The European Union has accused three major IT companies, Alphabet, Apple and Meta, of violating the Digital Markets Act, which began full-scale operation this month to ensure fair competition in the digital market. announced that they had begun an investigation. If a violation is found, large fines may be imposed.
The European Commission, the EU's executive agency, held a press conference on the 25th, stating that there are suspicions of violations of the Digital Markets Act, which began full-scale operation on the 7th of this month to ensure fair competition in the digital market. announced that it has begun an investigation into Meta, which operates Google's parent company Alphabet, Apple, and Facebook.
Each company announced a review of their services before the law went into full effect, but the European Commission has ruled that developers of apps listed on the app store for Alphabet and Apple should not advertise to users individually or contract directly with users. It is pointed out that there are various restrictions on tying.
Regarding Meta, we have started a paid service that does not display advertisements to users who do not consent to their personal information being used for advertisements, but the European Commission views this response as problematic.
The European Commission will investigate these points and will issue a result within a year, and if a violation is found, a huge fine of up to 10% of annual sales could be imposed. .
EU Vice-President Vestager emphasized that the measures taken by other IT companies will be investigated in detail in light of the legal provisions.