by Dan Moren

September 25, 2025 12:19 PM PT

Report a mistake

Apple posts thoughts on the DMA

In an unsigned post on Apple Newsroom, Apple has poured out its heart about the EU’s Digital Markets Act:

It’s been more than a year since the Digital Markets Act was implemented. Over that time, it’s become clear that the DMA is leading to a worse experience for Apple users in the EU. It’s exposing them to new risks, and disrupting the simple, seamless way their Apple products work together. And as new technologies come out, our European users’ Apple products will only fall further behind.

Tell us how you really feel, Apple.

There’s a lot to unpack in this post, and it runs the gamut from concerns that seem reasonably well-founded—Apple potentially have to comply with third party companies requesting the full content of a user’s notifications—to claims that are more than a little ridiculous: “For instance, the changes to app marketplaces are making iOS look more like Android — and that reduces choice.”¹

Yes, you heard it here: Apple says that the iPhone are essentially identical to Android.

Look, the DMA is a far-reaching piece of legislation that’s intended to increase competition by knocking down the kind of barriers that keep these enormous tech companies insulated from competition. It’s also a byzantine and tortuous set of regulations created by people who don’t necessarily understand the way technology works and the implications of their actions. Both are true!

Threading the needle of “things Apple really should be doing to improve interoperability and competition” and “things that might have unforeseen consequences that actually fly in the face of the EU’s intentions” is a tricky proposition, and the mechanisms in place to challenge the rulings are, admittedly, restrictive.

What neither the EU nor Apple really want to admit here is that dealing with companies at this size is a matter of partnership and compromise. Government entities might be the only ones capable of wielding a stick big enough to make Apple sit up and actually make changes—and it is actively making those changes in the EU, which is not only to Apple’s credit but also proves that regulation can work—but ultimately getting the most out of something like the DMA requires both sides to operate in good faith, which seems to be lacking here.