US Department of Justice files lawsuit against Apple
An antitrust lawsuit has been filed against Apple in the US, alleging that the company has monopolized smartphone markets.
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The US Department of Justice and the attorneys general of 16 states have filed a lawsuit in the District of New Jersey against Apple over its "anticompetitive practices."
The Department alleged that Apple uses its market power to extract more money from consumers, developers, content creators, artists, publishers, small businesses, and merchants.
In the lawsuit, Apple is accused of establishing an illegal monopoly over smartphones by imposing contractual restrictions on developers and blocking their critical access, while it is argued that every step in Apple's pattern of conduct has reinforced the moat around its smartphone monopoly.
US Attorney General Merrick Garland stated in a press conference, "Apple has maintained monopoly power in the smartphone market not simply by staying ahead of the competition on the merits, but by violating federal antitrust law. Consumers should not have to pay higher prices because companies break the law."
Claiming that Apple employs a strategy based on exclusionary, anticompetitive behavior that harms both consumers and developers, Garland emphasized that the barriers Apple has created make it extremely difficult and expensive for both users and developers to leave the Apple ecosystem.
Following the news of the lawsuit, Apple shares lost more than 3 percent of their value.