The European Union (EU) is ramping up its oversight of the dominant players in the technology sector. It has announced the launch of its first investigations into Apple, Google, and Meta Platforms, suspecting these tech giants of violating technology rules. This move, under the ambit of the Digital Markets Act, aims to scrutinize the potentially competition-limiting practices of these firms.
According to a statement from the EU Commission, there are suspicions that these technology behemoths have not effectively complied with the measures put into place. The competition enforcer will investigate Alphabet's Google for practices of self-preferencing in Google Search and routing rules in Google Play, Apple's routing rules in the App Store and choice screen for Safari, and Meta's 'pay or consent' model.
Additionally, the Commission has initiated investigatory steps concerning Apple's new fee structure for alternative app stores and Amazon's ranking practices in its marketplace.
This comes on the heels of the United States filing an antitrust lawsuit against Apple last week, accusing the company of violating competition laws.
