Apple and DoJ discussing antitrust settlement - report

Investing.com -- Apple Inc. and the US Justice Department are in early discussions to settle a 2024 antitrust lawsuit, Bloomberg reported Friday.

The discussions are active, but no guarantee exists that the two sides will reach an agreement, the report said. No trial date has been set in the case.

Apple is said to have made multiple offers this year to the Justice Department to resolve the case. Settlement discussions between the DOJ and companies can end without an agreement.

The US government filed the lawsuit against Apple during the Biden administration as part of multiple legal actions aimed at limiting the power of major technology companies. The DOJ complaint stated that Apple harmed competitors, software developers and consumers through its alleged conduct. In June 2025, Apple failed to have the antitrust suit dismissed.

The DOJ's primary claims focused on Apple's blocking of super apps, which are programs that contain mini apps within them like WeChat in China. The agency also alleged the company discouraged outside messaging solutions, cloud streaming apps, rival digital wallets and limited smartwatch competition.

The Justice Department filed the case with a bipartisan group of 19 states and the District of Columbia. Whether the state attorneys general are participating in settlement talks remains unclear.

The Justice Department under Trump has worked to settle multiple antitrust cases filed by the previous administration. Stanley Woodward, the No. 3 Justice Department official currently overseeing the agency's antitrust work, has advocated for settlements as a way to reduce taxpayer costs and provide faster relief to consumers than litigation that can extend for years.

Apple has addressed many of the complaints, now providing a mini apps program for developers, opening its Messages app to the Alphabet Inc.-led RCS messages system, permitting cloud-streaming apps and opening the iPhone's payment chip to third-party apps.

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