Skip to main content

Directorate General for Competition

See All Stories

France competition watchdog says Apple owes carriers 48.5M euros for unfair contract requirements

According to a report from BFM.TV (via iPhon.fr), France’s Directorate General for Competition, Consumer Affairs and Fraud Control (DGCCRF) has launched a case before a court in Paris claiming Apple owes 48.5 million euros. The complaint points to clauses in contracts Apple has with mobile operators in the country that the DGCCRF, a governing body under the Ministry of Finance, claims are illegal and essentially provide Apple with too much power over the carriers.

The DGCCRF outlined 10 clauses in Apple’s contracts specifically that it wants the company to remove. The clauses relate to stipulations Apple enforces including the amount of product carriers must order, advertising requirements, mobile plans and other guidelines the carriers must follow in order to sell iPhones. Other clauses relate to Apple’s permission to use patents held by carriers, requirements for carriers covering costs of iPhone repairs and in-store displays, and the fact that Apple doesn’t have to adhere to similar guidelines within the contracts. We’ve translated them from French below:
Expand
Expanding
Close

Manage push notifications

notification icon
We would like to show you notifications for the latest news and updates.
notification icon
You are subscribed to notifications
notification icon
We would like to show you notifications for the latest news and updates.
notification icon
You are subscribed to notifications