Tile accused Apple of anticompetitive behavior, and said it got worse after signs it was working on a rival product
- Tile, which makes Bluetooth accessories, accused Apple of anticompetitive behavior that has "gotten worse, not better" in a statement published Wednesday on the House of Representatives website.
- Tile first testified against Apple at a congressional hearing in January, after the firms' relationship soured amid ongoing rumors that Apple planned to release a similar product to its own.
- Tile's flagship tracking device helps people find lost items like keys or wallets by attaching to said items, with a smartphone app letting them track the items' locations via Bluetooth.
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Bluetooth accessories maker Tile accused Apple of anticompetitive behavior that has "gotten worse, not better", in a blistering statement to the House Judiciary Committee.
We first saw the news via Reuters.
In its statement published Wednesday, which is publicly accessible on the House of Representatives website, Tile hinted that Apple would launch its long-rumored rival product, Apple Tag.
Tile's flagship product is a tracking device that helps people find lost items like keys or wallets by attaching to said items, with a smartphone app letting them track the items' locations via Bluetooth. Apple has long been rumored to be working on an equivalent.
Tile complained on Wednesday that Apple had introduced new privacy restrictions on iOS that meant it and other third-party apps could no longer continuously track people's locations.
The firm said: "Despite Apple's multiple promises to reinstate 'Always Allow' background permissions option for third-party apps' geolocation services, Apple has not yet done so. Instead, and as detailed herein, from Tile's perspective, Apple has introduced new requirements for iOS 13.3.11 that will make the user experience for Tile customers even worse."
The restriction means that anyone using Tile must explicitly permit the app to continuously track their location. While this opt-in is something most privacy-conscious users welcome, Tile argues it's a disruption to its service.
Tile first testified to the House Judiciary Committee in January, as part of a wider hearing on allegedly anticompetitive behavior by the US tech giants including Apple, Google, Facebook, and Amazon.
At the time of its original testimony, Tile's general counsel Kirsten Daru said the two firms had once enjoyed a mutually beneficial relationship. But the firms fell out amid ongoing reports that Apple was planning to release a product similar to its own.
In early 2019, rumors began swirling that Apple was looking to build a Tile-esque device that connected to Apple users' iCloud accounts.
Though such a device has not yet materialized, rumors of its development have only intensified. The mooted product is widely referred to as "AirTag" or "Apple Tag."
Apple did not immediately respond to Business Insider's request for comment.
