Apple is set to face an EU antitrust charge over its NFC chip technology related to Apple Pay, Reuters reported. It could be handed a significant fine and be forced to open up its mobile payment system.
EU Preparing Apple Pay Antitrust Charges
The EU’s antitrust chief, Margrethe Vestager, began an investigation into Apple Pay in June. It looked at the NFC chip, terms and conditions, and the fact that rival providers cannot access the payment system. The focus is understood now to be just on the NFC Chip, as only the Apple Pay service can currently access it.
Furthermore, it is expected that the EU could send Apple a statement of objections, essentially a charge sheet outlining the practices it considers anti-competitive, next year.
The EU Commission had not commented publicly at the time of this writing. The Mac Observer has reached out to Apple for comment.