Biden DOJ sues Apple for smartphone monopoly alleges iPhone ecosystem suppresses competition

The Biden Justice Department files a sweeping antitrust lawsuit against Apple, alleging the company illegally maintains a monopoly in the smartphone market through a web of policies that lock consumers and developers into the iPhone ecosystem. The complaint alleges Apple blocks competing apps, restricts cloud gaming and messaging interoperability, suppresses digital wallets that compete with Apple Pay, and degrades messaging quality when users communicate with Android phones (green bubbles). The case is the most significant antitrust challenge to Apple's business model and follows the Biden administration's series of major tech antitrust actions against Google, Amazon, Meta, and Microsoft.