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The Department of Justice (DOJ) has taken action against tech giant Apple, Inc., filing an anti-trust lawsuit on Thursday. This lawsuit targets Apple’s alleged monopoly in the smartphone marketplace.

Apple, headquartered in Cupertino, California, reported net revenues of $383 billion last year. Its net income of $97 billion, reinforces its status as the most profitable company in the Fortune 500. The tech giant wields an immense economic influence.

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Anti-Trust Lawsuit

Jonathan Kanter, assistant attorney general for the antitrust division, claims that Apple changed their contract rules and restrictions to increase prices and fees higher.

“For years, Apple responded to competitive threats by imposing a series of ‘Whac-A-Mole’ contractual rules and restrictions that have allowed Apple to extract higher prices from consumers, impose higher fees on developers and creators, and to throttle competitive alternatives from rival technologies,” Kanter explained.

The DOJ alleges that Apple has unfairly restricted developers of apps, products, and services utilized on the iPhone. And the company monopolizes the market and inflates costs for consumers. 

The suit, filed in New Jersey, claims that Apple's actions enable the company to extract excessive fees from consumers, developers, publishers, and merchants alike.

Monopoly Tactics

This legal action follows heightened scrutiny faced by both Apple and Google regarding the commissions charged on in-app purchases. 

Last year, Epic Games initiated a lawsuit against Apple, alleging unreasonable constraints on in-app payments. 

A federal judge's ruling in 2021 compelled Apple to permit developers to use payment options beyond its app store, challenging the company's longstanding 30% commission on app transactions.

The lawsuit against Apple presents several specific allegations, including the obstruction of innovative super apps, suppression of mobile cloud streaming services, and exclusion of cross-platform messaging apps.

 It also claims Apple is limiting third-party smartwatches' functionality, and third-party digital wallets so they are unable to compete.

 These alleged actions collectively serve to maintain Apple's dominance within the smartphone market while impeding competition and innovation.

Backlash in Europe

European Union regulators have accused Apple of violating antitrust laws, particularly in relation to its rules governing music streaming services on the App Store.