Apple Hit with $162 Million Fine in France Over Ad Tracking Violations

Apple has been slapped with a €150 million ($162.42 million) fine by French antitrust regulators for allegedly abusing its power in the mobile app advertising space between 2021 and 2023. The fine stems from Apple’s App Tracking Transparency (ATT) feature, which regulators claim unfairly sidelined competitors in the digital ad industry. Despite this penalty, Apple avoided harsher repercussions as the French watchdog did not require changes to the ATT system, marking a small win for the tech giant.

This fine is the first of its kind concerning ATT, a tool Apple promotes as a means to protect user privacy. However, critics, including advertisers and publishers, argue that the feature gives Apple an unfair advantage by restricting smaller businesses’ access to vital data for ad targeting. The French competition authority agreed with this assessment, asserting that the ATT system was “neither necessary nor proportionate” to its stated privacy goals.

Smaller publishers who depend on third-party data for revenue were among the hardest hit by the changes introduced with ATT. Along with the fine, Apple was ordered to display the decision prominently on its website for seven days. Despite this setback, the penalty remains minor compared to a previous €1.8 billion fine from the European Commission, which targeted Apple for anti-competitive practices in the music streaming sector.

Apple’s regulatory troubles extend beyond France. Germany’s antitrust watchdog is also scrutinizing ATT, claiming that the feature offers Apple preferential treatment. Additionally, the European Union is expected to announce results from investigations into Apple and Meta’s potential breaches of the Digital Markets Act (DMA), with fines expected. The ongoing scrutiny of tech giants in Europe highlights a growing trend of regulatory action against major players in the digital space.

Source: naira metrics