The US Department of Justice has accelerated its antitrust investigation into Apple, The Wall Street Journal reported Wednesday.
Their antitrust probe into Apple began in 2019 and has since gained more litigators assigned to it and new document requests and consultations with companies related to the matter in recent months, according to the Journal.
The current probe into Apple is focused not only on whether Apple’s App Store violates antitrust rules but also on how iOS may stifle competition from outside developers: “The Justice Department’s investigation deals in part with Apple’s policies governing mobile third-party software on its devices, which has been the focus of much of the criticism targeting Apple’s competitive practices. The department is also looking at whether Apple’s mobile operating system, iOS, operates in an anticompetitive way by favoring its own products over those of outside developers, the people said.”
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The Journal said the role DOJ antitrust chief Jonathan Kanter will play in the investigation or any potential enforcement action is unclear. Kanter was initially not involved in the Apple matter because of his past representation of clients who have accused Apple of being anti-competitive, but sources told the Journal he would likely end up participating in this investigation.
The DOJ already has two ongoing antitrust lawsuits against Google, with the first expected to go to trial in September.
