The European Commission has accepted Apple's (AAPL.US) commitment to allow the use of NFC technology on iPhones, making the company's promise legally binding under the EU's anti-trust rules.
The Commission said Apple's commitment resolved competition concerns because the company had refused to allow rivals to use NFC technology, known as "one-click payment", to pay for goods in stores using their iPhones. Previously, only Apple's own mobile wallet, Apple Pay, allowed iPhone users to pay for goods in stores and online.
"Today's decision makes Apple's commitment legally binding," said Margrethe Vestager, executive vice president for competition policy. "By preventing Apple from excluding other mobile wallets from the iPhone ecosystem, competition in this key area is opened up. From now on, rivals will be able to compete effectively with Apple Pay in stores."
The EU's anti-trust watchdog said its preliminary investigation found Apple had abused its dominant position by refusing to allow rivals access to NFC input on iOS, while reserving that access for Apple Pay.
To avoid scrutiny from the EU's anti-trust watchdog, Apple initially promised to allow third-party mobile wallets access to NFC on iPhones for 10 years. The Commission began seeking the views of the EU's member states on Apple's commitment in January.
The Commission said it had tested the market for Apple's commitment, and Apple had revised its initial proposal and committed to: expanding the possibility of using HCE payments from a mobile device (such as a business phone or a mobile device) that is certified in other industries; not blocking HCE providers from combining HCE payment functionality with other NFC functionality; and removing the requirement that mobile wallet providers must obtain a payment service provider (PSP) licence or enter into an agreement with a PSP to access NFC input.
Apple also proposed allowing mobile wallet providers to prebuild NFC payment applications for third-party mobile wallets; and allowing mobile wallet providers to prompt users to set up a default payment application easily, and to redirect users to the default NFC settings page, and other commitments.
The Commission said these commitments would last for 10 years and apply throughout the European Economic Area.