Justice Department Case Will Hang Over Apple for Years
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Apple will present its case today on why the Justice Department's mammoth lawsuit against the iPhone maker is completely baseless, and prosecutors will repeat their allegations.
The Department of Justice (DOJ) is joining several states in accusing Apple of monopolistic practices over the iPhone, the App Store, and much of the company’s business. After filing the case in March 2024, Apple filed a motion to dismiss the lawsuit in August.
Now, according to Reuters, Apple will ask U.S. District Judge Julien Niles in Newark, New Jersey, to dismiss the case today. Central to Apple’s case is its claim that being forced to share technology with competitors will stifle innovation.
In the meantime, DOJ lawyers will present their arguments for the case to continue. The DOJ case has many parts, but in one example, it accuses Apple of forcing people to buy iPhones to participate in Messages conversations.
That one allegation exemplifies the entire DOJ case because it makes no sense. Apple undoubtedly knew this was coming, but before the DOJ filed it, RCS support on the iPhone was announced.
So whatever the actual incentive, Apple is literally and indisputably not doing what it is accused of. Likewise, the DOJ is arguing that Apple is denying competitors access to its NFC technology in the iPhone — and it is not.
This is not a matter of favoring Apple or giving it the benefit of the doubt, it is a straightforward fact. There is not a single element of the DOJ's case that properly accuses Apple of anything it does now.
Therefore, if the case is intended to stop Apple from engaging in various antitrust actions, it has already worked before it was filed.
This should theoretically mean that Apple's motion to dismiss should be granted. But this isn't Apple versus a competitor, it's Apple versus a bipartisan case brought by a federal agency and several states.
It's highly unlikely that the case will be dismissed. It's also highly unlikely that the Justice Department will win, but the case won't end today; it will last for years.
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