The EU has begun looking into whether Apple Maps and Apple Ads should be designated as "gatekeepers" and subject to greater regulation (via Reuters).
The App Store, iOS, and Safari were classified as gatekeepers two years ago, triggering strict requirements in the EU such as support for alternative app marketplaces and third-party payment options. Under the Digital Markets Act (DMA), any platform with more than 45 million monthly active EU users and a market valuation above €75 billion is presumed to be a gatekeeper, subject to obligations designed to curb self-preferencing and increase interoperability.
The European Commission has now confirmed that Apple Maps and Apple Ads satisfy the user-base thresholds that mandate a review. Regulators now have 45 working days to decide whether either service should formally join Apple's existing list of designated platforms. If confirmed, Apple would then have six months to bring each service into full DMA compliance.
Apple has apparently already submitted formal rebuttals arguing that the criteria should not apply. The company argues that Apple Ads represents only a "minimal share" of the EU online advertising market, especially compared to dominant players such as Google, Meta, TikTok, Microsoft, and X. Apple also insists that its advertising business neither relies on cross-service data privileges nor exerts the level of market influence implied by the DMA thresholds.
The company is making similar arguments regarding Apple Maps, claiming that the service has "very limited usage" in the EU relative to Google Maps and Waze. Apple says Maps does not provide the kind of "critical intermediation functionality" that would allow it to act as a dominant gateway between businesses and consumers.
A gatekeeper designation for Apple Ads could have significant consequences. Compliance may require Apple to loosen restrictions introduced under App Tracking Transparency, provide interoperability for third-party ad networks, or eliminate any perceived self-preferencing advantages.
For Maps, it is unclear what specific operational changes the DMA might require, but obligations could include expanded third-party access or reducing any privileged integrations within the system. iOS 18.4 already enabled the ability to change the default maps app from Apple Maps to alternatives like Google Maps or Waze in the EU.
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