Italy Fines Apple €98.6 Million Over ATT Rules Limiting App Store Competition

Apple has been fined €98.6 million by Italy’s antitrust authority after finding that its App Tracking Transparency (ATT) framework restricted App Store competition. According to Autorità Garante della Concorrenza e del Mercato (AGCM), Apple’s “absolute dominant position” in app distribution allowed it to unilaterally impose the ATT rules on third‑party developers without prior consultation.

The AGCM noted that while safeguards designed to enhance user privacy are welcome, the consent requirements for ATT are excessively burdensome for developers and disproportionate to the stated objectives, requiring both ATT‑ and GDPR‑related prompts in the EU. Apple introduced ATT in 2021 to obtain user consent for tracking across apps and websites for personalised ads, and Apple’s own services can present a single prompt, whereas third parties face double consent.

Apple said it will appeal the regulator’s decision and defend its privacy protections, a stance it reiterated after also facing a €150 million France‑level sanction in March 2025 for similar ATT‑related competition concerns.