European consumers will miss out on Apple’s new HomeView smart home hub because of the DMA, AppleInsider reports. The device combines conversational Siri AI, music, FaceTime and smart home controls, with personalised assistance drawing on a paired iPhone or iPad. It launches on 13 November in markets including the US, UK and Canada. Apple confirms that HomeView is “not available for sale in the European Union” because Siri AI remains unavailable on iOS there. No EU launch date has been announced.
The exclusion further extends the European Commission’s refusal to accept Apple’s “Trusted System Agent” solution to give third-party agents access to hardware and software features of iOS. Since June, the Commission and Apple have not been able to resolve the Commission’s demand for access with Apple’s concerns over its users’ privacy and security. The inability to reach a resolution now affects not just the launch of the Siri AI feature in Europe, but the launch of an entire new device: HomeView is built around Siri AI, and removing that integrated agent would strip away a central part of its usefulness and appeal to consumers. Apple says it is working with the EU to find a path forward. In the meantime, the Commission’s enforcement of the DMA is leaving European users behind on the integrated AI experience that other jurisdictions get to enjoy.
