Welcome to the July 2026 edition of The Bug.
This edition of The Bug covers the EU General Court's dismissal of Apple's challenges to its gatekeeper designation under the Digital Markets Act, alongside U.S. and EU antitrust developments including light-touch DOJ enforcement under the incoming Antitrust Division leadership, state efforts to block the Paramount/Warner Bros. merger, and the EU's Digital Omnibus postponing high-risk AI Act obligations.
The Feature
On July 8, 2026, the EU General Court (GC) delivered its judgment in three joint cases regarding Apple’s challenges regarding the European Commission (EC) decisions to (i) designate Apple as a gatekeeper under Article 3 of the EU Digital Markets Act (DMA) in relation to the App Store, iOS, and Safari; (ii) open a market investigation as to whether the statutory presumption under DMA that iMessage constitutes an “important gateway” because the service meets the quantitative user thresholds should be rebutted; and (iii) close the iMessage investigation without designating Apple as a gatekeeper in relation to iMessage, while maintaining its classification as a number-independent interpersonal communications service.
The GC dismissed all three actions in their entirety and upheld Apple’s gatekeeper designation. The challenge to the designation of Apple’s five app stores (for iOS, iPadOS, watchOS, macOS, and tvOS) as a single core platform service was dismissed on the merits; the others on procedural grounds.
Read our more detailed update here.
The Niche
U.S. DOJ Leadership Choices Signal Light-Touch Antitrust Enforcement
The Antitrust Division of the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) is expected to continue to engage in light-touch enforcement, with an emphasis on settlements over litigation. The Wall Street Journal reported that Associate Attorney General Stanley Woodward, Jr., who has day-to-day responsibility for the Antitrust Division, told staff that he prefers they stop taking cases to trial and instead settle them.
Adam Candeub, President Trump’s nominee to become the Assistant Attorney General for the Antitrust Division, is expected to continue DOJ leadership’s focus on settlement over litigation. His previous statements and experience also suggest that he will focus on Big Tech. He has served as the FCC’s general counsel since early 2025.
Other Interesting Antitrust Developments
U.S. On July 13, 2026, a coalition of 12 state attorneys general sued to block the Paramount and Warner Bros. merger. The court entered a temporary restraining order on July 20. The state attorneys general are seeking a nationwide ban on the merger, despite the merger having already received DOJ approval.
U.S. On July 14, 2026, U.S. Senator Mike Lee, chairman of the Subcommittee on Antitrust, Competition Policy, and Consumer Rights, sent a voluntary information request letter to Uber and Lyft requesting information in part about how each company prices rides and driver fees.
EU On July 7, 2026, the European Parliament adopted its annual competition policy resolution, urging the EC to enforce the DMA impartially against external political pressure and to use competition policy to reduce dependence on non-EU cloud, AI, and payments providers.
EU On July 27, 2026, the Digital Omnibus on AI entered into force. It postpones high-risk AI Act obligations to December 2027 and August 2028, expands regulatory sandboxes and SME relief, centralizes AI Office enforcement, and bans “nudification” apps.
What’s in the Pipeline?
U.S. The Senate Judiciary Committee is expected to vote on whether to confirm Adam Candeub, the nominee to lead the DOJ Antitrust Division.
UK On July 15, 2026, the U.K. government published a call for evidence, closing September 9, 2026, on whether U.K. data regulation remains fit for AI and data-intensive technologies.
UK On July 30, 2026, the Information Commissioner’s Office published a report calling on the U.K. government to decide whether to legislate for a statutory data protection sandbox.
