The European Union slaps Meta and Ringo poses massive fines despite Trump’s threat

European Union (EU) Despite warnings from President Donald Trump, they paid hundreds of millions of dollars to slap Apple and Meta on Wednesday despite warnings that countries punishing American businesses could face tariffs.

Apple has been fined 500 million euros ($570 million) and 200 million euros ($228 million) by EU antitrust regulators under the Digital Markets Act (DMA), a groundbreaking part of the law targeting Big Tech.

Following an investigation by the European Commission, sanctions came after an investigation into whether Meta and Apple are complying with laws intended to allow smaller, less dominant rivals to enter the technology market.

The FTC may be in trouble as the meta-antitrust trials enter the second week, experts say

Both Apple and Meta show they are challenging the fine.

Meta has been sent Fox News Digital A statement from Joel Kaplan, the company’s chief global affairs officer, who argued that the European Commission was trying to “handicap” American companies while also trying to allow Chinese and European companies to “operate by various standards.”

“This isn’t just fines. The committee that forces them to change their business model effectively imposes multi-billion dollar tariffs on the meta, demanding that they provide inferior services.

“Today’s announcement is another example of the European Commission unfairly targeting Apple in a series of decisions that are bad for users’ privacy and security and bad for our products. “We spent hundreds of thousands of engineering time and made dozens of changes to comply with this law, but users have asked for nothing. Despite countless meetings, the Commission continues to move the goal post at every stage.”

February, Trump I signed a memorandum Protect American companies and innovators from overseas fears.

“This administration will consider counteracting actions such as Digital Services Tax (DST), fines, practices, and tariffs to combat policies collected by foreign governments from American companies,” the memorandum states.

Trump says he raised $7 trillion in private investments in the US. “I’ve never seen anything like that.”

Last July, the EU issued a preliminary claim accusing Meta of violating the DMA by forcing customers to a restrictive “salary or consent” model of Instagram and Facebook ads.

Meta has deployed a subscription model to comply with European courts. They later reduced the cost of that option and created a free option that shows users more frequently but less personalized ads.

European officials have focused on the deployment of Meta for subscription services in 2023, with users agreeing to pay around $14 a month for an ad-free experience on the app or use their personal data for targeted ads.

The company is discussing the EU and new models introduced in November.

China, who interferes when Trump seeks tariff contracts with the EU, warns experts

Apple also needs to remove restrictions that prevent app developers from leading users and prevent better deals outside Apple App Store.

Regulators specifically criticised Apple’s core technology fees, charging Hamstrugging App developers, making it difficult for users to download alternatives from the web.

“We have taken solid but balanced enforcement measures against both companies based on clear and predictable rules. All companies operating in the EU must follow our laws and respect the values ​​of Europe,” EU antitrust Chief Teresalibella said following the decision.

Click here to get your Fox business on the go

Meta and Apple could face daily fines if they don’t make changes listed by the EU in the next two months.

Fox News Digital reached the White House for comment.