By Anjali Nayak
On March 21, 2024, the Justice Department, joined by 16 other state and district attorneys general, filed a civil antitrust lawsuit against Apple for monopolization or attempted monopolization of the smartphone markets. Their practices are said to be in violation of Section Two of the Sherman Antitrust Act of 1890.
Original jurisdiction began in the U.S. District Court of New Jersey, which alleged that Apple illegally maintains a monopoly over smartphones by selectively imposing contractual restrictions on, and withholding critical access points from, developers. The case reports that “Apple exercises its monopoly power to extract more money from consumers, developers, content creators, artists, publishers, small businesses, and merchants, among others.” Specifically, the case hoped to “restore competitive practices” within the tech industry.
The Department of Justice and states claim that only apps designed specifically for iPhones can be downloaded through the App Store. That lets Apple set the rules and exert control over outside developers. According to the complaint, Apple wields these rules as a sword to block apps that would instead “erode” its monopoly power.
Furthermore, Apple pushes the so-called “Apple ecosystem” by reducing the connectability and power of non-Apple smartwatches, earbuds, as well as other devices. Overall, it is harder for “outsider technology” to work with anything that is made by Apple—thus forcing a monopoly on all of tech.