The Justice Department is poised to sue Apple Inc. as early as Thursday, accusing the world’s second most valuable technology company of violating antitrust laws by blocking rivals from accessing its iPhone’s hardware and software features.
The lawsuit, expected to be filed in federal court, according to people familiar with the matter, intensifies the Biden administration’s antitrust fights against most of the largest U.S. tech giants. The Justice Department is already suing Alphabet Inc.’s Google for monopolization, while the Federal Trade Commission is pursuing antitrust cases against Meta Platforms Inc. and Amazon.com Inc.
Apple and the Justice Department did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The family members asked to remain anonymous as it is a confidential matter.
On the news, Apple shares fell 1.4% to $176.10 in late trading. They were down 7.2% this year through Wednesday’s close.
The upcoming case will mark the third time the Justice Department has sued Apple for antitrust violations in the past 14 years, but it is the first case accusing the iPhone maker of illegally maintaining its dominant position.
The lawsuit comes as Apple also comes under increasing scrutiny in Europe for alleged anti-competitive behavior. This month the company was hit with a €1.8 billion fine for blocking music streaming rivals from offering cheaper deals. Apple appealed the fine and said regulators failed to uncover any “credible evidence of consumer harm.”
Meanwhile, the company could face a full-blown investigation under the EU’s new rules for Big Tech, the Digital Markets Act, which came into force earlier this month. Rivals have blasted new App Store rules that have come into force in Europe, complaining that the changes could lead to higher prices for developers. Fines for non-compliance with the new EU rules can be severe: up to 10% of a company’s annual worldwide turnover or up to 20% for repeat offenders.
The Justice Department last opened the case in 2019 under former President Donald Trump. The antitrust division, however, chose to prioritize the twin cases against Google and take a backseat Fortnite maker Epic Games Inc. sued Apple for monopolization in 2020, and that case has made its way through the federal courts.