NH Joins 15 States To Sue Apple In iPhone Antitrust Case

CONCORD, NH — New Hampshire's Attorney General is among 16 others across the country to file an antitrust lawsuit against Apple, officials announced Thursday.

The civil lawsuit, filed along with the U.S. Department of Justice, accuses Apple of "monopolization or attempted monopolization of smartphone markets," officials said. Doing so violates Section 2 of the Sherman Act, they added.

"Apple has used its monopoly power in smartphone markets to stifle competition through various forms of anticompetitive conduct," Attorney General Formella said Thursday. "This has resulted in reduced quality, innovation, and competition to the detriment of New Hampshire consumers who rely on smartphones every day."

Adding that Apple's "exclusionary conduct" makes it challenging for New Hampshire residents to switch smartphones, Formella added that it "ultimately imposes significant costs on businesses and New Hampshire consumers alike."

Those filing the lawsuit are looking to restrain Apple from continuing these practices to "allow increased competition in the future," according to Formella.

The complaint alleges that Apple imposes contractual restrictions on — and withholds access points from — developers, thereby "[undermining] apps, products, and services that would otherwise make users less reliant on the iPhone, promote interoperability, and lower costs for consumers and developers."

Apple's specific "anticompetitive" conduct includes blocking super-apps with multiple functions, surpassing mobile cloud streaming services, excluding cross-platform messaging apps, diminishing the functionality of non-Apple Smartwatches, and limiting third-party digital wallets, according to the complaint.

Joining New Hampshire in filing the complaint are the Attorneys General of New Jersey, Arizona, California, Connecticut, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, Tennessee, Vermont, Wisconsin, and the District of Columbia.

In fiscal year 2023, Apple generated annual net revenues of $383 billion and net income of $97 billion. Its net income exceeds any other company in the Fortune 500 and the gross domestic products of more than 100 countries.