France's Competition Authority imposed a €150 million ($162 million) antitrust fine against Apple on Monday, marking the first penalty globally related to its App Tracking Transparency (ATT) tool. Regulators ruled the feature—designed to let users control app activity tracking—abused Apple's dominance in mobile advertising by disproportionately disadvantaging competitors.
This decision follows a €1.8 billion EU fine in 2023 over App Store restrictions on music streaming rivals. Authorities found Apple's implementation of ATT undermined smaller advertisers by limiting third-party data access, distorting competition between 2021 and 2023. While acknowledging privacy as a legitimate goal, France said Apple's approach was “neither necessary nor proportionate.”
“We apply competition law apolitically,” stated Benoit Coeure, head of the French watchdog, addressing concerns about U.S.-EU tensions. He emphasized alignment with U.S. regulators on antitrust enforcement against tech giants.
Advertising groups, including Alliance Digitale and Udecam, hailed the ruling as a victory for market fairness. Apple expressed disappointment but noted no mandatory ATT changes. Coeure said compliance processes await outcomes of parallel investigations in Germany, Italy, Poland, and Romania.
Analysts suggest this case underscores growing scrutiny of how privacy features intersect with antitrust concerns, particularly for digital ecosystems balancing user rights with market dynamics.
