Syed Imran Haider 
On Thursday, regulators in the European Union and Apple Inc. struck a deal that put an end to a four-year investigation.
The antitrust regulators accepted Apple’s commitment to opening up its tap-and-go technology to competitors.
The Announcement
Margrethe Vestager, the EU antitrust chief, announced the deal in a news conference. She said that the Commission had decided to accept Apple’s commitments.
She added that the company had addressed their prominent concerns about Apple restricting competition illegally in terms of mobile wallets on its devices.
The European Union had launched a formal investigation into Apple Pay back in 2020. It was focused on the terms and conditions of the company related to Apple Pay integration in websites and apps.
There were also concerns about Apple’s tap-and-go technology. The European Commission had concluded in 2022 that since Apple Pay was the only option available to iPhone users, it could restrict competition.
Since then, Apple has come up with a number of proposals to address the issues.
In January this year, the smartphone giant offered to give competitors access to mobile wallet and contactless payment technology.
The commitments
The iPhone giant stated that it would grant access to its NFC technology to third-party developers and would not charge them for it.
It would also grant competing payment wallets access to some of its major iPhone features, such as Face ID.
Vestager revealed that Apple was also ready to give users the option of using any wallet as their default on their iPhones.
The European Commission also tested the market for Apple’s commitments and obtained feedback on the proposals earlier this year.
Once its assessment was complete, the Commission said that the final commitments of the tech giant did indeed address their concerns.
The company has permitted third-parties to access its NFC technology. Apple is now legally bound to keep up with the changes.
The impact
According to Vestager, Apple’s way of operating would undergo significant change in Europe, thanks to the new commitments. She added that both competitors and customers would reap the benefits.
She asserted that Apple would not be able to push out other mobile wallets in the market due to its control of the iPhone ecosystem.
The said changes would benefit rival wallet developers because it would open up innovations. As for consumers, they would benefit from the choice. Most importantly, it would ensure secure payments.
Apple has time until July 25th to implement the said commitments. Vestager said that Apple’s tap-and-go technology would be available for all mobile wallets on iPhones.
The said commitments would remain in effect for a decade. Apple announced that the Apple Wallet, or Apple Pay would not undergo any changes due to the investigation.
The company said that developers who are part of the European Economic Area (EEA) would be able to use NFC contactless transactions and payments.
These would be available for corporate badges, event tickets, closed loop transit, car keys and merchant rewards/loyalty.
