EU Fines Apple 5 Billion Euros, Meta 2 Billion Euros for Violating Digital Markets Act

The U.S. tech industry has expressed its discontent with the European Union's recent fines against Apple and Meta, alleging that these penalties are a form of disguised taxation. On Wednesday, the EU announced fines totaling 7 billion euros (approximately 7.98 billion USD) against the two tech giants for violating the EU's Digital Markets Act. The fines, which amount to 5 billion euros for Apple and 2 billion euros for Meta, are significantly lower than the maximum penalties allowed under the law, which is 10% of the companies' global annual revenue. This discrepancy has led to speculation that the EU may be using these fines as a means to indirectly impose taxes on these tech giants.

The U.S. tech industry argues that such actions could set a dangerous precedent, potentially leading to similar measures being taken against other companies in the future. The EU's Digital Markets Act allows regulatory bodies to impose fines on tech companies that violate its provisions. The act aims to ensure fair competition and prevent the abuse of market power by large tech firms. However, the U.S. tech industry contends that the EU's actions are more about generating revenue than enforcing fair competition.

In response to the EU's actions, the U.S. tech industry has lodged a complaint with the White House, highlighting the growing tensions between the U.S. and the EU over regulatory policies. The EU's fines against Apple and Meta are seen as a direct challenge to the U.S. tech industry, which has long been a dominant force in the global market. The U.S. tech industry is calling on the White House to take action to protect American companies from what it views as unfair and discriminatory practices by the EU.

Meta's Chief Global Affairs Officer, Joel Kaplan, stated that the EU's 2 billion euro fine and the requirement for Meta to change its advertising model effectively impose tens of billions of dollars in tariffs on the company while forcing it to provide inferior services. Kaplan's use of the term "tariffs" is a clear attempt to link the Digital Markets Act with the ongoing U.S.-EU trade negotiations, reflecting the strained relationship between the U.S. tech industry and the Trump administration. Meta's Public Policy Director, Katie Harbath, further noted that the Trump administration's actions are primarily driven by its own interests, rather than those of the tech industry.

The U.S. government is also pursuing antitrust lawsuits against Meta, Apple, and other tech giants, which are theoretically similar to the EU's allegations. This has left the tech industry feeling disheartened. Harbath predicts that the EU may need to impose further penalties on more U.S. companies or increase the severity of existing penalties before the Trump administration takes concrete action against the Digital Markets Act.

Interestingly, in July of last year, the EU also found that Elon Musk's social media platform X violated the Digital Markets Act. However, since the platform is not a crucial link between enterprises and consumers, it was excluded from the important list at that time. Nevertheless, it could still face fines of up to 6% of its global annual revenue. In this instance, the EU appears to be lenient towards X.