2024 isn't Starting Off well for Apple as the Hammer of the DOJ is about to Slam them for Violating Antitrust Laws
It's being reported this afternoon that the Justice Department is poised to sue Apple Inc. as soon as Thursday, accusing the world’s second most valuable tech company of violating antitrust laws by blocking rivals from accessing hardware and software features of its iPhone.
The suit, which is expected to be filed in federal court, according to people familiar with the matter, escalates the Biden administration’s antitrust fights against most of the biggest US technology giants. The Justice Department is already suing Alphabet Inc.’s Google for monopolization, while the Federal Trade Commission is pursuing antitrust cases against Meta Platforms Inc. and Amazon.com Inc.
Apple and the Justice Department didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment. The people familiar asked not to be named discussing a confidential matter.
Apple shares fell as much as 1.4% to $176.10 in late trading on the news. They had been down 7.2% this year through Wednesday’s close.
The coming case will mark the third time that the Justice Department has sued Apple for antitrust violations in the past 14 years, but it is the first case accusing the iPhone maker of illegally maintaining its dominant position.
The lawsuit comes as Apple also is coming under increasing scrutiny in Europe over alleged anticompetitive behavior. The company was hit with a €1.8 billion fine this month for shutting out music streaming rivals from offering cheaper deals. Apple’s appealing the penalty and has said that regulators failed to uncover any "credible evidence of consumer harm." For more, read the full report.
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