Following a 2023 ruling that fined Apple and Amazon for anti-competitive distribution clauses, Spain’s competition regulator now says the companies took too long to comply and may issue a new fine. Here are the details.
A little background
Back in 2023, Spain’s Comisión Nacional de los Mercados y la Competencia (CNMC) fined Apple and Amazon a total of 194 million euros (roughly $230 million) for anti-competitive practices.
From 9to5Mac’s original coverage of the decision:
The case dates back to 2018, when the two companies reached an agreement in multiple countries to limit the sale of Apple and Beats products to authorized Apple resellers. The deal, which was valid in the US, UK, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Japan and India, resulted in the creation of an official Apple Store on Amazon.
In addition, the deal limited advertising space for Apple’s competitors on Amazon’s Spanish website when users searched for Apple products, and reportedly blocked more than 90% of existing sellers selling Apple devices on the site.
At the time, the CNMC concluded that the agreement was anti-competitive and, in addition to imposing fines (€143.6 million on Apple and €50.5 million on Amazon), ordered that the offending clauses be repealed immediately.
Both companies appealed the CNMC’s 2023 decision to Spain’s highest court, and the original fine was suspended pending judgment.
What’s new about the case
However, the companies’ appeal against the original fine did not relieve them of the obligation to remove the anti-competitive clauses.
So when the CNMC discovered that Apple and Amazon waited until May 2025 to actually remove them, nearly two years after being told to do so immediately, it opened a separate investigation into the non-compliance.
Ace Reuters announced today that the investigation is now closed and the finding could mean an additional fine on top of the original:
Last October, the watchdog proposed launching an investigation into the companies’ failure to take action under a cease-and-desist order by May 2025, when they remove the clauses. At the time, the regulator said there were indications of a breach due to non-compliance.
In the statement to ReutersApple said it disagreed with the CNMC’s findings and “added that it has always complied with the authorities’ orders.” The company also framed the situation as an attempt to curb counterfeit products rather than curbing legitimate competition on Amazon.
Amazon, for its part, also told Reuters it disagreed with the decision and would appeal, arguing that it would be against its own interests to limit the exposure of small and medium-sized retailers.
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