoft, Meta, X and Match say Apple prevents apps from including “even the most basic information” on third-party payment platforms. Apple says it has been complying with the judge's order since January.

Apple shares have recently rebounded from $170 to nearly $179, in line with strength in the technology sector. However, once the Bloomberg report was released, shares took a hit after hours, falling to $176.40.