On 27 November 2025, the European Commission received notifications from Apple indicating that its core platform services, Apple Ads and Apple Maps, meet the thresholds set by the Digital Markets Act (DMA).

The Commission now has 45 working days to determine whether to designate Apple as a gatekeeper for these services. If Apple is designated, the company will have six months to comply with the DMA's requirements.

The DMA rules are applicable to companies that operate core platform services, which include search engines, app stores, and messenger services. These services must have a significant impact on the internal market, a strong and lasting market position, and serve as an important gateway between businesses and consumers. This designation is presumed for services that have at least 45 million monthly active end users and 10,000 yearly business users over the last three financial years.