The Department of Justice and 15 states sued Apple on Thursday, claiming the iPhone maker monopolized the smartphone market, blocked competitors, and drove up prices.
The government hasn’t ruled out breaking the iconic company up as it pursues one of the largest tech antitrust cases in recent history. Apple shares fell more than 4% in trading Thursday.
At the core of the complaint is Apple’s “walled-garden” model, where all its parts – iPhone, iWatch, iMac, iMessage, and so on – are built to work seamlessly with each other, but not necessarily with competitors. That makes it difficult for Apple customers, who pay a premium, to switch brands.
Experts say the first hurdle for prosecutors is proving Apple actually has a monopoly. Further, cases of this size historically have taken up to three years to conclude. Apple is worth trillions of dollars and has indicated it will fight the case to the end.