Apple Becomes New Target of Antitrust Campaign From Germany’s Federal Cartel Office

Apple has become Germany’s Federal Cartel Office (FCO) target as it launches its latest antitrust investigation. The FCO’s actions against Apple marks the fourth big tech company to be investigated under competition laws.

Earlier today, Germany’s FCO has announced its case against Apple. As reported by Reuters, the body has begun to investigate the iPhone maker under new competition laws regarding larger tech companies. In the first step of the investigation, the FCO is looking to assess whether or not Apple has a “paramount significance across markets”.

“Based on this first proceeding, the (FCO) intends to assess in more detail specific practices of Apple in a possible further proceeding. In this regard, the authority has received various complaints relating to potentially anti-competitive practices.”

According to the report from Reuters, the FCO is investigating a complaint stemming from a body within the advertising and digital media industry. Although no names were mentioned, the complaint filed was regarding Apple’s new App Tracking Transparency policy. This policy enabled users to monitor and choose which app on their device has access to their activity and data.

In response, an Apple spokesperson told Reuters, “We look forward to discussing our approach with the FCO and having an open dialogue about any of their concerns.”

News of this comes shortly after the FCO has opened similar investigations on Apple, Google, and Facebook.