Poland’s anti-monopoly office UOKiK is investigating whether Apple is restricting competition in the mobile advertising market through its privacy policy, reports Reuters.
The regulator suspects that the tech giant’s App Tracking Transparency (ATT) framework could limit third-party apps’ ability to collect user data for personalized ads while favoring Apple’s own advertising service, the article adds.
“We suspect that the ATT policy may have misled users about the level of privacy protection while simultaneously increasing Apple’s competitive advantage over independent publishers,” UOKiK President Tomasz Chrostny was quoted as saying in a statement. “Such practices may constitute an abuse of dominant position.”
If confirmed, Apple could face a fine of up to 10% of its annual turnover in Poland, according to Reuters.
Apple introduced the App Tracking Transparency Framework for third-party apps with its updates iOS 14.5, iPadOS 14.5 and tvOS 14.5 in April 2021. ATT allows you to choose whether an app can track your activity across other companies’ apps and websites for the purposes of advertising or sharing with data brokers. Starting with iOS 14.5, iPadOS 14.5, and tvOS 14.5, apps must ask for permission before tracking your activity across other companies’ apps and websites.
Tracking occurs when information that identifies you or your device collected from an app is linked with information that identifies you or your device collected on apps, websites and other locations owned by third parties for the purposes of targeted advertising or advertising measurement, or when the information collected is shared with data brokers.
I hope you’ll help support Apple World Today by becoming a patron. Patreon pricing ranges from $2 to $10 a month. Thanks in advance for your support.
Article provided with permission from AppleWorld.Today
