Betrayal of Apple, the icon of innovation

A member of an Internet community uploaded a post titled, “Daughter using iPhone and mom using Galaxy.” The mother bought her daughter an iPhone as a present for entering middle school. It was used, but the daughter was so happy and cherished it. However, there was an unexpected problem. As the mother uses a Galaxy smartphone, she couldn’t supervise her daughter’s use of the iPhone. A paid supervision app didn’t work. The mother eventually had to buy a used iPad and created an Apple ID to supervise her daughter’s use of the iPhone. She added that she couldn’t buy a used iPhone as it was too expensive.

The mother wasted money due to how closed the iPhone ecosystem was, while Apple, as the manufacturer, was able to make more money. The U.S. Department of Justice took action to stop Apple, suing Apple for violating the antitrust law.

A briefing by Attorney General Merrick Garland lists Apple’s such conduct. Apple lowers the app function of other smartphones, such as Galaxy, and the performance of other non-Apple devices. For example, if an iPhone user sends a message to a non-iPhone user using the company’s messaging app, it is marked green. The conversations are not encrypted, video quality is lower, and senders cannot edit their messages.

This causes inconvenience to iPhone users when sharing messages or videos with non-iPhone users, leading them to think that other smartphones have lower quality when, in fact, the iPhone is the problem. “But as our complaint alleges, Apple has maintained monopoly power in the smartphone market not simply by staying ahead of the competition on the merits, but by violating federal antitrust law,” said the attorney general.

The briefing included a story at a conference held in California in 2022. An attendant asked Apple’s CEO Tim Cook whether Apple would fix iPhone-to-Android messaging, adding, “Not to make it personal, but I can’t send my mom certain videos.” Apple's CEO responded, “Buy your mom an iPhone.” It was probably a joke, but knowing the details of the lawsuit, it doesn’t sound like a joke anymore.

There is a strong sense of betrayal that Apple has monopolized the industry with its closed ecosystem. The European Union also charged Apple 2.7 trillion won in penalty earlier this month for its violation of the antitrust law, so the sense of betrayal will spread worldwide. Apple might face the biggest crisis since Steve Jobs launched the iPhone in 2007. Apple’s closed ecosystem, which drove the company’s growth, is causing issues. South Korean companies should also examine whether they are building a walled-up garden.