Apple's iMessage Escapes Antitrust Threat, EU Says It Does Not Qualify As A 'Gatekeeper Service'

European Union's antitrust threat over Apple Inc.'s AAPL iMessage has blown over, with the commission concluding that it does not qualify as a "gatekeeper service" under the Digital Markets Act (DMA).

What Happened: The Commission’s decisions mark the end of investigations that commenced in September.

As per the Commission’s announcement, Apple’s iMessage, Microsoft Corp.'s MSFT Bing, Edge, and Advertising were the services under examination. Apple and Microsoft initially identified these services in July as meeting the quantitative criteria of the DMA.

Despite fulfilling these criteria, both tech heavyweights presented "rebuttal" arguments, contending that these services should not be categorized as gateways.

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After thoroughly assessing all arguments and consultation with the Digital Markets Advisory Committee, the Commission concurred with Apple and Microsoft’s viewpoint.

The Commission’s decisions do not affect the designation of Apple and Microsoft as gatekeepers, a status granted on Sept. 5, 2023.

Why It Matters: These investigations were initiated in the wake of a push by tech giants to prevent their services from being classified as “gatekeepers” under the DMA.

Apple and Microsoft launched an attempt to exempt their services, iMessage and Bing, from this designation.

However, in November, Alphabet Inc.'s GOOG GOOGL Google partnered with several European telecom companies to urge the European Commission to recognize Apple’s iMessage as a “core” service. This move aimed to compel Apple to make iMessage interoperable with other messaging services.

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Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of Benzinga Neuro and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.

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