Apple, one of the biggest companies aiding the US’s capitalist economy, is now facing legal action from the US Department of Justice.
On March 21st, the Department of Justice sued Apple for allegedly violating the Antitrust laws. For those unfamiliar with the Antitrust laws, they are laws that promote competition among companies and prohibit companies from creating a monopoly within their market, which would give that particular company control over their industry. They are meant to protect consumers’ right to have choices in what we buy. In this case, the Department of Justice believes Apple has infringed individuals’ rights by monopolizing the smartphone industry and restricting its users. How exactly is Apple doing this? The Department of Justice illustrates this in their 88-page lawsuit.
Their lawsuit has many arguments, but they all boil down to the little things Apple does to have a leg up in the tech industry. One of these things is the ecosystem. Apple has created an ecosystem with its products. For example, though you can connect a pair of AirPods to a Samsung, they are still more functional, like Spatial Audio, when used with an iPhone. Same with the Apple Watch. They can only be paired with an iPhone. This ecosystem forces users who bought or want to buy one Apple product to buy the entire collection. This ecosystem doesn’t just apply to your own devices but also to the devices of the people around you. The way an iPhone user interacts with other iPhone users is different from how they interact with Androids. They miss out on features like tapback on iMessage and FaceTime reactions on FaceTime. This can peer pressure Android users into buying an iPhone.
But the ecosystem isn’t the only one. Apple restricts its users to the App Store for downloading apps. This gives Apple control over the apps on iPhones and Apple users less flexibility over their apps.
On the other hand, Apple spokesman Fred Sainz argues, “this lawsuit threatens who we are and the principles that set Apple products apart in fiercely competitive markets.”
This case could go so many ways. It could follow cases similar to those in the past, like Apple’s case in 2012 and the US v Microsoft from the 90s. In the 2012 case, the US sued Apple over the high prices they had on E-Books. Apple settled this case out of court, which is what they could do with this case too. In the Microsoft case, the company was sued for monopolizing web browsing by restricting softwares made from other companies on Windows. That case was closed with Microsoft being forced to accommodate other applications.
This case is only just beginning. Will this case force Apple to make drastic changes? Thinker’s Chronicle will keep you posted.