The European Union has fined Apple and Meta Platforms a combined €700 million for breaching the bloc’s digital competition regulations, a move that could escalate tensions with U.S. President Donald Trump. And the Trump Administration has already issued angry statements about the move. Meta is the parent company of Mark Zuckerberg‘s Facebook, which has been under scrutiny by EU regulators for years.
The European Commission, the EU’s executive branch, levied a €500 million ($571 million) fine on Apple, citing the company’s restrictions that prevented app developers from directing users to cheaper alternatives outside of the App Store.
Additionally, Meta was fined €200 million for giving Facebook and Instagram users a controversial choice: either accept personalized ads or pay for an ad-free experience—an approach the EU deemed non-compliant with its Digital Markets Act (DMA).
The penalties come amid delicate trade discussions between the EU and Trump, who has threatened sweeping tariffs on European imports. As enforcement of digital competition laws ramps up, these fines may further strain EU-U.S. tech relations.
Threatening “periodic penalty payments,” the EU commission has warned Meta and Apple that non-compliance within 60 days could lead to further increases in potential fines. This stance reflects the EU’s strengthened regulatory framework, bolstered by the Digital Services Act and the DMA over the last two years. However, Trump’s return to the White House has introduced uncertainty regarding the EU’s commitment to enforcing these laws, considering his frequent attacks on EU digital regulations and taxes as “non-tariff barriers” and the support his views have garnered from many tech CEOs.
“This novel form of economic extortion will not be tolerated by the United States,” said Brian Hughes, a spokesman for the National Security Council. “Extraterritorial regulations that specifically target and undermine American companies, stifle innovation and enable censorship will be recognized as barriers to trade and a direct threat to free civil society.”
It goes without saying that Meta was angry about the fines.
“The European Commission is attempting to handicap successful American businesses while allowing Chinese and European companies to operate under different standards,” Joel Kaplan, Meta’s chief global affairs officer, said in a statement. “This isn’t just about a fine; the commission forcing us to change our business model effectively imposes a multibillion-dollar tariff on Meta while requiring us to offer an inferior service.”
