EU spares Apple Maps and Apple Ads from strict Digital Markets Act gatekeeper rules due to limited market presence across Europe.
Matilda
EU Spares Apple Maps And Apple Ads
Digital Markets Act Apple: Maps and Ads Escape Gatekeeper Status The European Commission has ruled that Apple Maps and Apple Ads will not face strict gatekeeper regulations under the EU's Digital Markets Act, citing insufficient market power across Europe. While Apple remains a designated gatekeeper for iOS, the App Store, and Safari, these two services avoided additional regulatory burdens after investigators determined their usage and scale fall below DMA thresholds. The decision, announced February 5, 2026, concludes a three-month investigation launched in late November 2025. Credit: Google Why Apple Maps Didn't Make the Gatekeeper Cut Apple Maps failed to qualify as a core platform service primarily because of its modest adoption across European markets. Despite steady improvements to its mapping technology and integration across Apple devices, the service maintains a relatively low overall usage rate compared to dominant alternatives. European regulators emphasized that gatek…
