Apple is changing its App Tracking Transparency prompts in parts of Europe after competition regulators said the system favored Apple over third-party apps, giving developers more flexibility over how they ask users for ...
Disrupt 2026: OpenAI, Anthropic, Replit, and more take over 6 industry stages. 25% off tickets now
As a result of a multi-year antitrust probe by Germany's federal competition regulator and others, Apple has agreed to modify the requirements for apps on its platforms that ask for consent to track the user across other apps or websites.
Regulators said this system, known as App Tracking Transparency, or ATT, had favored Apple over third-party apps, since Apple allows its own apps to use consumers' data from its ecosystem without requiring a consent screen.
The new agreements with select European competition authorities don't do away with the need to prompt users, or when that prompt is to be shown. Instead, they allow app developers whose software is distributed in the EU to display an alternative consent screen that includes modified formatting, language, and the option to link out to "additional information" about why the app is requesting this permission, among other things.
Apple's compliance involves over half-a-dozen changes that attempt to make these ATT consent screens less scary to end users. This includes showing them as full-page screens, not pop-ups; removing the word "track"; changing the choice buttons to "Allow" and "Reject" instead of "Allow" and "Ask App Not to Track"; changing the colors and formatting; and more. Plus, developers can offer users more detailed information through a clickable link, explaining how they use this data and why it's being requested.
The iPhone maker says that, due to legal requirements, only the alternative version of the system prompt will be available to apps distributed in Germany, France, Italy, Poland, and Romania.
Users typically respond to consent screens by asking apps not to track them, which hurts ad-supported businesses, like Meta, while boosting Apple's own . In short, the apps asking for such permissions do so because it lets them show personalized advertising, which generates more revenue, helping the app developer to make money.
Apple, however, argued that these consent screens help protect consumer privacy, even though it permits its own apps to display personalized ads based on the data they collect from its ecosystem.
The company said it will now allow app developers distributing to the EU to re-prompt their EU users one year after the user's previous choice in their ATT consent screen.
When you purchase through links in our articles, we may earn a small commission . This doesn't affect our editorial independence.
Last day to book an exhibit table is September 18. Don't miss out on high-impact leads, investor access, and a brand spotlight in Disrupt's Expo Hall.
Clean tech startup Fluxnium found a way to tap 50,000 years' worth of nuclear fuel
Salesforce and Nvidia's new reasoning model is everything the AI labs should fear
Jensen Huang took a call from Trump, and showed off something else, too
The 9 buzziest startups from Y Combinator's latest Demo Day, according to VCs
Reporting synthesized and verified under Nexvoro.tech editorial guidelines. Full primary records referenced via TechCrunch.
OpenAI has formed a new independent mathematics advisory group hosted at the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton following a surge in automated problem-solving. The move arrives amid mounting academic scrutiny regarding the rapid pace of artificial intelligence in advanced mathematical research.
As debate intensifies over the rapid acceleration of artificial intelligence, OpenAI has proposed a comprehensive framework for international safety standards, focusing heavily on alignment research and recursive self-improvement. The move follows recent high-profile departures and escalating concerns from industry insiders regarding humanity's long-term control over advanced frontier models.
As Washington fiercely debates artificial intelligence oversight, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang has emerged as President Donald Trump's top confidant, successfully pushing back against growing regulatory pressures. While rival tech executives advocate for government slowdowns, the head of the world's most valuable chipmaker is charting a rapid course for American tech supremacy.
