France's antitrust watchdog fines Apple for problems with App Tracking Transparency

Core Points - France's antitrust authority fined Apple €150 million ($162 million) for abusing competition law related to its App Tracking Transparency (ATT) feature [3][5] - The French Competition Authority criticized the implementation of ATT, stating it was not necessary or proportionate to its goal of protecting personal data [4][6] - The fine covers the period from April 2021 to July 2023, which is relatively small compared to Apple's revenue of $124 billion in the last quarter of the previous year [5] Implementation Issues - The rollout of ATT led to an overwhelming number of consent pop-ups from third-party apps, complicating the user experience on iOS [6] - The authority noted that the system disproportionately affected smaller app publishers who rely on third-party data for financing [6] Company Response - Apple defended ATT, stating it enhances user privacy control with a clear and consistent prompt for tracking consent [7] - The company expressed disappointment with the decision but noted that the French Competition Authority did not mandate any specific changes to ATT [8]