The European Commission has concluded that Apple Ads and Apple Maps should not be designated as core platform services under the Digital Markets Act (DMA), finding that Apple does not qualify as a gatekeeper in relation to these services. The decision was announced on 5 February 2026.
The assessment followed notifications submitted by Apple on 27 November 2025, in which the company indicated that both services met the DMA’s quantitative thresholds. Apple also provided arguments explaining why, in its view, Apple Ads and Apple Maps should not be considered important gateways between business users and end users.
After reviewing the submissions, the Commission determined that neither service constitutes an important gateway within the meaning of the DMA. In particular, the Commission found that Apple Maps has a relatively low overall usage rate in the European Union, while Apple Ads has a very limited scale in the EU online advertising market. On this basis, Apple does not hold a gatekeeper position for these services.
The Commission emphasized that the decision does not affect Apple’s existing gatekeeper designation for other core platform services, which was adopted in September 2023 and April 2024. Those designations remain fully in force.
Under the DMA, companies operating core platform services may be designated as gatekeepers if they have a significant impact on the internal market, enjoy a strong and durable market position, and serve as an important gateway for business users to reach consumers. These criteria are presumed to be met where a service reaches at least 45 million monthly active end users and 10,000 yearly active business users in each of the last three financial years.
The Commission noted that it will continue to monitor market developments relating to Apple Ads and Apple Maps and may reassess their status if circumstances materially change. A non-confidential version of the decision will be published on the Commission’s DMA website.