Italy’s antitrust authority, AGCM, fined Apple (AAPL) and its two subsidiaries for abusing its dominant position in the distribution of mobile applications for iOS users.
The regulator fined €98.6 million (~$115.5 million) citing violations of European rules due to Apple’s “absolute dominance” in providing platforms for developers.
The investigation focused on Apple’s (AAPL) App Tracking Transparency (ATT) policy, introduced in April 2021, which requires third-party app developers to obtain user consent through a dedicated ATT prompt before collecting or linking data for advertising purposes.
“The double consent request renders the ATT policy disproportionate, since Apple should have ensured the same level of privacy protection for users by allowing developers to obtain consent to profiling in a single step.” the regulator said.
Apple (AAPL) did not immediately respond to Seeking Alpha’s request for comment.