The EU has given Apple a break for the time being
By not calling iOS’ messaging platform iMessage a “gatekeeper,” Apple is not forced to add support for the Rich Communication Service (RCS) messaging system used by Google for iOS.
RCS is used by Google’s Android messaging app and offers many similar features to iMessage, including messaging capabilities, high-quality images and videos, end-to-end encryption, read receipts and write indicators, although only when chats are directed to other RCS users are limited.
The EU Digital Markets Act (DMA) would have forced Apple to add RCS support across the bloc’s 27 member countries if iMessage had been considered a “gatekeeper.”
To be considered such, iMessage would have to have had at least 45 million monthly active users. Although six companies are considered gatekeepers (Apple, Google, Amazon, Meta, Microsoft and ByteDance), the EU has examined individual services such as iMessage to determine which could be considered gatekeepers.
Luckily for Apple, which doesn’t want to support RCS, the EU has not yet placed Apple’s messaging platform in the “gatekeeper” category.
Apple’s App Store, Safari and the iOS browser have been appointed gatekeepers. Google Maps, Google Play, Google Shopping, Chrome, Android, YouTube, Google Search, and Google Ads were some of the services that received the “gatekeeper” title.
Apple’s exemption could be temporary, as iMessage is one of four basic services that the EU still wants to designate as “gatekeepers.” The other three still under investigation are all Microsoft businesses: the company’s Bing search, Edge browser and advertising business. The EU will take a final decision on these services within five months.
If the EU finally declares iMessage a “gatekeeper” in five months, Apple will have until August 2024 to implement the necessary changes, although any changes would theoretically be limited to iPhone devices used in the EU’s 27 member countries. EU.
The Company ensures that the messaging service is not a “gatekeeper” and does not meet the requirement of having 45 million monthly active users.
Google has tried to pressure Apple to add support for RCS, which would have eliminated the green bubble that occurs when someone is outed as an Android user during a group chat, as their presence in the chat breaks all iMessage functionality. The same thing happens when an iOS user joins a chat consisting only of Android users using the Google Messages app or other RCS-based messaging platforms.
Companies that do not comply with the DMA can be fined up to 10% of their annual turnover. Repeat offenders can be fined up to 20% of annual earnings.