EU steps up investigation into Apple Pay

The European Commission’s investigation into Apple Pay is “moving ahead on top of an investigation into how the iPhone maker requires software developers to use its in-app purchasing system”, the EU’s competition commissioner Margrethe Vestager has told Bloomberg News.

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The case is “quite advanced” and “is something that we’re pushing forward”, Vestager said in an interview, adding that the EU is considering potential rules governing how phone makers grant access to rival payment providers and that she sees “a need for more urgent action from antitrust enforcers”.

The EC opened a formal antitrust investigation “to assess whether Apple’s conduct in connection with Apple Pay violates EU competition rules” and consider “Apple’s limitation of access to the near field communication (NFC) functionality (‘tap and go’) on iPhones for payments in stores, and alleged refusals of access to Apple Pay” in June 2020.

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