Apple held accountable under the DMA - A victory for developers and computer users!
The Court of Justice of the European Union has rejected Apple's challenge to the interoperability obligations under the Digital Markets Act. The Court also confirmed the App Store as a core platform service. The FSFE acknowledges this as a major win for computer users and developers.
Today, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) has ruled in the case Apple v. European Commission (T-1080/23), in which the Free Software Foundation Europe (FSFE) intervened to defend the rights of developers and users under the Digital Markets Act (DMA).
Apple had challenged the interoperability obligations applicable to its mobile operating systems, the designation of the App Store as a core platform service (CPS) and the original designation of its messaging service as a number-independent interpersonal communications service. The FSFE intervened to hold Apple accountable under the DMA in a developer-friendly way.
With this judgment developers and users will enjoy a less restrictive environment to access and be able to distribute their software in environments controlled by Apple. This includes unfettered software installation (sideloading) and effective and free-of-charge interoperability between their software and Apple’s software and hardware controlled by Apple’s operating system.
This ruling confirms what we have argued from the start: interoperability is not optional under the DMA, it is the law. Developers finally have legal certainty to build competitive alternatives to Apple's ecosystem, and we remain committed to monitoring enforcement of today’s decision,says Lucas Lasota, FSFE's Senior Programme Manager Legal
In its press release, the Court states that Apple’s challenge against “the provision of the DMA relating to the interoperability obligations imposed on undertakings which are designated as gatekeepers” was inadmissible. The Court also confirmed that the different versions of Apple’s App Store “constitute a single CPS”, because they share the same purpose: “to connect app developers with end users in order to facilitate the distribution of software applications.” For the FSFE, this confirms the central role of interoperability and software distribution in the DMA’s regulation of Apple’s ecosystem
The future of software interoperability
The FSFE will closely monitor of the implementation of today’s decision, starting with an in depth analysis of the ruling. It will be available in the upcoming days at fsfe.org.
Besides, Apple has initiated another litigation against the European Commission on questions concerning the technical and procedural aspects of interoperability (T-359/25). The FSFE is also intervening in this second case and we will again demonstrate to the court the importance of interoperability for fair digital markets.