Apple to change app data consent rules, German regulator says

Apple will change rules governing how app developers can use personal data for targeted advertising on iPhones and iPads, Germany’s competition authority said, closing a years-long investigation.
The Federal Cartel Office, or FCO, found that Apple’s App Tracking Transparency framework ?gave ?its own apps more favourable consent prompts than those of third-party developers, potentially breaching competition rules.
Apple has four months to implement the changes after ?the decision ?is served. Commitments run for ?seven years and will be monitored by a trustee.
Under the commitments, consent pop-ups for third-party apps must be redesigned to remove discouraging language and symbols, and made visually and linguistically neutral.
“While we believe the current ATT prompt provides a clear, easy-to-understand and effective way to keep users in control of their data – an opinion shared by the German data protection authorities – we have agreed to make changes to the text and formatting of the prompt at the FCO’s request,” Apple said, adding that with these commitments, it can continue to provide the tool in Europe. The changes will apply in almost all European Union countries.
Developers of third-party apps, including Facebook parent Meta Platforms, aim for accurate user data so that targeted adverts can be displayed on devices. These generate more revenue than broader campaigns.
Apple camera AirPods could debut soon with Visual Intelligence
Apple may be giving its AirPods a new set of eyes. A demo video discovered in the macOS Tahoe 26.7 release candidate appears to reveal how the company’s rumoured camera-equipped AirPods could use Visual Intelligence to understand what users are looking at.
The development comes amid reporting by Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, who has previously said Apple is working on camera-equipped AirPods and that the first model, codenamed B790, could launch as early as September.
The video, first spotted by MacRumors, reportedly shows a man wearing the unreleased earbuds while holding up a book. A Siri voice-over explains that Visual Intelligence could allow users to save something they see for later.
The earbuds are expected to use built-in cameras to capture visual information and pass it to Apple’s Visual Intelligence system. This could allow Siri to answer questions about objects or surroundings and potentially remember information users encounter.

Gurman has reported that the cameras could capture low-resolution visual information, effectively giving Apple’s AI a way to interpret the user’s environment.
A software warning reportedly advises users to keep their hair away from the AirPods to ensure the cameras can accurately understand their surroundings.
References to B790 have appeared in macOS Tahoe 26.7, including code linked to an “image stream”. The earbuds shown in the demo resemble the current AirPods Pro design, although their stems appear thicker.
Gurman has previously suggested that the longer stems could accommodate the cameras. Apple is also reportedly developing another camera-equipped AirPods model, codenamed B798, which could arrive in 2027.