German publishers and advertisers have urged the country’s competition authority to reject Apple’s latest proposals for adjusting its App Tracking Transparency framework and to impose a fine on the tech giant, arguing that the revisions fall short of addressing longstanding antitrust concerns in mobile advertising.
The dispute centers on Apple’s App Tracking Transparency (ATT) tool, introduced to give iOS users greater control over whether apps can track their activity across other companies’ apps and websites. Apple has long positioned the feature as a cornerstone of user privacy protection, and the company continues to defend it vigorously amid mounting regulatory scrutiny in Europe.
In February 2025, Germany’s Federal Cartel Office charged Apple with abusing its market power following complaints from Meta Platforms, publishers, advertisers, and app developers whose business models depend heavily on targeted advertising. To address those concerns, Apple proposed changes last December, including neutral consent prompts that apply equally to its own services and third-party apps, aligned wording, content, and visual design across messages, and a simplified process for developers to seek user permission for advertising-related data processing in compliance with data protection laws.
Despite these efforts, a coalition of German trade associations—including media agencies, the German Advertising Federation, and the German Association of the Branded Goods Industry—rejected the proposals on March 10, 2026. In a joint letter responding to the competition authority’s request for feedback, the groups argued that the changes fail to remedy the core issues identified by regulators.
“The proposed commitments would not change the negative effects of the App Tracking Transparency Framework,” said Bernd Nauen, chief executive of the German Advertising Federation, in a statement. “Apple would remain the data gatekeeper and would continue to decide who gets access to advertising-relevant data and how companies can communicate with their end customers.”
The associations called on the watchdog to dismiss Apple’s revisions outright, order an end to the ATT framework in its current form, and levy a fine. Under German antitrust rules, violations can result in penalties of up to 10% of a company’s global annual turnover.
Apple pushed back firmly against the demands, emphasizing its commitment to user privacy over industry demands for broader tracking access.
“The tracking industry has consistently fought our efforts to keep users in control of their data, and this is just their latest attempt to gain unfettered access to personal information,” Apple said in a statement. “We will continue to defend this important privacy tool for our users.”
The company noted additional support for its position, pointing out that German data protection authorities have confirmed the tool’s consistency with privacy laws. Apple also cited a study it commissioned showing overwhelming backing from iOS users for the privacy controls.
The German competition authority will now weigh the feedback before deciding on next steps in the long-running investigation.
MacDailyNews Take: The ongoing case once again underscores the fundamental clash between Apple’s steadfast commitment to user privacy and the outdated, surveillance-heavy business models still clung to by many publishers and app developers.
Apple’s App Tracking Transparency framework is not some sort of anticompetitive roadblock, it simply allows users to exercise meaningful control over whether their activity is tracked across apps and websites. ATT not a barrier, it’s the necessary, user-focused tool that the entire digital ecosystem has desperately needed for years. Apple is not standing in the way of “fair competition,” it’s standing in the way of unchecked personal user data exploitation by third parties.
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“(charged Apple with) abusing its market power”
Tone deafness, when the claim is exactly the opposite…the regulators are intruding into another’s business.
It’s not just the “fundamental clash between Apple’s steadfast commitment to user privacy,” it’s a clash ongoing broadly and is only to digress. Fortunately, AAPL essentially “manages” the largest network on the planet and continues to have the privacy stake in the ground.