Apple to Allow Rivals Access to Its Tap-and-Go Payment Services in the EU

Apple settled a long-running European Union (EU) antitrust probe by agreeing to open its “tap to pay” service to rivals, the European Commission announced this week. This decision permits banks, payment services, and app developers to use Apple’s near-field communication, or NFC technology to create competing tap-and-go payment services on iPhones within the EU.

“Apple has committed to allow rivals to access the ‘tap and go’ technology of iPhones,” Margrethe Vestager, the European Commission’s executive vice president, in charge of competition policy, said in a statement.

The concession follows a major EU investigation launched in 2020 to assess whether Apple was exploiting its dominant position in the mobile wallet technology market to exclude competing payment service providers.

By May 2022, a preliminary investigation by the commission indicated that Apple’s actions had sidelined rivals to Apple Pay, limiting innovation and consumer choice in iPhone mobile wallets.

In response to these findings and to avoid potentially substantial fines, Apple proposed in January of this year to grant third-party mobile wallet and payment service providers access to the contactless payment function within its iOS operating system.

The European Commission then tested and gathered feedback on Apple’s proposal to ensure it addressed competition concerns. Apple adjusted its proposal based on this feedback, which has now been approved as legally binding by the Commission.

“Today’s decision makes Apple’ commitments binding,” continued Vestager. “From now on, competitors will be able to effectively compete with Apple Pay for mobile payments with the iPhone in shops. So consumers will have a wider range of safe and innovative mobile wallets to choose from.”

The settlement deal will be applicable throughout the European Economic Area (EEA) and will remain in force for ten years. It will not be applicable to Apple watches.

Reuters reports that Apple will offer developers in the EEA the ability to integrate NFC contactless payments and transactions into their iOS applications for uses in car keys, corporate badges, hotel keys, and concert tickets.

Lately, Apple has come under heightened scrutiny from the European regulatory authority over allegations of anti-competitive practices in the music streaming market and breaches of EU competition laws.