Annette Esosa| August 17, 2026
Key Points
- Apple agrees to change how third party apps request consent for personalised advertising on its devices
- Germany’s competition authority makes Apple’s commitments legally binding after raising concerns over unequal treatment of third party apps
- App publishers will gain more flexibility to combine Apple’s consent prompts with data protection requests
Main Story
Apple will change its app data consent rules after Germany’s competition authority raised concerns that its framework could give Apple’s own services more favourable treatment than third-party apps, Germany’s Bundeskartellamt said on Monday that Apple had offered commitments to address the concerns, which the authority has now made binding, bringing the competition proceeding to an end.
The authority said Apple’s App Tracking Transparency Framework requires third party app providers to obtain additional consent through an Apple defined prompt for certain forms of cross-company data use. It said the rules did not apply in the same way to Apple’s own offerings.
Under the commitments, Apple will bring consent prompts for its own offerings and third party apps more closely into line. It will also remove potentially discouraging symbols and wording from predefined consent requests for third-party providers.
App publishers will have greater freedom to combine Apple’s consent request with those required under data protection law, or connect the requests in a way that is clear to users.
Bundeskartellamt President Andreas Mundt said the changes were necessary to address the authority’s competition concerns while maintaining users’ ability to make informed choices.
“Apple will now align the consent requests much more closely and give third-party app providers more freedom to combine the necessary requests in a sensible way.” Andreas Mundt, President, Bundeskartellamt.
The authority said its investigation focused on competition law rather than enforcement of data protection law.
What’s Being Said
Mundt said the regulator was not seeking to increase consent rates for personalised advertising.
“We want to ensure that users can make a free and informed decision.” Andreas Mundt, President, Bundeskartellamt.
The regulator said users who reject personalised advertising should have the same opportunity to make a free and informed decision as those who consent to the use of their data.
What’s Next
- Apple will implement the binding commitments covering consent prompts and third-party app providers
- App publishers will gain greater flexibility in presenting Apple’s consent requests alongside legally required data-protection requests
The Bottom Line:
The ruling changes how Apple applies its consent framework to third party apps in Germany, narrowing the regulatory concern around preferential treatment within its ecosystem. The decision also gives app publishers greater control over how consent requests are presented while keeping the focus on informed user choice.
