Overview
- The EU General Court in Luxembourg dismissed Apple’s legal challenge on Wednesday, July 8, 2026, confirming the company’s designation as a DMA “gatekeeper” for the App Store, iOS and Safari.
- Judges ruled that Apple’s separate App Store versions for iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, Mac and Apple TV form a single central platform service and rejected Apple’s challenge over the classification of iMessage.
- As a gatekeeper Apple must meet specific DMA obligations such as allowing alternative app stores, not forcing the use of preinstalled services, and enabling greater interoperability for messaging and other core services.
- Apple said the DMA’s demands risk harming user privacy and security and retains the right to appeal the General Court decision to the European Court of Justice.
- The decision raises the prospect of technical and compliance disputes with regulators, holds potential fines of up to double‑digit percentages of global turnover for breaches, and signals continued legal testing of the DMA across major tech firms and their developers and users.