Apple faces another antitrust investigation, this time from Italian regulators, amid accusations of unfair iCloud terms and conditions.
Italy's antitrust regulator, Autorita' Garante della Concorrenza e del Mercato (AGCM) or the guarantor authority of competition and the market, announced in a press release they opened an antitrust investigation against Apple after receiving complaints about the alleged unfair terms and conditions of its iCloud service. Apple's iCloud service allows users to store data online, which they can then access from a broad range of devices, including iPhone, Mac, iPad, Apple TV, and many more.
The AGCM has also launched an antitrust investigation against Google (for its Google Drive service) and Dropbox, another cloud-based service that lets users save files online. The Italian antitrust regulator claimed that all three companies, Google, Apple, and Dropbox, committed unfair commercial practices and also included unfair provisions in their contractual conditions. Apple's iCloud terms and conditions is an example of such contracts.
The regulator went on to say that these alleged unfair clauses in their terms and conditions are in violation of the Consumer Rights Directive as stated under the Legislative Decree no. 21 of 2014 which implements the EU Consumers Directive 2011/83/UE. In essence, the Consumer Rights Directive seeks to protect consumers against onerous contractual obligations set by professionals engaged in the sale of goods and services. Such conditions are often stated in electronic contracts, such as Apple's iCloud terms and conditions, which are executed once consumers agree to the provisions.
According to AGCM, its investigation against Apple focuses on the failure of its iCloud service's terms and conditions to make it very clear to consumers about their intention to collect and use data provided by its customers for commercial purposes. The Italian regulator further said that consumers would not have given their consent to the collection and use of their data for commercial purposes if Apple's iCloud terms and conditions laid all provisions in a very clear manner. The regulator is also investigating Google and Dropbox for the same complaints.
AGCM said they are looking at four issues in Dropbox, Google, and Apple's iCloud terms and conditions to see whether they are unfair to consumers. The first is the companies' assertions that they have the right to terminate the service even though users rely on them for access to important files. The second is that these cloud services claim non-liability for any loss of data even if includes all the files of the user. The third is the assertion of the cloud service companies to modify their terms and conditions at any time, and the fourth is that the contract's English version takes precedence over the Italian version, even if the latter is the one accepted by customers.
AGCM explained that their investigation is under the antitrust category as the companies concerned are so dominant in their fields that they can enforce any terms and conditions they want regardless if it is unfair or not. The antitrust investigation against Apple's iCloud terms and conditions adds to the string of complaints the innovative company faces, many of which concern its App Store.
