A group of national consumer authorities and EU regulators has notified Apple that it may be discriminating against European customers based on their place of residence. The tech company is believed to have carried out "several potentially prohibited geo-blocking practices".
Apple was alerted on Monday by the Consumer Protection Cooperation (CPC) Network of national consumer authorities and the European Commission.
The action by the CPC Network was led by Belgium's consumer authority, the Directorate General for Economic Inspection, alongside German and Irish national authorities.
Geo-blocking relates to certain practices that restrict access to internet content based on a user's geographical location. The European Commission has tried to bring an end to unjustified geo-blocking, which undermines online shopping and cross-border sales in the EU, through geo-blocking regulations adopted in 2018.
Legal infringements
The CPC network identified potentially illegal practices on certain Apple Media services – including the App Store, Apple Arcade, Music, iTunes Store, Books and Podcasts.
The network said consumers are only allowed to access app interfaces made for the country where they first registered their Apple account and face "significant challenges when attempting to change this", which is not allowed under EU anti-geo-blocking rules.
Consumers also face limitations when it comes to payment methods (being only able to use means of payment issued in the country where they registered their Apple account), and downloading (customers are not allowed to download apps offered in other countries, even when they travel there).
The CPC Network highlighted that under the EU Geo-blocking Regulation and the Services Directive, it is generally prohibited to discriminate between EU customers based on their nationality, residence or place of establishment.
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Apple now has one month to reply to the CPC Network's findings and propose commitments on how it will address the identified geo-blocking practices. Depending on Apple's reply, the CPC Network may enter into a dialogue with the company.
If Apple fails to address the concerns raised by the CPC Network, national authorities can take enforcement measures to ensure compliance.
