The US Department of Justice filed a lawsuit against Apple on Thursday, accusing the technology company of “illegally” maintaining a monopoly on the iPhone, stifling competition, imposing high costs on consumers and keeping stock prices high at the expense of customers and competitors.

The lawsuit, also filed by several US states, accuses Apple of collecting hundreds of billions of dollars by making it difficult for consumers to switch to cheap smartphones and devices. The case against the tech giant, founded by Steve Jobs in 1976, reinforces the conflict with Washington, after it has largely evaded US government scrutiny for nearly half a century, Agence France-Presse reported. It joins Amazon, Google and Meta, the owner of Facebook and Instagram, which are also facing legal action in the country.

At the heart of the case are Apple's alleged practices, which, as the lawsuit notes, sets rules and conditions limited to customers, both individual and group, to force Apple users to stay in the brand's ecosystem and buy iPhones a year early. from the last.