According to TechRepublic, Italy’s Competition Authority (AGCM) has fined Apple €93 million, which is about $115.4 million. The fine targets Apple and two of its affiliates, Apple Italia S.r.l. and Apple Distribution International. The investigation, which started on May 2, 2023, focused on Apple’s actions starting in April 2021. The AGCM says Apple abused its dominance in the App Store to force developers to use its App Tracking Transparency (ATT) prompt for user consent. This unilateral move allegedly denied developers an opt-out and forced them to use a second GDPR-compliant prompt, doubling user consents. The authority labeled this an “exploitative abuse” under EU antitrust law.
The core argument
Here’s the thing: the AGCM isn’t arguing that privacy is bad. Their case is about how Apple enforced it. They claim Apple used its gatekeeper power to impose a rule—using its own ATT prompt—that didn’t even fully satisfy GDPR, creating extra work for rivals. And then, crucially, they say Apple’s own apps weren’t subject to the same strict, two-prompt regime. That’s the “abuse” part. It’s not about the privacy feature itself, but about using a platform rule to create an uneven playing field. The regulator’s press release and the executive summary lay out a pretty detailed case.
The real sting: revenue
But the most damning part, and probably the real reason for the fine’s size, is the claimed financial impact. The AGCM says Apple’s conduct led to “reduced revenues for developers and advertising platforms.” Their logic is simple: when you make users click through two consent screens instead of one, more people will just say “no” to tracking. Less tracking data means less effective, and therefore less valuable, advertising. So Apple’s policy, while framed as pro-user, actively harmed the ad-based revenue models of many third-party apps. That’s a direct hit on competition. Basically, the regulator is accusing Apple of weaponizing privacy to squeeze its competitors’ business models.
A pattern, not an accident
Now, Apple’s response is the usual playbook: strong disagreement, arguing the AGCM disregarded user privacy benefits. They also deny that ATT doesn’t apply to their own apps. But let’s be real—this isn’t a one-off. The article notes Apple has been fined hundreds of millions by the UK, France, and the EU itself over privacy matters. This Italian fine feels like another brick in a very large, very imposing regulatory wall being built around Big Tech in Europe. The EU’s Digital Markets Act (DMA) is the big hammer, but national regulators like Italy’s AGCM are clearly still swinging their own mallets. So what’s the trajectory? More of this. Constant, grinding, expensive legal challenges from regulators who are no longer buying the “it’s for your privacy” argument when it conveniently harms competitors.
The bigger picture
This is part of a fundamental clash. On one side, you have platform owners like Apple who argue that a tightly controlled, privacy-forward ecosystem is a feature, not a bug. On the other, you have regulators who see that control as a potential anti-competitive weapon. The question is, can you separate the two? I’m skeptical. Every rule a platform makes, especially one as integrated as Apple’s, has ripple effects. Sometimes those effects are good for users, sometimes they’re good for Apple, and often they’re both. But when they disproportionately harm other businesses on the platform, regulators are going to pounce. This €93 million fine is just the latest evidence that “because privacy” is no longer a get-out-of-jail-free card in Europe. The scrutiny is only intensifying.
