Brazil's antitrust regulator is set to fine Apple if in-app purchase restrictions aren't lifted

In 2022, e-commerce merchant MercadoLibre filed an antitrust complaint with Brazilian regulators. The complaint was picked up in 2023 by antitrust regulator Conselho Administrativo de Defesa Economica (CADE), and a ruling has been handed out on Monday.

According to a report from Reuters, CADE has ruled that Apple must lift restrictions on in-app payment methods and steering customers to external websites. The company has 20 days to comply or face a fine of about $43,000 per day.

Apple's anti-steering practices have been under fire for years from multiple countries. The most prominent lawsuit was handled in the United States in Epic vs Apple, but the EU antitrust laws forced Apple to develop an entirely new commission system.

The EU's success and the slow erosion of Apple's rules in the US have sparked more antitrust regulators to attempt to achieve similar results. Now that Apple has a system for removing anti-steering rules or changing the in-app purchase system, it could adapt them to other countries.

The Coalition for App Fairness congratulated Brazil's CADE for its decision, calling it a pivotal moment.

"This is a pivotal moment in the global effort to create a more competitive mobile app ecosystem," a press release read. "Brazil joins a long list of brave jurisdictions eager to reform app store practices to the benefit of consumers and developers. CADE's decision reflects a growing global consensus that essential government intervention can create fair and competitive digital marketplaces."

Apple may have to rethink how it monetizes the App Store entirely if more global regulators ask it to remove rules from its guidelines. Regulators hope these measures against Apple will help promote competition and provide users with choice, while Apple argues it increases consumer risk and gives developers free access to Apple's user base.