UK Tribunal Refuses Regulators’ Appeal Over Apple Probe Ruling

The antitrust regulator in Britain was denied the opportunity to appeal a previous ruling stating that they lacked the authority to investigate Apple’s mobile browser and cloud gaming services.

In March, Apple successfully appealed against the Competition and Markets Authority’s decision to conduct a thorough investigation into the dominant position of Apple and Alphabet Inc’s Google in mobile browsers.

On Wednesday, the application for permission to appeal against the ruling by the CMA was denied, reported Reuters. 

The CMA has the option to appeal the tribunal’s ruling by directly approaching the Court of Appeal.

A spokesperson from CMA stated that they are reviewing the tribunal’s decision and deciding their next actions.

Related: UK Apple Antitrust Probe Stopped After Appeal Win

In March, the CMA expressed concern that the ruling could impede their ability to investigate and intervene in markets.

The tribunal stated that the law regarding the CMA’s authority to initiate a market investigation is unambiguous in its denial of permission to appeal.

The tribunal stated that adherence to the law is crucial, even if it leads to undesirable outcomes.