Apple Spends Record Amount On Lobbying In Q1 Amid Congress' Big Tech Clampdown

Big techs have been caught in the middle of regulatory crossfire for abusing their dominant market positioning. These companies reportedly paid a high price in the first quarter for steering clear of controversy.

What Happened: Tech giant Apple, Inc. AAPL coughed up a record $2.5 million toward lobbying in the first quarter, Bloomberg reported, citing disclosure reports by lobbying law firms.

This represented a 34% quarter-over-quarter increase and beat the previous record of $2.2 million spent in 2017, the report noted. Apple lobbied on several issues and measures, including antitrust bills.

Cupertino's tech peers shelled out even bigger amounts, according to the report. Alphabet, Inc. GOOGLGOOG spent $2.96 million in the first quarter, unchanged from the previous quarter but 34% higher than in the fourth quarter.
Microsoft Corporation MSFT set aside $2.5 million, 2.8% higher than in the fourth quarter but down 1.9% from the year-ago quarter.

Related Link: Apple Toppled As Smartphone Market Leader In Q1: Here's What Hurt Cupertino's Performance

Why It's Important: Apple is likely to face its biggest challenge with two Congressional bills, Bloomberg columnist Mark Gurman said in a report in February.

Of the two, the "Open App Markets Act" would have the biggest impact, allowing sideloading and paving the way for alternative app stores and third-party payment systems.

Apple is expected to report revenues of $94.02 billion, according to data from Benzinga Pro. The lobbying spend accounts only for a fraction of the iPhone maker's overall revenue estimated for the quarter.

Related Link: Apple Analyst Says iPhone 14 Will Come With Major Camera Improvements: What You Need to Know