LUE accuses Apple of hindering competition on its payment system
by Foo Yun Chee
BRUSSELS, May 2 (Reuters) – European competition authorities on Monday accused Apple of obstructing competition over the exclusive use of the NFC contactless chip embedded in its iPhones, which could potentially lead to a steep fine and an obligation for the American group to open its mobile payment system to rivals.
The European Commission said it sent Apple an indictment, called a “statement of objections”, detailing the Apple group’s practices.
“We have evidence indicating to us that Apple has restricted third-party access to key technology needed to develop competing mobile wallet solutions on Apple devices,” Margrethe Vestager, vice president, said in a statement. of the EU competition executive.
“In our Statement of Objections, we considered, on a preliminary basis, that Apple may have restricted competition, to the benefit of Apple Pay, its proprietary solution,” she said.
Apple said it would continue to cooperate with the European Commission.
“Apple Pay is just one of many options for European consumers to make payments, and it has helped ensure equal access to NFC while setting the industry’s highest standards for privacy and security,” the company said in a statement.
The European Commission’s decision to send Apple an indictment confirms information published by Reuters last October. (Foo Yun Chee report, French version Anait Miridzhanian, edited by Jean-Michel Bélot)