Highlights
- Google and Europe’s biggest carriers are calling on the European Union to include Apple iMessage under the Digital Markets Act (DMA).
- Apple iMessage has 45 million monthly active users within the EU and comes preinstalled on every iPhone sold in the EU and the rest of the world.
- Google and Europe’s carriers argue that iMessage should be subject to interoperability rules, which would require Apple to open up iMessage to third-party messaging services.
- The European regulators have doubts about the exact number of iMessage monthly active users in the region, but it is likely that the app has over 45 million monthly active users in the EU.
Google and Europe’s biggest carriers push for iMessage inclusion in the European Union
Google and Europe’s biggest carriers are urging the European Union to include Apple iMessage under the Digital Markets Act (DMA) which would subject the app to interoperability rules. Despite Apple’s claims that iMessage isn’t large enough to be considered a gatekeeper service, the app has 45 million monthly active users within the EU. Competing companies argue that iMessage should be subject to the DMA because it comes preinstalled on every iPhone sold in the EU and worldwide.
European Regulators Urged to Subject iMessage to Interoperability Rules
Google, Vodafone, Deutsche Telekom, Telefónica, and Orange have sent a letter to European regulators requesting iMessage to be subject to interoperability rules, which would require Apple to open up iMessage to third-party messaging services. However, these rules only apply to Apple in the EU, not in the US or other regions. The letter states that opening up iMessage to rival platforms would benefit European consumers and businesses.
Apple’s App Store and iOS Already Part of Gatekeepers List
Agecy has already added several Apple services to the gatekeepers list, such as the App Store, iOS, WhatsApp, and Messenger. To be eligible for inclusion in the list, services must have over 45 million monthly active users in the EU. The owner’s turnover in the region should also exceed 7.5 billion euros annually, or its market cap should surpass 75 billion euros.
Challenges with Adding iMessage to the Gatekeepers List
Despite the strong case for adding iMessage to the gatekeepers list, European regulators are hesitant due to doubts about the exact number of iMessage monthly active users. However, with over 1 billion iPhones worldwide using iMessage and the iPhone commanding 25% of the European smartphone market, it’s likely that iMessage potentially has over 45 monthly active users in the EU. Google has already prepared for this possibility by adding support for interoperable end-to-end encrypted communication standards in anticipation of iMessage being added to the gatekeepers list.
