EU’s Vestager triumphs in crackdown on Apple’s tax deal, Google’s practices

EU antitrust chief Margrethe Vestager scored two major wins on Tuesday as Europe's top court backed her crackdown against Apple's Irish tax deal and Google's anti-competitive practices in two landmark cases.

Vestager, who ends her term in November, has made a name for herself going after Big Tech's tax arrangements with some EU countries and attempts to stifle smaller rivals. The court victories could embolden her successor to take a similar tack.

The EU antitrust chief cheered the judgments. "Today is a huge win for European citizens and tax justice," she said on X of the Apple ruling, also praising the Google judgment as a big win for digital fairness.

The European Commission in 2016 ordered Apple to pay 13 billion euros ($14.4 billion) in back taxes to Ireland, saying that the iPhone maker benefited from two Irish tax rulings for over two decades that...