On Thursday, Apple won a California court case, defeating a lawsuit that accused it of restricting app development and inflating iPhone prices. The plaintiffs lacked grounds to sue because they failed to prove Apple made illegal deals with companies like Google to prevent alternatives for app development. (Reuters)
In January, three people from California and Illinois sued Apple, accusing them of having a “closed app system” that hurts competition. They wanted a court order forcing Apple to allow developers to use different technology for building iPhone app browsers instead of WebKit, Apple’s app browser engine.
Apple has not yet commented on the lawsuit, and the lawyer for the plaintiffs declined to comment. Apple has denied any wrongdoing, stating that their prices are fair considering the competition they face.
The judge, however, wasn’t convinced by the lawsuit’s arguments. He questioned whether the plaintiffs were the right people to sue in this case. He gave them 30 days to revise their lawsuit. The case, Bakay v. Apple Inc., was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California (No. 3:24-cv-00476).
This isn’t the only legal battle Apple faces. The U.S. government is also suing them in New Jersey, accusing them of dominating the smartphone market unfairly. Apple denies these allegations as well.
