Apple Inc. was fined €98 million (about $115 million) by Italy’s competition authority (AGCM) for its App Tracking Transparency (ATT) policy, a decision announced on December 22, 2025. The fine follows a May 2023 investigation that found Apple’s ATT requirements forced third‑party developers to seek user consent twice for the same purpose—once under ATT and again under the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). The AGCM concluded that this “double consent” was disproportionate and harmed developers who rely on advertising revenue.
The core of the AGCM’s argument is that Apple’s ATT framework applies only to apps that track users across other apps and websites, while Apple’s own apps do not engage in such cross‑app tracking. Because developers must obtain consent under both ATT and GDPR, they effectively ask users for the same permission twice, creating a barrier that Apple’s competitors do not face. The regulator said the policy gives Apple an unfair advantage by allowing it to collect data for its own advertising services while imposing a higher compliance burden on third‑party developers.
Apple has responded that ATT is a privacy‑first feature that empowers users and that the policy applies equally to all developers. The company stated it “strongly disagrees” with the AGCM’s findings and will appeal the decision. Apple’s defense emphasizes that it does not track users across apps and therefore does not face the same consent requirements that third‑party developers do.
This fine is not the first regulatory action against Apple in Italy. In 2021, the AGCM imposed a €10 million fine on Apple for failing to provide clear information about how user data was used for commercial purposes. The current penalty is part of a broader wave of scrutiny across the European Union, with similar investigations underway in France, Poland, and under the Digital Markets Act by the European Commission.
The €98 million penalty signals increasing regulatory pressure on Apple’s App Store practices and could have implications for its services revenue, particularly from advertising and in‑app purchases. If the fine forces Apple to modify its ATT policy or to treat third‑party developers more equitably, the company may face higher compliance costs and a potential shift in its competitive advantage. The decision also reinforces the EU’s commitment to enforcing data‑protection and antitrust rules in the digital economy.
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