Apple to change app data consent rules, German regulator says

DUESSELDORF, Germany, Aug 17 : Apple will change rules governing how app developers can use personal data for targeted advertising on iPhones and iPads, Germany's competition authority said on Monday, closing a years-long investigation.

The Federal Cartel Office found that Apple's App Tracking Transparency framework gave its own apps more favourable consent prompts than those of third-party developers, potentially breaching competition rules.

• Apple has four months to implement the changes after the decision is served. Commitments run for seven years and will be monitored by a trustee.

• Under the commitments, consent pop-ups for third-party apps must be redesigned to remove discouraging language and symbols, and made visually and linguistically neutral.

• Third-party app publishers will also gain more flexibility to combine Apple's required consent request with separate data-protection consent prompts.

• Apple said the changes would apply in almost all European Union countries and that it had adapted the text and design of the consent prompt at the authority's request.

• Developers of third-party apps, including Facebook parent Meta Platforms, aim for accurate user data so that targeted adverts can be displayed on devices. These generate more revenue than broader campaigns.

• France and Italy have already fined Apple €150 million and €98.6 million, respectively, over the ATT framework.