EU Commissioner Margrethe Vestager has called Apple’s decision a “shocking statement” of how anti-competitive the company is!
Apple Intelligence will change the lives of many iPhone users thanks to its features. However, Apple has been warning for days that this transformation would not affect users within the European Union, due to the regulations of the Digital Markets Act (DMA). Curiously, European Union Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager has spoken out against Apple’s decision. Yes, the same company that has been accused on several occasions of not complying with the DMA.
Vestager, has stated that Apple’s refusal to launch Apple Intelligence and other news announced at WWDC24, such as iPhone screen mirroring in the EU It is a “shocking statement” of how anti-competitive the company is.
For their part, those from Cupertino indicated that these functions will not be available because it would “compromise the privacy and security” of their environment, although they maintained that “Apple was committed to working with the European Commission” to release the features in the future.
In Europe, there is criticism that Apple does not offer Apple Intelligence functions in that market
Despite his position, Vestager addressed Apple’s decision in a brief interview at the Forum Europa conference in Brussels and not as part of an official communication from the European Commission. According to him he declared:
Apple has said it will not release its new enabled features in the IRS environment, and says it will not do so due to obligations it has in Europe. And the obligations it has in Europe are to be open to competition, which is a kind of abbreviated version of the WFD.”
And I find it very interesting that they say that we will now implement AI where we are not required to allow competition. “I think it’s the most surprising and open statement that they know 100% that this is another way to defuse the competition, where they already have a stronghold.”
In accordance with Apple’s decision, iPhone Mirroring and SharePlay Screen Sharing features affecting iOS 18 and macOS Sequoia will not be available in the first instance to residents of European Union countries.
In general, Apple’s reasons are related to the DMA’s guidelines against anti-competitive practices, since Apple Intelligence is a function that the company only offers for iPhones. Currently, the DMA does not require full equivalence of functions. This means that Apple is not obliged to offer exactly the same options in the EU as in the US, or vice versa.
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