French antitrust authorities have fined Apple €150 million ($162 million) for its implementation of the App Tracking Transparency (ATT) feature, which is also being investigated in other European nations.
The regulatory body criticised Apple, stating that the software’s method was “neither necessary nor proportionate” to its goal of protecting user privacy and unfairly penalised third-party publishers.
In addition to the fine, Apple has been instructed to publish the decision on its website for seven days. Similar investigations are underway in Germany, Italy, Romania, and Poland as Apple faces mounting scrutiny over its privacy measures.
In its decision, France’s Competition Authority said the ATT feature leads to an excessive number of consent windows for third-party apps on iPhones and iPads, making the experience more cumbersome.
It also found that Apple’s system required users to opt out of ad tracking twice rather than once, “undermining the neutrality of the feature” and causing economic harm to app publishers and ad services providers.
The authority added that Apple’s approach disproportionately affects smaller publishers, who rely heavily on third-party data collection to fund their businesses.
Following complaints from advertising industry players who claimed ATT hindered their ability to target users, France’s competition watchdog initially declined to impose emergency measures in 2021 but continued its investigation.
