Apple iMessage and Microsoft Bing to avoid new strict EU rules
Apple Inc’s iMessage, Bing search engine, Edge browser and Microsoft Corp’s advertising service will avoid the European Union’s new strict rules governing Big Tech platforms.
According to the European Commission, the study showed that these services do not occupy a sufficiently dominant position to be regulated under the Digital Markets Act (DMA). Apple and Microsoft said they welcomed the decision in separate statements after the announcement.
The decision of EU regulators is a victory for two American companies that would have been forced to adapt their services to new obligations and prohibitions designed to limit the abuse of market power.
The DMA is aimed at increasing competition in the European Union by imposing restrictions on large market players – the so-called “gatekeepers”.
Nevertheless, Microsoft and Apple – along with Meta Platforms Inc., Alphabet Inc., Google, Amazon.com Inc. and TikTok owner ByteDance Ltd. – will still face a number of new restrictions aimed at preventing abuse of their dominance in other business areas.
For Microsoft, this includes the Windows operating system for personal computers and the LinkedIn social media platform. For Apple, it is the iOS mobile operating system, the App Store, and the Safari browser.
According to the law, it will be illegal for certain companies to favor their own services over those of competitors. They will be prohibited from combining personal data in different services, using data from third-party services to compete with them. They will also have to allow users to download applications from competitors’ platforms.
The new rules will come into full force on March 7.