European Union antitrust regulators have accepted commitments from tech giant Apple Inc. (AAPL) to open access to its "tap-and-go" payments technology on iPhones to rivals.
"The commission has decided to accept commitments offered by Apple. These commitments address our preliminary concerns that Apple may have illegally restricted competition regarding mobile wallets on iPhones," stated EU antitrust chief Margrethe Vestager during a news conference, as reported by CNBC.
The European Commission initiated a formal antitrust investigation into Apple's practices in June 2020.
Under pressure from European regulators, Apple has agreed to allow competitors access to the contactless payments technology on iPhones. Consequently, users will no longer be confined to using only the Apple Pay mobile wallet.
Apple Pay is Apple's proprietary mobile wallet that enables iPhone users to make payments in stores and online. iPhones are exclusively powered by Apple's operating system, iOS.
Apple has been given until July 25 to implement the changes. These new rules will remain in effect for ten years and will be applicable across the 30 countries within the European Economic Area (EEA).
The Commission concluded that Apple's commitments would alleviate its competition concerns regarding the restriction of third-party mobile wallet developers' access to NFC payments for EEA iOS users.
