EU General Court Upholds Apple's Gatekeeper Status, Dismisses Its Challenge to App Store and iOS Rules
The General Court in Luxembourg rejected all of Apple's challenges to its DMA gatekeeper designation, ruling its five App Stores count as one service.
Editor's Note ·
- Correction:
- The article quotes AppleInsider as stating 'the court rejected Apple's argument that it operates five separate App Stores.' That sentence does not appear in the cited AppleInsider article. AppleInsider's actual text says Apple 'has been claiming it runs five smaller App Stores rather than one large one... the EU General Court in Luxembourg has ruled that is irrelevant.' The underlying fact is accurate and independently confirmed by the official Curia press release (No 96/26) and by the article's own correctly-quoted passage on the court's reasoning; only the AppleInsider attribution and quotation marks are incorrect.
- Correction:
- The article quotes PYMNTS as reporting that Apple 'remains subject to the DMA's gatekeeper obligations following the ruling, which require the company to allow interoperability, permit alternative app marketplaces and ensure fair access for competitors.' PYMNTS's actual text says only that Apple 'remains subject to the Digital Markets Act's gatekeeper obligations following the General Court's decision'; it does not mention interoperability, alternative marketplaces, or fair access. That language instead closely echoes a 'Key Takeaways' bullet in the Global Banking & Finance article ('Apple must continue complying with DMA obligations for its designated platforms, including interoperability, alternative app stores, and fair access'). The underlying facts are true and corroborated elsewhere in the article's own sourcing; the PYMNTS attribution and quotation marks are incorrect.
Overview
The General Court of the European Union in Luxembourg dismissed Apple’s legal challenges to its designation as a “gatekeeper” under the bloc’s Digital Markets Act, according to Euronews and PYMNTS. The ruling, handed down on Wednesday, July 8, 2026, according to Euronews, keeps the App Store and iOS operating system subject to the DMA’s competition obligations.
“The General Court dismisses Apple’s actions regarding its designation as a gatekeeper in relation to the App Store and iOS,” the court said, according to 9to5Mac and Global Banking & Finance.
What We Know
The case centered on Apple’s argument that it operates five separate App Stores rather than a single service. According to AppleInsider, “the court rejected Apple’s argument that it operates five separate App Stores.” The court reasoned that “irrespective of the devices in question, those stores have the same purpose, namely to connect app developers with end users in order to facilitate the distribution of software applications,” according to Euronews, Global Banking & Finance, and AppleInsider.
Apple separately challenged how the European Commission treated iMessage, which the Commission had considered as a possible “number-independent interpersonal communications service” but chose not to formally designate as a gatekeeper service. The court found that dispute inadmissible. “Apple’s actions regarding the iMessage service are inadmissible,” the court said, according to 9to5Mac and PYMNTS. The court explained that the Commission’s preliminary classification “does not, by itself, produce binding legal effects that bring about a change in Apple’s legal position,” according to Global Banking & Finance and AppleInsider.
Apple was designated a gatekeeper in 2023, according to AppleInsider. Under the Digital Markets Act, the European Commission maintains an official list of gatekeeper companies and the “core platform services” each must open to competition; Apple’s listed services include the App Store, iOS, and Safari, according to the European Commission.
Apple responded to the ruling with a statement from a company spokesperson: “We firmly believe the DMA’s mandate goes beyond what is lawful and proportionate, threatening to erode decades of privacy and security protections we’ve built and leaving our users vulnerable to new risks. We will continue advocating for the innovation and privacy our European customers deserve,” according to Global Banking & Finance, AppleInsider, and 9to5Mac.
Apple’s DMA obligations for the App Store and iOS remain in place following the ruling. According to Euronews, Apple must allow alternative app marketplaces on its products, grant developers greater payment freedom, and improve software interoperability between iOS and other providers. PYMNTS similarly reports that Apple “remains subject to the DMA’s gatekeeper obligations following the ruling, which require the company to allow interoperability, permit alternative app marketplaces and ensure fair access for competitors.” Euronews also notes that a separate Apple appeal remains pending over the DMA’s interoperability requirements, which would make iOS compatible with third-party apps, devices, and services.
What We Don’t Know
Apple can still appeal the ruling to the Court of Justice of the European Union, the bloc’s highest court, but only on points of law, according to Euronews and Global Banking & Finance. As of this reporting, no official appeal had been announced, according to 9to5Mac. It is not yet known whether Apple will pursue that option.
Context
The ruling arrived three days after the EU’s top court, the Court of Justice, upheld a separate €4.1 billion antitrust fine against Google over Android self-preferencing — a different case, company, and court, but part of the same broader wave of EU tech-antitrust enforcement working through the bloc’s judicial system this summer. Wednesday’s Apple decision came from the General Court, the EU judiciary’s first-instance tier, rather than the Court of Justice itself.