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Apple Accused by UK Developer of Blocking Competition in iOS Market

By  |  January 27, 2026

A London-based software company has filed a federal lawsuit in New Jersey accusing Apple of stealing its technology and using its dominance in the smartphone ecosystem to shut out competitors, according to Reuters.

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    Reincubate Ltd, the developer behind the video app Camo, said in its complaint that Apple copied patented features from its software and built them into iOS to steer customers toward Apple’s own products. The company alleges this strategy helped Apple reinforce what it describes as an illegal monopoly in the U.S. smartphone software market, per to Reuters.

    Camo, launched in 2020, allows smartphones to function as webcams for computers during video calls. Reincubate claims Apple initially encouraged it to create and expand the app for iOS, only to later integrate similar functionality directly into the operating system through its “Continuity Camera” feature in 2022. According to Reuters, the lawsuit says Apple used this move to “redirect user demand to Apple’s own platform-tied offering.”

    The filing argues that Apple’s behavior violates U.S. antitrust law by locking users into its mobile ecosystem and making it difficult for them to switch to alternative platforms. Reincubate also points to the U.S. government’s 2024 antitrust case against Apple, which remains unresolved, as evidence that regulators share similar concerns, according to Reuters.

    Reincubate CEO Aidan Fitzpatrick said Apple chose not to compete on equal terms. “Rather than competing with us, Apple deployed a series of obstacles to tilt the playing field, infringed our IP, and did so in service of preventing competition from rival platforms,” he said in a statement.

    Related: Apple Seeks Court Block on India Antitrust Probe’s Demand for Global Financial Data

    The lawsuit further accuses Apple of a practice often referred to as “Sherlocking,” which Reincubate describes as Apple’s habit of absorbing successful third-party innovations into its own software and pushing the original developers out of the market. According to Reuters, the complaint claims Apple went further in this case by fostering a close working relationship with Reincubate, gaining access to technical details, beta versions, and market data before rolling out a competing feature.

    In addition to antitrust violations, Reincubate is seeking damages for alleged patent infringement and court orders to stop what it calls Apple’s unlawful conduct. The amount of damages requested was not disclosed.

    Apple has not yet responded publicly to the lawsuit, and company representatives did not immediately comment, according to Reuters.

    The case is filed as Reincubate Ltd v. Apple Inc. in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey, under case number 2:26-cv-00828. Reincubate is represented by attorneys David Hecht, Maxim Price, and Peter Park of Hecht Partners.

    Source: Reuters