CADE held a public hearing last week to discuss digital ecosystems related specifically to Apple’s iOS and Google’s Android operating systems and their respective app stores, the App Store and Google Play.
The hearing was structured into multiple segments, beginning with an opening panel with CADE’s officers and representatives of other key government bodies, including the National Secretariat for Digital Rights at the Ministry of Justice, the Attorney General’s office, and the Brazilian Central Bank.
In the second part of the hearing, representatives from the business sector presented their views. CADE heard from Apple Inc., Google Inc., Epic Games Inc., Match Group Inc., Zetta (entity representing some of Brazil’s most successful fintechs, such as Nubank, Mercado Pago and PicPay), the Coalition for App Fairness, the Brazilian Internet Association (ABRANET), and FS Security.
This was followed by interventions from civil society and academia, featuring contributions from organizations such as the Digital Rights Coalition (CDR), Article 19, Proteste | Euroconsumers-Brazil, the Institute for Consumer Protection (IDEC), Data Privacy, Sleeping Giants Brazil, the E-Commerce Studies Center, and the Center for Technology and Society at FGV Direito Rio, as well as researchers from the European Commission’s research center and the University of Glasgow.
As digital platforms have been the main hot topic across different jurisdictions, the hearing is connected to a broader global movement of scrutiny by antitrust authorities regarding dominant digital platforms in the mobile ecosystem. For example, US Department of Justice brought a suit against Apple last year [1] and the UK CMA recently announced an investigation of the competitiveness of said market [2]. CADE has also its own procedures – in earlier stages – against Apple, initiated by complaints from Meta and Mercado Pago [3][4].
Nevertheless, CADE’s engagement is pioneering in Latin America, and it signals the agency’s openness to a more balanced approach, creating a space for multilateral discussions, in order to be more prepared to “make decisions that maximize benefits for society”– as stated by CADE’s President Commissioner Alexandre Cordeiro.
In the scope of said decisions, along with the already existing procedures mentioned, there is the issuance (or not) of an ex-ante regulation – which was reinforced by most interventions as a viable tool to secure market transparency, accountability and competitiveness, despite Apple and Google Play representatives’ plea to the contrary (or, at least, for further reflection in light of the international experiences).
The specific regulation of these markets has been in discussion for ages, but it has certainly intensified since the publication of the memorandum of research and recommendations on digital markets by the Ministry of Finance last October [5]. Therefore, the hearing is also a strong indication of the further development of the agenda.
Although it is not yet possible to precisely assert the weight of the inputs on the event on CADE’s future reasonings, the agency has already confirmed that the debate will be summarized in a working document, which will allow stakeholders to verify how the contributions were perceived and how the authority may – through them - lead the topic further on, as well as make it fit for international authorities to use as a point of reference for their own purposes.
Author: Maria Paula Pereira de Andrade, antitrust lawyer at Felsberg Advogados.
Contact: mpp@felsberg.com.br
[1] “Justice Department Sues Apple for Monopolizing Smartphone Markets”. Available on https://www.justice.gov/archives/opa/pr/justice-department-sues-apple-monopolizing-smartphone-markets.
[2] “Notice under Section 11(1) of the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 (The Act)”. Available on https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/67911972e2b9324a911e26db/Apple_investigation_notice.pdf.
[3] “SG determina aplicação de medida preventiva contra a Apple”. Available on https://www.gov.br/cade/pt-br/assuntos/noticias/sg-determina-aplicacao-de-medida-preventiva-contra-a-apple.
[4] “Investigação sobre a Apple avança no Cade após queixa da dona do Facebook”. Available on https://oglobo.globo.com/blogs/capital/post/2025/02/investigacao-sobre-a-apple-avanca-no-cade-apos-queixa-da-dona-do-facebook.ghtml.
[5] “Ministério da Fazenda apresenta propostas para aprimorar a defesa da concorrência no ambiente de plataformas digitais”. Available on https://www.gov.br/fazenda/pt-br/assuntos/noticias/2024/outubro/ministerio-da-fazenda-apresenta-propostas-para-aprimorar-a-defesa-da-concorrencia-no-ambiente-de-plataformas-digitais.