BRUSSELS: The EU on Wednesday slapped Apple and Meta with €700 million in fines for breaking digital competition rules, risking the wrath of US President Donald Trump.
The penalties threaten to cause more tension in the already fraught relationship between the bloc and Trump, as the two sides discuss a deal to avoid his sweeping tariffs on the EU.
The European Commission fined Apple €500 million ($570 million) after concluding the company prevented developers from steering customers outside its App Store to access cheaper deals.
The EU also fined Meta €200 million over its “pay or consent” system after it violated rules on the use of personal data on Facebook and Instagram.
The fines are the first under the Digital Markets Act (DMA), which came into effect last year, forcing the world’s biggest tech firms to open up to competition in the EU.
They could rise further if Meta and Apple fail to comply within 60 days, the commission said, threatening the US giants with “periodic penalty payments.”
The EU bolstered its legal arsenal over the past two years with major twin laws, the Digital Services Act and the DMA.
But since Trump’s return to the White House, there have been concerns that the EU would shy away from enforcing them.
Trump frequently lashes out at the EU over its digital laws and taxes – claiming they are “non-tariff barriers” to trade – and many tech CEOs have aligned with his administration.
He has imposed 25-percent tariffs on steel, aluminum and auto imports from the EU, which Brussels hopes he will lift after an agreement.
Antitrust commissioner Teresa Ribera said in a statement the fines “send a strong and clear message,” insisting the bloc had taken “firm but balanced enforcement action.”
The fines – which come after the investigations began in March 2024 – also appear to be more modest than past penalties against US Big Tech.
When Apple committed similar offenses on its App Store, the commission slapped a 1.8-billion-euro fine in March 2024 under different EU rules.
Apple faces a litany of accusations. The EU also told Apple in preliminary findings it was in breach of the DMA – and therefore at risk of another hefty fine – for not making it easy for rivals to provide alternatives to its App Store.
Apple, however, slammed the decisions and said in a statement it would appeal the fine.
“Today’s announcements are yet another example of the European Commission unfairly targeting Apple in a series of decisions that are bad for the privacy and security of our users, bad for products, and force us to give away our technology for free,” the company said.
Meta accused the EU of “attempting to handicap successful American businesses while allowing Chinese and European companies to operate under different standards.”
“This isn’t just about a fine; the Commission forcing us to change our business model effectively imposes a multi-billion-dollar tariff on Meta while requiring us to offer an inferior service,” said Meta’s chief global affairs officer Joel Kaplan, a prominent Republican and Trump ally.
In a rare bit of good news for Apple, the EU closed its investigation over its user choice obligations after Apple complied with the DMA, and made it easy to select a default browser and for users to remove pre-installed apps such as Safari.
The fine against Meta concerned its “pay for privacy” system, which has faced fierce criticism by rights defenders in Europe after its introduction in November 2023.
It means users have to pay to avoid data collection, or agree to share their data with Facebook and Instagram to keep using the platforms for free.
But the commission concluded Meta did not provide Facebook and Instagram users a less personalized but equivalent version of the platforms, and “did not allow users to exercise their right to freely consent to the combination of their personal data.”
Meta in November last year proposed a new version, which the EU is currently assessing.
![]()
EU slaps fines on Apple and Meta, risking Trump fury
Short Url
https://arab.news/62tv6
EU slaps fines on Apple and Meta, risking Trump fury
- The fines are the first under the Digital Markets Act, which came into effect last year
- Law forces the world’s biggest tech firms to open up to competition in the EU
Louvre thieves escaped with 30 seconds to spare, probe reveals
- Probe found only one of two security cameras was working near the site where the intruders broke in on the morning of Sunday October 19
PARIS: The thieves who stole crown jewels from the Louvre in October evaded police with just 30 seconds to spare due to avoidable security failures at the Paris museum, a damning investigation revealed on Wednesday.
The probe, ordered by the culture ministry after the embarrassing daylight heist, revealed that only one of two security cameras was working near the site where the intruders broke in on the morning of Sunday October 19.
Agents in the security control room did not have enough screens to follow the images in real-time, while a lack of coordination meant police were initially sent to the wrong place once the alarm was raised, the report unveiled at the French Senate’s Culture Commission stated.
“It highlights an overall failure of the museum, as well as its supervisory authority, to address security issues,” the head of the commission, Laurent Lafon, said at the start of a hearing.
One of the most startling revelations was that the robbers left only 30 seconds before police and private security guards arrived on the scene.
“Give or take 30 seconds, the Securitas (private security) guards or the police officers in a car could have prevented the thieves from escaping,” the head of the investigation, Noel Corbin, told senators.
He said that measures such as a modern CCTV system, more resistant glass in the door cut open with angle grinders, or better internal coordination could have prevented the loss of the jewels — worth an estimated $102 million — which have still not been found.
