Apple hit with DoJ antitrust suit

The US Justice Department has launched an antitrust lawsuit against Apple, intensifying scrutiny on the tech giant both in the US and Europe. The accusations include blocking competitors’ access to its iPhone features, the first lawsuit focusing on maintaining its dominant market position. Apple faces continuing legal challenges in Europe with a recent €1.8 billion fine for anticompetitive practices related to music streaming services, and it could be subject to a more extensive investigation under the EU's Digital Markets Act. This could be a huge reputations issue and it will be interesting to see how this affects the share price, as well as future software and hardware capabilities. #JusticeDepartment #TechNews #DigitalMarketsAct #LegalChallenges #Apple #Antitrust

The antitrust risks of building a closed ecosystem have always intrigued me. I fully realize that there are arguments on both sides, especially from those looking to play inside said ecosystem and must pay the “toll fee”. Apple was nearly dead on the vine in late 90s. Then they had vision to create the iPhone and the App Store and the ecosystem took off and that rising tide lifted their entire product suite. Do you remember when no one but students and artists had Mac computers? Now, Apple is receiving heavy pressure from the EU and now the US. I realize that there must be balance and fairness but there’s something about it that doesn’t sit quite that easily with me.

Once you start lifting rocks peering through an antitrust lens in this environment, all kinds of poisonous creatures and toxic behaviors will be discovered, but some of the biggest have been in plain sight all along. Focus here is on the iPhone, alleging anticompetitive behavior with an illegal monopoly. In antitrust speak that's as serious as it sounds, especially coming from the AG rather than FTC.

As someone who left the world of Microsoft Windows behind for Apple, I’ve really liked how well everything works together in the Apple ecosystem. It works because there is control, and because Apple invests in creating the environment where everything just works. If I wanted a free-for-all, I’d buy a competing smartphone. And many people do - and I’m happy they have choice, even if they have green text bubbles. Because there are other options. Something that is lost on the government. I’m hoping the U.S. Department of Justice loses here, because I don’t want the headaches they’ll unleash if they prevail. #apple #doj #antitrust https://lnkd.in/gG37qNgz

The reason I love the Apple ecosystem is the very cause of the lawsuit (see article below): the ease with which everything connects together, the consistency of the experience across devices and yes, the fact that blue bubble people can also FaceTime and send materials to one another seamlessly. Android is a different, open ecosystem and has more devices in circulation than Apple. The point is: end to end control does deliver a seamless experience. If the price to pay for that seamless experience is at a premium, then I am willing to pay it. US Justice Department and 16 state attorneys general sue Apple over antitrust iPhone practices. The the The New York Times article: "By tightly controlling the user experience on iPhones and other devices, Apple has created what critics call an uneven playing field, where it grants its own products and services access to core features that it denies rivals.?Over the years, it has limited finance companies’ access to the phone’s payment chip and Bluetooth trackers from tapping into its location-service feature. It’s also easier for users to connect Apple products, like smartwatches and laptops, to the iPhone than to those made by other manufacturers."