The German cartel agency is now also investigating Apple’s handling of other app applications. There is an initial suspicion that the regulations of the American group favor its own offers and/or hinder other companies, the Bonn authority justified its cartel investigation on Tuesday.
As with the ongoing process to determine Apple’s cross-market stake, the latest investigation is being launched based on the enhanced role of competition watchdogs.
Users can prevent tracking
The most recent procedure revolves around the ATT app tracking procedure introduced by iPhone manufacturer Apple last April. So users can decide for themselves whether apps can track them or pass their information on to third parties or not. This is crucial for advertisers, who place personalized ads based on this data and also pay more money to the app operators.
“A company like Apple, which can unilaterally set the rules in its ecosystem and especially in the App Store, should make them competitive. There are reasonable doubts about that when Apple sets rules for third parties that do not apply to Apple of all people,” said Bundeskartellamt chairman Andreas Mundt.
Apple announced it would partner with the Federal Cartel Office. A company spokesperson said on request that the ATT rules would apply to all developers — including Apple. You have received strong approval from authorities and privacy advocates for this position. Apple maintains a higher standard of data protection than almost any other company by giving users the ability to decide for themselves whether or not they want personalized ads.
Source: Krone
I’m Wayne Wickman, a professional journalist and author for Today Times Live. My specialty is covering global news and current events, offering readers a unique perspective on the world’s most pressing issues. I’m passionate about storytelling and helping people stay informed on the goings-on of our planet.
