“Unpredictable and arbitrary”: Why Apple is increasingly annoyed by the EU

“Nice new feature – but is that also in the EU?” European Apple users are increasing this question. To this day, MAC users are waiting, for example, for iPhone mirroring, which was presented a year ago. And the live activities of the iPhone, which are also to be displayed on the Mac in MacOS 26 TAHOE, will not be seen at first EU users. The reason is that this feature is closely linked to iPhone remote control. The fate of further newly presented functions is still unclear. Apple is said to be in discussions with the EU Commission.

The EU Commission’s pressure to regulate has increased significantly in recent years. With the digital markets act, the legal framework was created, which now ensures ongoing dispute. Finally, new guidelines made headlines that should force Apple to open its operating systems and devices for competitors and other devices. Under the generic term interoperability, it is about providing the AirPods furnishing process for other manufacturers or opening airdrop data transfers to alternative providers.

Officially, Apple does not say anything about it

In the keynote for the WWDC developer conference on Whit Monday, when iOS 26 and the other new operating system versions were presented, Apple mentioned the topic in no word. And even officially you don’t want to comment on it on site. A few weeks ago, Apple’s procedure was sentenced by Apple with sharp words as a great threat to data protection and security.

In the Apple headquarters, it is apparently increasingly being worried about whether users really realize what the strict regulation results in. Previous attempts to explain have apparently not fertilized in large parts of the population.

At the same time, it is concerned that Apple is increasingly assuming that it wants to operate politics at the expense of users with the withholding of functions in the European Union. In reality, however, one wants to prevent features from falling out in the EU. It is-so you can hear-a hard and painful decision in individual cases if, as in the case of iPhone remote control, functions are held back. But you only want to do that if the danger seems too great or red lines are exceeded. Heise found this online from informed circles.

EU: unpredictable and arbitrary?

Communication with the EU is apparently increasingly perceived by Apple as unpredictable and arbitrary. There is no technical expertise and once given feedback to Apple, how the software should correspond to the requirements correctly, would often be collected again after a while.

Every month there should be several discussions in which representatives of Apple are trying to mediate at the EU Commission. For example, Apple is said to have tried to prevent the requested publication of lists of the WLAN networks into which users were recently logged in. Apple itself does not save this data on the devices. However, competitors have requested the use of this data and Apple is now obliged to meet the EU requirements. Alternative suggestions to switch on information and query the disclosure of the data individually for users, but would be categorically mashed, according to informed circles.

Has the EU shot on Apple?

Even with the notifications, there are considerable reservations to hand over to others freely to others – they often contain information that would make it possible to get or track private information from users. This requirement is available in connection with smartwatches from other manufacturers who are to be equal with the Apple Watch.

In addition, the EU regulation apparently increasingly slowed on Apple. The company officially announced that 500 employees are parked for the EU measures alone. In the meantime, in Cupertino, in discussions about future features, one is already considering whether the feature could cause problems with the EU and do without ideas globally as a precaution if the risk appears too high.

Judicial hearing in autumn

Does the EU go too far if it not only bases tech manufacturers in principle what they want, but also how they have to do it? You should also ask yourself this question in Cupertino. Courts could provide more clarity in the coming months. In autumn there will be a hearing before the EU court in Luxembourg. Relaxation in the climate between Brussels and Cupertino currently seems to be a long way off.