Major security vulnerabilities were highlighted in several studies seen by management of the Louvre over the last decade, including a 2019 audit by experts at the jewelry company Van Cleef & Arpels.
Their findings stressed that the riverside balcony targeted by the thieves was a weak point and could be easily reached with an extendable ladder — exactly what transpired in the heist.
‘Stunned’
Corbin confirmed that under-fire Louvre boss Laurence des Cars had not been aware of the audit which was ordered by her predecessor, Jean-Luc Martinez.
“The recommendations were not acted on and they would have enabled us to avoid this robbery,” Corbin said, adding that there had been a lack of coordination between the two government-appointed administrators.
Police believe they have arrested all four intruders, who escaped on powerful motorbikes, having carried out the heist in the Apollo Gallery in around 10 minutes in total, according to the investigation.
The revelations on Wednesday are likely to pile more pressure des Cars, the first woman in the role who was appointed by President Emmanuel Macron in 2021.
Questions have swirled since the break-in over whether it was avoidable and why a national treasure that is the world’s most-visited museum appeared to be so poorly protected.
France’s lower house of parliament is carrying out its own inquiry, while des Cars and Martinez are set to be grilled by senators next week.
Last month, France’s state auditor said security upgrades had been carried out at a “woefully inadequate pace” and the museum had prioritized “high-profile and attractive operations” instead of protecting itself.
Senior police officer Guy Tubiana, a security adviser at the culture ministry who took part in the investigation, told senators he was “stunned” by what he had discovered at the museum.
“There was a succession of malfunctions that led to catastrophe but I never would have thought the Louvre could have so many malfunctions,” he said.
Staff at the Louvre at set to go on strike on Monday to demand management act against what they see as understaffing and overcrowding at the museum, which welcomed 8.7 million people last year.
At the weekend, the museum revealed that a water leak had damaged 300 to 400 journals, books and documents in the Egyptian department in late November.
The probe, ordered by the culture ministry after the embarrassing daylight heist, revealed that only one of two security cameras was working near the site where the intruders broke in on the morning of Sunday October 19.
Agents in the security control room did not have enough screens to follow the images in real-time, while a lack of coordination meant police were initially sent to the wrong place once the alarm was raised, the report unveiled at the French Senate’s Culture Commission stated.
“It highlights an overall failure of the museum, as well as its supervisory authority, to address security issues,” the head of the commission, Laurent Lafon, said at the start of a hearing.
One of the most startling revelations was that the robbers left only 30 seconds before police and private security guards arrived on the scene.
“Give or take 30 seconds, the Securitas (private security) guards or the police officers in a car could have prevented the thieves from escaping,” the head of the investigation, Noel Corbin, told senators.
He said that measures such as a modern CCTV system, more resistant glass in the door cut open with angle grinders, or better internal coordination could have prevented the loss of the jewels — worth an estimated $102 million — which have still not been found.
Major security vulnerabilities were highlighted in several studies seen by management of the Louvre over the last decade, including a 2019 audit by experts at the jewelry company Van Cleef & Arpels.
Their findings stressed that the riverside balcony targeted by the thieves was a weak point and could be easily reached with an extendable ladder — exactly what transpired in the heist.
‘Stunned’
Corbin confirmed that under-fire Louvre boss Laurence des Cars had not been aware of the audit which was ordered by her predecessor, Jean-Luc Martinez.
“The recommendations were not acted on and they would have enabled us to avoid this robbery,” Corbin said, adding that there had been a lack of coordination between the two government-appointed administrators.
Police believe they have arrested all four intruders, who escaped on powerful motorbikes, having carried out the heist in the Apollo Gallery in around 10 minutes in total, according to the investigation.
The revelations on Wednesday are likely to pile more pressure des Cars, the first woman in the role who was appointed by President Emmanuel Macron in 2021.
Questions have swirled since the break-in over whether it was avoidable and why a national treasure that is the world’s most-visited museum appeared to be so poorly protected.
France’s lower house of parliament is carrying out its own inquiry, while des Cars and Martinez are set to be grilled by senators next week.
Last month, France’s state auditor said security upgrades had been carried out at a “woefully inadequate pace” and the museum had prioritized “high-profile and attractive operations” instead of protecting itself.
Senior police officer Guy Tubiana, a security adviser at the culture ministry who took part in the investigation, told senators he was “stunned” by what he had discovered at the museum.
“There was a succession of malfunctions that led to catastrophe but I never would have thought the Louvre could have so many malfunctions,” he said.
Staff at the Louvre at set to go on strike on Monday to demand management act against what they see as understaffing and overcrowding at the museum, which welcomed 8.7 million people last year.
At the weekend, the museum revealed that a water leak had damaged 300 to 400 journals, books and documents in the Egyptian department in late November.
Latest updates
© 2025 SAUDI RESEARCH & PUBLISHING COMPANY, All Rights Reserved And subject to Terms of Use Agreement.