European Union regulators said on Wednesday that Apple and Meta were the first companies to be penalized for violating a new law intended to increase competition in the digital economy, the latest in a string of regulatory setbacks for the tech giants.
Apple was fined 500 million euros ($570 million) and Meta was fined €200 million ($230 million) for breaking the Digital Markets Act, which was adopted in 2022. The European law aims to keep big tech companies from abusing their position as digital gatekeepers that can unilaterally impose requirements on users and businesses.
Apple violated the Digital Markets Act by restricting how app developers could communicate with customers about sales and other offers, according to the European Commission, the executive branch of the 27-nation bloc. Meta violated it by imposing a “consent or pay” system that forces users to either allow their personal data to be used to target advertisements or pay a subscription fee for advertising-free versions of Facebook and Instagram.
Even as the United States and European Union tussle over trade, tariffs and the war in Ukraine, the penalties showed a consensus over addressing market power of the world’s largest tech companies. The tech behemoths have amassed trillions of dollars in share value as owners of products and services that are essential for communication, commerce, information and more.
In the United States, Google suffered two major antitrust defeats over the past year for abusing its power in the search and advertising business. Meta is on trial in Washington over accusations that it squashed competition through acquisitions. Amazon and Apple also face U.S. antitrust lawsuits.
European officials said the rulings had nothing to do with trade negotiations with the United States, but it is unclear how the Trump administration will react. A White House memo from February said officials would consider retaliation if the European Union targeted American tech companies under the Digital Markets Act or the Digital Services Act, a law focused on curbing illicit online content and disinformation.
The White House did not respond to a request for comment.
Meta said it was likely to appeal the ruling, calling it an attack on American companies akin to imposing steep tariffs on their services.
“The European Commission is attempting to handicap successful American businesses while allowing Chinese and European companies to operate under different standards,” Joel Kaplan, Meta’s chief global affairs officer, said in a statement. “This isn’t just about a fine; the commission forcing us to change our business model effectively imposes a multibillion-dollar tariff on Meta while requiring us to offer an inferior service.”
Apple said it would appeal the decision and accused the commission of forcing it to make product changes that amounted to giving its technology away. Last year, the company was hit with a $2 billion E.U. fine for using the App Store to undercut competition in music streaming.
“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,” Apple said in a statement. “Despite countless meetings, the commission continues to move the goal posts every step of the way.”
The investigations of Apple and Meta started more than a year ago, predating the Trump administration’s trade war with Europe. But regulating the tech industry has become entangled in the trans-Atlantic negotiations, with American tech firms seen as a possible target after the Trump administration’s efforts to tax European imports.
The fines announced against Apple and Meta on Wednesday were lower than the maximum allowed under the law, which could have totaled billions, a possible sign that E.U. officials are taking a more cautious approach.
In Apple’s case, regulators said the company failed to comply with rules meant to allow developers to communicate with customers about offers through the App Store.
“Consumers cannot fully benefit from alternative and cheaper offers as Apple prevents app developers from directly informing consumers of such offers,” the regulators said on Wednesday.
Regulators issued another preliminary ruling against Apple on Wednesday for restricting access to rivals’ app stores on its devices. The commission closed a separate investigation after Apple gave customers more options to delete certain preinstalled apps.
For Meta, regulators said the company violated the Digital Market Act with its ad-free subscription service that amounted to forcing users to pay for privacy. The law requires companies to obtain users’ permission before combining their personal data from different services. Those who do not provide consent are meant to have access to a “less personalized but equivalent alternative,” the commission said.
Apple and Meta have 60 days to comply with the ruling or face additional fines.
The companies have “fallen short” of compliance by acting to “reinforce the dependence of business users and consumers on their platforms,” said Teresa Ribera, the executive vice president of the European Commission who is overseeing application of the Digital Markets Act. “All companies operating in the E.U. must follow our laws and respect European values.”
