Apple and Meta could face charges for violating EU tech rules

The Commission is reported to be targeting Apple over its “steering” rules that charge developers for pointing to third-party purchase options. Meta’s charges will reportedly revolve around its ad-free subscription for Facebook and Instagram in the EU.

The Commission will be issuing preliminary findings, according to Reuters, meaning that the companies can make changes to try and correct things before the Commission makes a final decision. Apple is set to be charged first, Reuters reports, and the FT says we could see the charges in the coming weeks.

The European Commission and Apple didn’t reply to a request for comment. Meta declined to comment.

The charges follow the Commission opening DMA non-compliance investigations into Apple, Meta, and Alphabet in March. The DMA, which designates Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, TikTok owner ByteDance, Meta, and Microsoft as “gatekeepers” that must comply with rules over certain “core platform services” they offer, went into effect earlier that month.