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A decision in a landmark antitrust court case could be made by the end of the month, but that’s far from the only concern facing Apple Inc.
Legal experts predict that federal judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers will side with Apple AAPL,
in its legal fight with Epic Games Inc., denying the main demands of the maker of “Fortnite” to be allowed to download applications from the App Store and operate a third-party payment system within the digital store. Rogers, however, could invoke unfair competition law in California, which would cause legal and legislative headaches for Apple.
Learn more: The (Planned) Epic Verdict v. Apple is in
Experts based their predictions on Rogers’ line of questions during closing arguments in May. Both sides are almost certain to appeal the decision, setting in motion what could take years. Apple and Epic declined to comment.
Federal regulators, state lawmakers and legal experts are closely watching where Gonzalez Rogers lands during what many believe could be a renaissance of antitrust law. The judge could focus on California law as it has been further amended in response to the rise of Big Tech and other businesses in recent decades, when federal law has not, at least until then. that current legislative efforts bear fruit.
“We are at an inflection point, based on the presidential decree on competitiveness, federal appointments, actions of European regulators, US law and investigations and private prosecutions,” Joel Mitnick, expert, told MarketWatch antitrust and former FTC litigator. “We are unlikely to come out of this period without some substantial changes. “
While Rogers’ decision could trigger a lengthy appeal process, both houses of Congress are pushing forward with sweeping antitrust legislation with far-reaching consequences for Apple, Alphabet Inc.’s Google GOOGL,
GOOG,
Facebook Inc. FB,
and Amazon.com Inc. AMZN,
Apple appears to be a major near-term target, however, with legislation introduced Wednesday that regulates app stores while competitors like Facebook, Tile, and Spotify Technology SPOT,
publicly sniper the iPhone maker.
The Open App Markets Act in the Senate, designed to regulate app stores, backed by the Senses. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., Klobuchar, and Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., All fierce and outspoken critics of Big Tech, was announced on Wednesday.
Read more: New Senate Bill Targets Apple and Google App Store Tactics
“We’ve been looking at this case]for some time,” Blumenthal told MarketWatch. “The [Epic v. Apple] the trial presented dramatic evidence, but did not shape our legislation.
The Blumenthal-led bill is the latest in both houses of Congress to take on Big Tech. A set of bills from Rep. David Cicillin, DR.I., could be put to a full vote in the House later this year as Cicillin, chairman of the Antitrust, Commercial and Administrative Law Subcommittee, negotiates with the California House members for their support. for legislation that will affect some of the state’s biggest companies – Apple, Alphabet and Facebook.
Read more: What House Antitrust Bills Attempt to Do
In the Senate, separate legislation led by Senator Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., Would push for general antitrust reform rather than sector-specific rules of the House M&A bill, and dominant digital platforms with specific businesses in mind. Klobuchar, chair of the Competition Policy, Antitrust and Consumer Rights subcommittee, is seeking bipartisan support for his legislation, which would be added to the bill on the App Store.
A spokesperson for Klobuchar confirmed that she was working on bills to go along with a House antitrust package to curb the tech giants. The contours of the legislation would be closer to European regulatory law, shifting the burden of proof in antitrust cases to the defendant rather than the plaintiff. Klobuchar is also seeking to increase resources and personnel for antitrust matters within the FTC and the Department of Justice.
Reviews of the archaic antitrust law are essential to help shape it for the digital economy, argue legal scholars and consumer advocates. The rise of online platforms and stores has increasingly restricted small competitors and stifled innovation, which has reduced consumer choice.
The push for legislation reflects political and consumer pressure to more closely monitor the so-called Big Tech GAFAs – Google, Apple, Facebook, Amazon – whose power has grown during the pandemic. The collective market value of the four companies is almost $ 7 trillion.
“The savings are changing. Antitrust law is a century out of date, ”said Andy Yen, CEO of Proton Technologies, a founding member of the Coalition for App Fairness, an organization of more than 50 developers opposed to the policies of the App Store. ‘Apple and Google. Without new antitrust parameters, he added, federal agencies and courts “bring a knife to a shootout” to enforce anti-competitive behavior.
The Coalition for App Fairness, whose other members include Epic and Spotify, has worked with federal and state lawmakers to tackle what they see as anti-competitive and stifling business practices on the App Store and Google Play Store. The tension of investigations and prosecutions has often led Big Tech’s rivals to point the finger at each other, as Apple has done when criticizing Facebook’s privacy and security breaches. Facebook, in turn, launched an ad campaign in the spring ahead of iPhone operating system changes that championed personalized ads. The social network argued that targeted ads are critical to the success of small businesses, millions of which depend on Facebook.
See also: Why Facebook is considering antitrust lawsuit against Apple
President Biden’s recent sweeping executive order on antitrust and competition laws – coupled with the appointments of Lina Khan, considered by many to be the most progressive leader in FTC history, and Jonathan Kanter as head of the antitrust division of the Department of Justice – emphasizes the seriousness of the administration, say financial experts.
“There is a drastic shift in the enforcement of antitrust laws even though it is evolving at an icy pace,” Ed Mills, who covers antitrust law for Raymond James, told MarketWatch.
Khan, in particular, is worth watching. A vocal critic of Big Tech, she has expressed her willingness to pursue cases such as separating Instagram and WhatsApp from Facebook, which could lead to lawsuits. While former FTC commissioners were content to seek regulations from companies, Khan wants court rulings that could boost legislation, Mills said.
See Also: New FTC President Lina Khan Is Big Tech’s Biggest Nightmare
Khan is likely to affect Big Tech more deeply than Kanter. She has the power to make rules in a five-member committee, isn’t afraid to exercise political muscle and generally has more leeway, according to people familiar with the legal strategy of Apple. Indeed, one of Khan’s first moves as FTC chairman significantly expanded his powers.
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