UPDATE 1-Apple met with DOJ officials to avoid antitrust lawsuit, Bloomberg reports

Reuters
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(Adds details from Bloomberg report in paragraphs 2-3)

Feb 27 (Reuters) - Apple representatives met with U.S. Justice Department officials last week in a bid to persuade the agency not to file an antitrust suit against the iPhone maker, Bloomberg reported on Tuesday, citing people familiar with the matter.

Antitrust enforcers, probing the company since 2019, allege that Apple has imposed software and hardware limitations on its iPhones and iPads to impede rivals from effectively competing, Bloomberg said.

The company and its lawyers met with Assistant Attorney General Jonathan Kanter, who will make the final call on whether to file a suit, according to the report, adding that a lawsuit could be filed as soon as the end of March.

Both Apple and the Justice Department declined to comment on the report when contacted by Reuters.

(Reporting by Harshita Mary Varghese, Juby Babu and Angela Christy in Bengaluru; Editing by Subhranshu Sahu and Rashmi Aich)