Facebook isn’t happy about what it sees as Apple overstepping its bounds. As reported by Reuters, Facebook says that it hopes new draft EU rules could put Apple in its place when it comes to the power exhibited by the Cupertino tech giant.
“We hope the [Digital Markets Act] will…set boundaries for Apple,” a Facebook spokesperson said. “Apple controls an entire ecosystem from device to App Store and apps, and uses this power to harm developers and consumers, as well as large platforms like Facebook.”
The Digital Markets Act is designed to stop companies from favoring their own services on their platforms. The EU currently has three investigations ongoing into Apple. Two of these concern the App Store, while one involves Apple Pay. They all involve the alleged lock-in effect of Apple’s ecosystem. This supposedly encourages the use of certain defaults while making things tough for rival services.
Meanwhile, another new draft EU rule is the Digital Services Act. This will require that companies with more than 45 million users must work harder to tackle fake news and illegal content that could help influence elections.
Facebook EU comment is latest in ongoing disagreement
Apple has taken steps to change up its behavior in response to criticism. For instance, it purposely downgrades its own apps in App Store searches. It also offers more freedom than ever when it comes to letting users change up certain default apps. (Although baked-in tools like Siri and the requirement that apps are sold through the App Store remain constants.) Apple additionally offers Apple News as a curation services to help battle fake news — which has won support from people including the next US president.
Facebook and Apple’s relationship is currently somewhat strained. In Steven Levy’s Facebook: The Inside Story, Levy wrote how Steve Jobs, got “a kick out of [Zuckerberg’s] brash approach” to business. However, things have been “chillier” when it comes to Zuck’s relationship with Apple CEO Tim Cook. Lately, Facebook has raised concerns about the privacy features of iOS 14, which it says could hurt small businesses (and probably Facebook itself.)
Source: Reuters
