Last year, the Commission hit Apple with a €1.8 billion fine for the same conduct that was penalized on Wednesday and, also last year, ordered the company to cough up €13 billion in unpaid Irish taxes after a long-running court case.
“There’s a philosophical difference between Apple and the Commission here that is making it very difficult for Apple to compromise,” said Zach Meyers, research director at the Centre on Regulation in Europe (CERRE), a Brussels-based think tank.
The fight over Apple, a company worth almost $4 trillion, has become symbolic of the clash between the U.S. and EU. While the Digital Markets Act (DMA), under which the Commission imposed Wednesday’s fine, is aimed at limiting the dominance of the biggest tech firms ― most of which happen to be American ― Trump sees them as a tool to strangle U.S. industry.
Wednesday’s action follows a 90-day suspension of Trump’s “reciprocal” tariffs, as the two sides seek to ease tension. The Commission couldn’t escape accusations that the timing of the decision, if not more, was influenced by the trade tensions.
Still, the U.S. announcement in February that it would scrutinize the EU’s digital laws, including the DMA, to see if they amount to a non-tariff barrier, has not been a factor in the Commission’s decision-making, according to a senior official.
The June 22 deadline given to Apple to comply with Wednesday’s decision, after which the Commission can begin to issue daily fines, will come a few weeks before the expiry of the 90-day tariff pause.
