Apple’s week is off to a rough start. First, Proton filed a class action lawsuit in the U.S. Almost simultaneously, a judge in New Jersey rejected Apple’s attempt to dismiss a federal antitrust case.
And on Monday night, things got a little worse: CADE, Brazil’s antitrust watchdog, formally recommended that Apple be sanctioned for restricting access to the iPhone’s NFC chip and forcing developers to use Apple Pay.
In its ruling, CADE’s General Superintendence said Apple’s behavior creates “artificial barriers” for competitors and stifles innovation in digital markets tied to iOS, which Apple “fully controls.”
The agency says the company’s practices make it harder for new players to enter the market and limit options for both developers and users.
The original inquiry followed a 2022 complaint filed by e-commerce giant MercadoLibre
The Latin American company alleged that Apple abused its dominance in the iOS app distribution market by restricting the sale of third-party digital services, and requiring developers to exclusively use its own payment system for in-app transactions.
CADE concluded that this set of restrictions amounts to an abuse of economic power under Brazilian law.
Its report accuses Apple of artificially preserving its dominant position in iOS-related markets, and of making it unnecessarily difficult for competitors to operate on the platform. Particularly when it comes to digital payments:
“With these restrictions,” CADE wrote, “Apple makes it harder for new players to enter the market, preserves its dominant position artificially, and limits choices available to developers and users.”
The authority has now asked its internal tribunal to impose a financial penalty (amount not yet disclosed) and adopt remedies to address the antitrust violations. That could include requiring Apple to open access to its NFC hardware and payment framework, much like what the EU is already enforcing under the Digital Markets Act.
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