Apple’s Market Cap Plummets by $113 Billion Overnight as Tim Cook Rushes to China to Save the Shaky Empire

Apple’s dominant position in the market is shaking due to a series of unfair competition allegations. The Department of Justice and 16 attorneys general have sued the iPhone manufacturer for violating anti-monopoly laws, while in Europe, the company is facing an investigation into compliance with the Digital Markets Act.

Turbulent Times for Apple

Apple’s stock dropped by 4.1% in Thursday’s trading session, wiping out approximately $113 billion of market capitalization. As a result, Apple, which was once the world’s most valuable company with a market value of over $3 trillion, is now performing worse than both the Nasdaq 100 and the S&P 500 index, according to Bloomberg.

This is not the first time Apple has faced such close scrutiny. Over the years, the tech giant has been confronted with allegations of enriching itself through the oppression of competitors. The popularity of Apple’s products has caught the attention of authorities worldwide, prompting them to exercise increased vigilance.

Allegations and Investigations

Previously, a lawsuit filed in federal court in New Jersey accused Apple of purposefully blocking competitors from accessing hardware and software features on popular devices. Investigations in Europe have also focused on examining Apple’s fees, terms, and conditions with app developers.

In response to these allegations, Apple has asserted that they are “factually and legally inaccurate.” The company warns that such actions would “set a dangerous precedent, empowering governments to control technology.”

“The European Commission’s decision disregards the fact that this is a market that is still developing, competitive, and rapidly growing,” Apple stated in a press release.

Lawsuit in the U.S. and Spotify Dispute

The U.S. lawsuit alleges that Apple uses its power to hinder users from easily switching phones. The company refuses to support cross-platform messaging apps, third-party digital wallets, and non-Apple smartwatches, as well as cloud-based streaming services like Spotify.

In a widely publicized response, Apple emphasized that despite Spotify’s 56% market share in online music streaming in Europe and much of its success being attributed to the App Store, the company does not pay Apple any money. Apple also listed a significant number of free services it provides to Spotify, such as app store distribution, APIs, frameworks, and TestFlight.

“At Apple, we innovate every day to make people love technology, seamlessly integrate our products, protect privacy and security, and create magical experiences for them,” the company replied. “This lawsuit threatens Apple and the principles that make our products different.”

Despite the European Commission’s decisions over the past 8 years finding “no evidence of consumer harm or unfair competition behavior,” Apple remains committed to complying with the Digital Markets Act in the coming days.

“The reality is that European consumers have more choices than ever before. Ironically, today’s decision reaffirms the dominance of a company leading the digital music market,” Apple emphasized.

Tim Cook Turns to China for Support

Amid the legal battles, Apple is quietly rebuilding its relationship with the Chinese market. Recently, Tim Cook visited Shanghai and praised the country’s modernization and manufacturing capabilities, promising to invest more in the populous nation.

“No supply chain in the world is more important to us than China,” said Tim Cook, highlighting “the modernization and production capabilities in Chinese factories.”

Speaking to Chinese media, he acknowledged that Apple will need mainland China’s assistance in achieving its goal of making all products carbon-neutral by 2030. The company itself is also heavily investing in artificial intelligence.

Source: Bloomberg, Reuters