 |
| Apple is worth nearly $2.75 trillion. Ian C. Bates for The New York Times |
The U.S. accused Apple of having a monopoly
The Justice Department filed a lawsuit against Apple, arguing that the company had violated antitrust laws by using practices that were intended to keep customers tethered to iPhones.
The lawsuit accused Apple of preventing other companies from offering applications that compete with products like its digital wallet; making it easier for iPhones to connect with other Apple products than with those of competitors; and undermining messaging across smartphone operating systems. (Read the filing here.)
Apple, which is worth nearly $2.75 trillion, said these practices had made its iPhones more secure than other smartphones. But app developers and rival device makers said Apple had used its power to crush competition.
The Justice Department has the right to ask for structural changes to Apple’s business, including a breakup, an agency official said, should the ruling be in the department’s favor.
It was unclear what implications the suit — which is likely to drag on for years — would have for consumers.
Context: Every modern tech giant has faced a major federal antitrust challenge, and Apple has effectively fought off similar accusations in the past. Here are some of the other regulatory actions facing the company.
 |
| Striking workers outside a recycling plant in Rötha, Germany. Ingmar Nolting for The New York Times |
Germany hit by ‘strike madness’
Strikes this year in Germany have brought railways and airports to a standstill, drawn doctors out of hospitals and led bank employees to depart for days.
By some measures, there have been more strikes in Germany in the first three months of 2024 than there have been in 25 years, so many that a conservative Parliament leader described them as “strike madness.” Such labor demonstrations are common in many European countries, but Germany has long prided itself on nondisruptive collective bargaining.
Long Europe’s powerhouse, Germany’s economy is now the slowest growing among the 20 countries using the euro. Last year, the country suffered its highest inflation in 50 years. Simultaneously, Germany is facing an ever more severe shortage of labor and an aging population, with officials estimating that the country will need seven million more workers by 2035.
The result is a unique opportunity for workers at a vulnerable moment for the national economy.
 |
| Officers seized evidence at Luis Rubiales’s home in Granada, Spain. Fermin Rodriguez/Reuters |
Former Spanish soccer official could face arrest
Luis Rubiales, the disgraced former head of the Spanish soccer federation who was forced out after kissing a female player against her will, could soon be arrested as part of a wide-ranging investigation into accusations of corruption and money laundering.
Investigators were looking into contracts related to the federation’s sale of lucrative rights to a prominent soccer tournament, the Spanish Super Cup, to Saudi Arabia. Seven people were arrested after raids by the Spanish civil guard this week, but Rubiales, who was in the Dominican Republic and expected to return to Spain in April, was not.
Background: Once one of the most prominent figures in soccer, Rubiales has had his career collapse after he planted an unwanted kiss on the mouth of Spain midfielder Jennifer Hermoso after the country won the Women’s World Cup last year. Hermoso later filed a sexual assault complaint, and a judge recommended that Rubiales face trial. He is also under investigation for a host of other allegations.Continue reading the main story
| MORE TOP NEWS |
 |
| Michelle Rose/Massachusetts General Hospital, via Agence France-Presse — Getty Images |
| Medical milestone: Surgeons successfully transplanted a kidney from a genetically engineered pig into an ailing man.Afghanistan: A suicide bombing in Kandahar killed at least 20 people, including several members of the Taliban, according to hospital officials.Ukraine: Russia injured at least 13 people in Kyiv with its biggest missile attack in weeks.Gambling: Players and coaches are still largely forbidden from gambling on games in the U.S., but the greater risk may come from people close to them, as illustrated by the firing of the translator for Shohei Ohtani, the superstar baseball player. The translator, Ippei Mizuhara, was accused of stealing millions of dollars from Ohtani to place sports bets. |
Israel-Hamas War
 |
| Said Khatib/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images |
| U.N.: The U.S. is circulating a U.N. resolution calling for “an immediate and sustained cease-fire” in the Gaza Strip, the strongest wording Washington has supported.Al-Shifa: Israel said it had killed dozens of people it described as terrorists during its raid at Al-Shifa Hospital, the largest medical facility in the territory. |
Economics
| Britain: The Bank of England kept interest rates at the highest level in 16 years.Reddit: Shares of the social media company rose 48 percent in their first day of trading. |
Politics
| Portugal: The rise of the right-wing Chega party has unsettled Portuguese politics and injected new anxiety into the European establishment.India: The country’s opposition parties are facing troubles that they say are the work of, and are giving an electoral advantage to, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s party.U.S.: Congressional negotiators unveiled a $1.2 trillion spending bill to fund the government, but it may not advance in time to avoid a partial shutdown. |
The Week in Culture
| Country: Beyoncé is only the latest of many Black pop artists who have released country albums.Indie: The Last Dinner Party became Britain’s buzziest new band by focusing on touring.Flicks: The Free Blockbuster project distributes free DVDs — remember them? — in neighborhood boxes. |
A Morning Read
 |
| Frank Augstein/Pool, via Reuters |
You may have heard online that Catherine, the Princess of Wales, is dead. Or a body double. Or a clone.
Such rumors have proliferated while Catherine has been laying low since Christmas, as she recovers from abdominal surgery, according to Kensington Palace. She joins a host of other celebrities about whom scores of online detectives push falsehoods.
Conversation starters
| Scent: A new study found that the smells emanating from young children tended to be more flowery than those of teenagers, which could be “goatlike.”Hong Kong: Urban explorers are venturing into dilapidated spaces to find the city’s soul. |
| SPORTS NEWS |
International break: What are the plans of your favorite Premier League club?
Khadija Shaw: The Manchester City striker, nicknamed Bunny, talks through her game in her words.
Australian Grand Prix: Breaking down the circuit in Albert Park.
| ARTS AND IDEAS |
 |
| Capcom |
Bone-crunching action in a fantasy game
Hideaki Itsuno has spent his three-decade career adapting the hyperviolent DNA of fighting video games for ever larger, more ornate environments.
Now Itsuno is set to release Dragon’s Dogma II, his most ambitious game yet. In it, he transposes the blistering melee combat he made his name with in games like Street Fighter Alpha and the Devil May Cry series into a gigantic open world of fantasy tropes. The game arrives today.
| RECOMMENDATIONS |
 |
| Christopher Testani for The New York Times. |
Cook: This recipe for easy burritos makes for a saucy and savory meal with just ground beef, beans and cheese.
