Apple seeks settlement of EU investigation into contactless payments

Apple has reportedly made concessions to end an antitrust investigation into its mobile payments system by the European Union (EU).

The technology giant will give its competitors more access to its contactless technology and thus avoid a fine, the Financial Times (FT) reported on Tuesday (June 18), citing unnamed sources.

Without commenting on this report, Apple told the FT: “As part of our ongoing discussions with the European Commission, we have made commitments to provide third-party developers in the European Economic Area with an option to enable their users to make contactless NFC payments from within their iOS apps, separate from Apple Pay and Apple Wallet.”

The European Commission, the EU’s executive body, filed charges against Apple in 2022 for violating competition law. According to the report, the company had blocked competitors from accessing the technology that enables “tap-and-go” payments.

In January, Apple committed to providing developers with free access to the technology and taking further steps to resolve the complaint, according to the report.

Regulators have accepted these measures and are now testing them, the report said, citing unnamed sources. Details are currently being worked out and an agreement is likely to be reached within a few weeks, it added.

At the same time, problems could arise before an agreement is reached and the timing of a decision could be delayed, the report says.

By closing the investigation, Apple could avoid a finding of wrongdoing and a fine of up to 10% of its annual global revenue.

This report comes at a time when Apple is also facing other challenges in Europe.

On Friday (June 14), it was reported that the European Commission will file charges against Apple, finding that the company failed to comply with a requirement to allow app developers to direct users to offers outside of Apple’s App Store free of charge.

In May, Apple appealed a nearly $2 billion antitrust fine imposed by European regulators after the European Commission ruled over the winter that Apple was abusing its power in the music streaming market. The European Commission found that the company had prevented app developers from informing iOS users about alternative and cheaper music subscription services.