The European Union has outlined the steps Apple must take to open up its iPhone and iPad operating systems and avoid falling foul of a regional antitrust law.
The European Union’s Executive Commission detailed the series of measures Apple must take to ensure that various devices have better access to its iOS operating system, in order to ensure the tech giant complies with EU regulations on digital matters, known as the Digital Markets Act.
Both smartwatches and other devices must provide greater access to iOS, but they have also been given measures to improve the transparency and effectiveness of the process for software developers to request access to iPhone features.
Some features of Apple’s own ecosystem will have to be made available to third parties, such as SharePlay and the audio switching feature that allows Apple headphones to switch between devices so that consumers are no longer forced to purchase a pair of AirPods to use these features.
In addition, the well-known AirDrop and AirPlay functions, used to send and receive data, must be compatible with alternative services to those used by Apple.
Teresa Ribera, Executive Vice President of the European Commission, stated that this decision will provide “regulatory certainty for both Apple and developers,” which will mean “better choice for consumers in the rapidly growing market for innovative connected devices.”
However, the Californian company does not welcome these resolutions, as it accused the Executive Commission’s ruling of “enveloping it in bureaucracy, slowing down Apple’s ability to innovate for users in Europe.” Instead, it argued that the decision “forces it to give away” its new features for free to other companies that “do not have to follow the same rules” it intends to apply to them.
How will this affect users in the rest of the world?
Initially, the consequences of this European ruling would have no impact on other regions of the world, such as Latin America. But that doesn’t mean these requested features won’t be adapted in the future.
For example, the European Union forced Apple to require all electronic devices to use USB-C by 2024, effectively eliminating Apple’s Lightning cable. Despite the fact that this measure was specifically requested by the bloc, the tech company standardized the use of this cable and discontinued Apple’s proprietary cable, which had been around since September 2012.
