Apple’s payment deal ends EU antitrust investigation – POLITICO

In return, the European Commission will end its four-year investigation without imposing a fine. Apple could be fined if it breaches any of the commitments made in the settlement.

Vestager told reporters that “we have not seen a change in Apple’s behavior,” and the question remains how other cases involving Apple’s potential failure to comply with digital regulations will play out.

Today’s settlement prevents Apple from excluding other mobile wallets from the iPhone ecosystem, the Commission said in an emailed statement. That should allow payment providers to compete with Apple Pay for mobile payments made through Apple’s iPhone. It will not cover the Apple Watch, which is used for payments only by “a fairly small number of people,” Vestager said.

Apple’s commitment will allow payment providers to access NFC on Apple devices for free for 10 years without having to use Apple Pay or Apple Wallet. This will be done via a host card emulation mode that can secure payment credentials. Payment rivals can also authenticate transactions via FaceID facial recognition, double-click, Touch ID or a passcode.

The company had to refine its settlement proposal after rivals’ feedback earlier this year to expand how payments can be made on its terminals. It will also now commit to updating access methods and enabling a new default payment method with just a few clicks. It also removed a requirement for developers to be licensed as payment service providers.

Apple will also launch a dispute resolution mechanism for developers who are not permitted to use certain features.