Apple Rejects Anti-Competition Allegations—Did They Intentionally Mislead Regulators?
Apple has been hit by Anti-Competition allegations. | Credit: Justin Sullivan / Getty Images.
Key Takeaways
- Apple has been accused of attempting to mislead the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority to lessen concerns of anti-competitive behavior.
- The iPhone maker has been accused of using a ‘dark pattern’ to make it harder for users to change their default browser.
- Antitrust actions are expected to ramp up in 2024 as regulators look to crack down on Big Tech.
Apple has produced a regulatory filing that attempts to mislead the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) to lessen competition concerns, according to the Open Web Advocacy (OWA).
The web technology lobbying group highlighted the misdirection on Wednesday, 5. Sept, in a regulatory filing provided by Apple in August for the CMA’s inquiry into the mobile browser markets.
Apple’s Alleged Dark Pattern
In March, the OWA reported on an “astonishingly brazen dark pattern” implemented by Apple engineers to make it more difficult for iPhone users to change their default browser settings.
Safari’s settings page hid the option to change the default browser if Safari was the default, but then showed it prominently if a different browser was installed as the default, the OWA highlighted.
The issue was amended in an update by Apple in the coming weeks.
“We are uncertain exactly which version of iOS Apple fixed it in as they neglected to include it in the release notes,” the OWA said.
Apple Rejects Anti-Competition Allegations
In its regulatory filing, Apple correctly describes the concern that had been raised by both the OWA and the CMA.
“The UK’s CMA analysis also appears to rely on an OWA report concerning an alleged ‘dark pattern’ involving the use of different UIs in order to preference Safari is set as the default browser (paragraph 3.48) by not displaying the default browser setting in the Settings app’s Safari tab where the default browser is Safari,” the company wrote.
However, the iPhone maker claimed there had never been an issue with the default browser app setting and claimed OWA’s report was wrong.
“This is not correct. The default browser app setting in the Safari tab is clearly visible when the user has set Safari as the default,” the company wrote.
As the OWA points out , Apple’s statement is false as the dark pattern had been documented in various screenshots and examinations.
“What Apple could, and should have said, here is that ‘This is no longer correct, as we fixed it in iOS 17.x,'” said OWA.
“Instead, they appear to have, bafflingly, chosen to mislead the regulator about the existence of the issue entirely,” it added.
Antitrust Actions Against the Tech Industry in 2024
Antitrust actions against major technology companies have ramped up in 2024 .
Over the past five years, the US Federal Trade Commission and the Justice Department have launched anti-competition investigations into Apple, Google, Amazon, and Meta.
In August, the US government’s landmark trial against Google’s search business concluded that the company acted illegally to maintain a monopoly in the search industry.
Ramzy Ladah, a trial attorney and personal injury lawyer at Ladah Law Firm, told CCN that 2024 is “shaping up to be a significant year for antitrust regulation in the tech industry.”
“There’s more enforcement, new regulatory tools, and a range of complex legal challenges ahead. The outcomes of the current cases against major tech companies will likely shape future antitrust policies and enforcement strategies,” Ladah said.
Past landmark cases, such as AT&T’s breakup in 1982, have led to increased competition in the industry. However, as Ladah notes, the current situation is “more complex.”
“While the goal is to promote competition, there’s debate over whether these actions will actually help or hurt innovation in the tech sector,” Ladah noted.
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