What the DOJ Suit Against Apple Means

The Justice Department’s antitrust lawsuit against Apple completes the set of antitrust cases now outstanding against four big tech firms, also including Amazon, Meta Platforms and Alphabet (which faces two, one of which has gone through a trial and is awaiting a judgment). But the Apple case is symbolically important, given how respected and rich the company is. Perhaps that’s why DOJ antitrust chief Jonathan Kanter drew a parallel between the case against Apple and those the DOJ has filed in the past against Standard Oil, Microsoft and AT&T.

In two of those cases, Standard Oil and AT&T, the companies ended up being broken up. There’s no sign that the government is seeking anything as drastic from Apple. Instead, success for the government would constitute Apple relaxing its famously rigid App Store rules, opening up iMessage to Android users and making it easier for a wider range of smartwatches and digital wallets to work on iPhones. Apple says this would “set a dangerous precedent, empowering government to take a heavy hand in designing people’s technology.” Maybe. Apple is surely more concerned that a government victory would erode its lucrative profit margins and limit its opportunities for growth in new areas. Those changes would be painful, particularly given that the smartphone market is now mature and iPhone sales are stagnant.