Overview
- The Secretariat of the Swiss Competition Commission opened a preliminary investigation on December 10 to assess potential violations of Swiss antitrust law.
- Officials are examining Apple’s contractual terms and fees tied to the NFC & Secure Element platform that third-party apps must use to access contactless payments on iOS.
- Developers seeking access are required to enter commercial agreements with Apple and pay associated fees, a structure regulators say could affect competition.
- The probe asks whether other mobile payment apps can effectively compete with Apple Pay for in‑store transactions on iPhones.
- Apple began granting Swiss developers NFC access in late 2024 after opening access in the EU earlier that year, and Swiss terms are reported to differ from those in the EEA; no enforcement decision has been made as information gathering continues.