Apple is facing a proposed £2bn opt-out collective action alleging that its App Tracking Transparency (ATT) framework unfairly disadvantaged thousands of UK app developers while favouring its own advertising services.
ATT Collective Action, which seeks to represent the proposed class, filed the claim at the Competition Appeal Tribunal. Ann Pope, a former civil servant and Competition and Markets Authority senior competition director, is the proposed class representative. Hausfeld’s UK office acts on behalf of the proposed class while Simmons & Simmons acts for the defendants.
Introduced in April 2021, ATT requires third-party apps to obtain permission through an Apple-designed prompt before tracking users across other companies’ apps and websites. The claim says developers also had to obtain consent under data-protection law, while Apple’s services used a separate prompt for personalised advertising.
The action alleges that Apple imposed ATT without adequate consultation or time for developers to adapt, thereby reducing advertising income and increasing the cost of acquiring new users, although it is accepted the feature gave users greater control over their data.
The proposed opt-out class comprises UK-domiciled developers who earned advertising revenue from a third-party iOS app or spent money advertising one between April 2021 and September 2026, with a possible class of 13,000 developers involved. They would be included automatically only if the CAT certifies the proceedings.
Pope, who began her competition law career at the Office of Fair Trading in 1988 and served as the CMA’s senior director for antitrust from 2014 until 2024, said: “This action is important to protect the rights of British businesses that depend on Apple, to ensure that the rules that Apple applies are fair, and to compensate the losses that British companies have suffered.”
Apple told journalists ATT was created “to give users a simple way to control whether apps have permission to track their activity”, adding that it was “bound by the exact same requirements as all developers”. Simmons & Simmons declined to comment.
The framework has drawn scrutiny from regulators in France, Italy, Germany, Poland and Romania. French and Italian regulators have fined Apple €150m and €98.6m respectively over its implementation, while the UK’s CMA continues to examine the matter. In August, Germany’s Bundeskartellamt made Apple’s offered commitments binding, including changes intended to make consent prompts clearer and more neutral.
The UK claim seeks compensation for alleged losses dating from ATT’s introduction.
Hausfeld partner Luke Streatfeild is leading the case with partner Amandine Gueret. Gerry Facenna KC and senior junior Nikolaus Grubeck of Monckton Chambers are instructed alongside Narinder Jhittay and Eoin MacLachlan of Maitland Chambers. The claim is funded by Jersey-based TR Global Funding. Apple’s counsel team remains unknown.
Streatfeild said: “This claim raises important questions about how powerful digital platforms should behave, and about the intersection of privacy protections and fair markets.
“The ATT policy got this balance wrong. It was imposed unfairly and unilaterally, without consultation, in a manner that damaged British app developers without justification, while allowing Apple’s business to flourish.”
Future case management hearings will follow as certification of the claim is addressed.
In 2025, Hausfeld secured a CAT judgment in favour of Dr Rachael Kent in a £1.5bn action alleging that Apple’s App Store commissions were excessive, although Apple is seeking to appeal that ruling. The company also faces a £900m claim from Hausfeld over agreements between Apple and Amazon relating to Apple products sold on Amazon Marketplace.
The case is one of several Hausfeld has advanced against so-called Big Tech companies, including one against Google-parent Alphabet – led by class representative Liz Coll – alleging abuse of dominance over commissions charged on in-app purchases through Google Play. Last week, Coll confirmed her litigation remained ongoing following a separate settlement by Google in litigation led by Professor Barry Rodger.
Hausfeld also acts in other claims, including class actions involving Google Ads, Google Shopping and the Stopford class action involving Google Search.
Email your news and story ideas to: [email protected]
