Apple says US lawsuit ‘puts us at risk’

(CNN) — Apple responded to the US lawsuit in a statement Thursday morning, defending its approach to innovation and saying the US government’s legal action “threatens who we are” and would set a “dangerous precedent.”

“At Apple, we innovate every day to make technology people love: we design products that work better together, protecting people’s privacy and security,” the company said in a statement. And create a magical experience for our users.”

“This lawsuit threatens who we are and the principles that differentiate Apple products in highly competitive markets. If successful, it will hinder our ability to create the kind of technology people have come to expect from Apple “where hardware, software and services connect to each other.”

The statement said the Joe Biden government’s lawsuit “would set a dangerous precedent by empowering the government to interfere in the design of citizens’ technology. We believe this lawsuit is wrong on the facts and the law, and We will defend ourselves vigorously against this.”

The United States Department of Justice and more than a dozen states filed a major antitrust lawsuit against Apple this Thursday. It is the latest – but the biggest – in a series of big technology companies facing monopoly charges from the US government.

The lawsuit comes after years of allegations by critics that Apple has harmed competition in app stores with restrictive terms, high fees and a “walled-garden” approach to its hardware and software, in which Apple strictly controls That’s how other tech companies can interact with the tech giants. Products and Services. In some cases, Apple offers its products with better accessibility and features than its competitors.

Following the announcement of the lawsuit, Apple shares fell 3.3%. The company’s shares have fallen by more than 10% so far this year.

According to analysts, Wall Street had been expecting the lawsuit to be filed for some time and was prepared for the news. He said the risk now is that the Apple investigation and what will happen to other tech stocks in the wake of the case will last longer.

With reporting from CNN’s Brian Fung, Hannah Rabinowitz, Evan Perez and Nicole Goodkind.