France is looking into Apple's contract with French mobile carriers.
Apple Inc., leading smartphone making company, is being closely watched by the French government for its shared terms of contracts with local mobile carriers. The investigation is a part of a broader inquiry being carried out in the country to understand the relationship between smartphone makers like Apple and wireless network carriers. The investigation came to light after the Wall Street Journal reported the matter and a French news channel BFM TV carried a similar news report, Wednesday.
Apple has previously been under the scanner of the European authorities due to its business terms that require carrier partners to guarantee large number of sales of its iPhones. In March, the European regulators investigated potential antitrust issues of Apple's contracts with its carriers, but the latest probe is being done by French watchdogs alone.
Autorite de la Concurrence, France's antitrust authority, is investigating two other matters involving Apple. Earlier this year, the organization raided some of Apple's offices in France seeking evidence of whether Apple was involved in anti-competitive behavior with its resellers.
The growth of American companies in the European markets has largely concerned the authorities. Apple continues to rule several parts of the continent. The recent release of iPhone 5S and 5C has again proved the dominance of the Cuppertino-based tech giant.
However, Samsung has gone slightly ahead of Apple, as the South Korean tech giant holds a firm 42.6 percent market share, which is a 1.1 percent increase from previous year, according to research firm Garner Inc. Apple held 16.8 percent of the European smartphone market in the second quarter, a 2 percent decline from the previous year.
