The Italian Competition Authority has imposed a fine of €98.6 million ($115.5 million) on Apple Inc., Apple Distribution International Ltd., and Apple Italia Srl for abusing their dominant market position.
The regulatory body stated that Apple violated Article 102 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) in the market for supplying platforms to developers for online distribution of applications to iOS users.
According to the authority, Apple maintains “absolute dominance” in this market through its App Store, which serves as the exclusive platform for app distribution to iOS devices.
AGCM said that Apple required third-party developers to obtain specific consent for data collection and linking data for advertising purposes through a screen imposed by Apple, known as the App Tracking Transparency (ATT) prompt.
“The terms of the ATT policy are imposed unilaterally, they are detrimental to the interests of Apple’s business partners and are not proportionate to achieving the objective of privacy, as claimed by the company,” the regulator said in a statement, adding the process does not comply with privacy regulations.
Developers were additionally forced to duplicate consent requests for the same purpose, it added.
The AGCM said that its investigation had been complex and carried out in coordination with the European Commission and other international competition antitrust regulators.