Apple Wins Access to Federal Records in US Smartphone Antitrust Fight

Special Master Jose Linares rejected a renewed government attempt to prevent Apple from seeking the documents, The Mac Observer reported on Aug. 30. The decision could give the iPhone maker access to internal federal assessments of mobile-device security and purchasing practices that Apple says are relevant to its defense.

The Justice Department has accused Apple of illegally maintaining monopoly power in the smartphone market. Apple has countered that restrictions within its iPhone ecosystem serve legitimate purposes, including protecting users’ privacy and strengthening device security.

Apple is seeking records from agencies including the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Central Intelligence Agency and National Security Agency. The company wants information about how federal agencies select mobile devices and establish policies governing their use, the publication reported.

Those records could help Apple argue that some of the practices challenged by the government reflect genuine security considerations rather than efforts to suppress competition. If federal security agencies have favored iPhones or adopted policies that recognize benefits associated with Apple’s security controls, the company could use those findings to bolster its case.

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The Justice Department had urged the court to reconsider allowing the discovery, arguing that producing the records would impose an excessive burden and that the material had limited relevance to the antitrust dispute, according to The Mac Observer.

Government attorneys also argued that the 14 agencies should be treated as third parties to the litigation and therefore receive additional protection from Apple’s discovery requests. Linares rejected that position, according to the publication, concluding that federal agencies involved in carrying out executive-branch policy are part of the United States for purposes of the dispute.

Related: Apple Challenges India’s Antitrust Investigation Over App Store Practices

The ruling marks another procedural victory for Apple as it seeks to broaden the evidence available for its defense. The Mac Observer previously reported that Apple had sought information covering federal purchases of smartphones and wearable devices, government assessments of privacy and cybersecurity risks, the use of Apple developer tools and data involving smartphone pricing and market share.

The government has argued that some of the agencies Apple targeted played no role in the original antitrust investigation and use mobile technology differently from ordinary consumers. Officials have also raised concerns about the potential burden of searching sensitive or classified systems and reviewing documents for privilege or national-security restrictions, according to the earlier Mac Observer report.

Apple, meanwhile, has said it narrowed its requests to 14 agencies from the hundreds of entities across the federal government, an effort intended to keep the discovery process from becoming excessively broad, The Mac Observer reported.

The latest decision doesn’t resolve the underlying antitrust allegations. It does, however, allow Apple to pursue government records that may become part of its argument that tighter control over the iPhone ecosystem can produce privacy and security benefits — an issue likely to remain central as the Justice Department’s case moves forward.

Source: The Mac Observer