2024-07-12 10:26:49
Apple is opening up access to contactless payment. The company is thus complying with the demands of the EU Commission. If the dispute had not been settled, a large fine would have been imposed.
The technology giant Apple has escaped a high competition fine in its dispute with the EU Commission. The EU’s competition watchdogs have accepted concessions from the US company and thereby settled a dispute over the Apple Pay payment system that has been going on for years, according to a statement from the EU Commission in Brussels. The iPhone company is guaranteeing other developers of mobile wallets and payment services free access to the NFC chip on its devices for contactless payment.
The Commission had accused Apple of deliberately hindering competition in the area of mobile wallets. For example, if banks wanted to make their cards usable for contactless payments on the iPhone, this was previously only possible via Apple Pay and Apple’s own mobile wallet, Wallet.
Banks have long criticized the fact that they cannot access the NFC radio chip without going through Apple, which allows the phone to be used at the checkout instead of a bank card. Apple explained that Apple Pay was the only way to do this, partly for security reasons. The commitments offered by Apple are to remain in force for ten years.
If the EU Commission had considered Apple’s concessions to be insufficient, the company would probably have had to pay a large fine. If a company does not comply with EU competition rules, the Commission can impose a fine of up to ten percent of annual turnover, among other things.