(March 18): Apple Inc lost its fight at Germany’s top civil court to overturn a regulator’s decision to put it under tighter antitrust scrutiny alongside other US tech giants.

The judges on Tuesday said the Federal Cartel Office was right to find that the iPhone maker’s footprint across markets meets the threshold for more oversight. It’s not necessary that the company already hampers competition but that it carries such a risk. Apple does so as it’s one of the largest, most profitable companies worldwide with access to extraordinary financial and other resources, the judges added.

“The products and services that Apple offers are highly vertically integrated, closely interconnected and largely reserved for users of Apple devices,” the court said. “This is the basis for what the company itself calls the Apple ecosystem.”

The judges also pointed to Apple’s importance for third parties’ access to markets. External app developers and other third-party companies are dependent on Apple’s support to reach the large number of its users, opening a box that the company could use for strategies the new rules seek to address, the court said.

Apple was attempting to topple a May 2023 decision by the German antitrust watchdog, which subjected it to the so-called 19a rules on the grounds that its strong position in digital markets could threaten competition.

The company said it disagrees with Tuesday’s ruling since it faces tough competition in the European Union’s biggest member state.

“Apple prides itself on being a driver of innovation, jobs and competition in every market in which we operate,“ Apple said in a statement. It said the ruling also “neglects the value of a business model that focuses on the privacy and security of users.”

Andreas Mundt, head of the Cartel Office, lauded the decision, saying the new rules have already improved digital markets. The regulator now stands on firm ground for its ongoing review of Apple’s tracking rules for third-party apps, he said.

It’s the second time the court has considered a case involving a top Silicon Valley player trying to escape the measures, which were implemented in 2021 to better regulate key tech companies. Last year, Amazon failed to convince the court that it should be exempted. The Cartel Office has in recent years also expanded its oversight of Meta Platforms Inc’s Facebook, Alphabet Inc’s Google and Microsoft Corp.

The setback for Apple comes amid a clamor by Big Tech against European efforts to rein in their market dominance. CEOs have the ear of US President Donald Trump, who has called European Union fines against the industry “a form of taxation.”

Uploaded by Magessan Varatharaja