EU Commission: Apple Abuses Position In Mobile Wallet Market
The EU Commission sends the official statement of objections to Apple. The competition regulators are upset about the restricted access to NFC for iOS developers.
The European Commission has forwarded Apple the official statement of objections regarding the Apple Pay payment service. Based on its preliminary investigation, the Commission concludes that Apple has a dominant position in the mobile wallet market and abuses this position to the detriment of competitors. A key complaint is that Apple restricts access to the Near Field Communication (NFC) function on its mobile devices.
NFC, in turn, is seen by the antitrust watchdogs as the standard technology for contactless payments with mobile devices in shops. In fact, developers of iOS apps can neither access the NFC hardware nor the associated software, the so-called NFC inputs. Ultimately, the in-house payment solution Apple Pay is supposed to benefit from this.
“We have evidence that Apple has restricted third party access to key technologies needed to develop competing mobile wallets for Apple devices,” said Margrethe Vestager, the EU Commission’s executive vice-president in charge of competition policy. “In our Statement of Objections, we are finding on a preliminary basis that Apple may have restricted competition in favour of its own Apple Pay solution. Such behaviour would constitute a breach of our competition rules.”
Apple inhibits innovation
Apple Pay is the only mobile wallet that can access the required NFC inputs on iOS devices, the Commission added. It also said that because Apple Pay alone has access to NFC technology, competition in the market for mobile wallets on iOS is limited. “This excludes other competitors from the market for mobile wallets on iPhones, stifling innovation and reducing consumer choice.”
The EU Commission stresses that by issuing the statement of objections it is merely expressing concerns. In addition, two other issues initially identified as potential concerns were not included in the statement of objections, it said. These include online restrictions.
Apple now has the opportunity to view the Commission’s investigation file and submit written comments on the allegations. The Commission also points out that there are no deadlines for the conclusion of a possible antitrust case.
