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The EU’s competition commissioner has fined Apple €1.84 billion for restricting the ability of users of its devices to shop around for cheaper music streaming services. If that sounds like big money for a niche offence, it’s barely 0.5 per cent of Apple’s global annual turnover and it could presage a wider antitrust war between Brussels and California. Margrethe Vestager, the commissioner, tells the FT the traditional part of the fine – €40 million – was a mere speeding ticket for Apple, which is one reason she added €1.8 billion as deterrent. Another reason is that Apple provided her staff with “incorrect information” during their ten-year investigation. Apple will appeal. In the meantime it’s gratifying to see how closely Vestager reads her Sensemaker. When her department proposed a relatively modest €500 million fine last month we suggested that “if the EU wants to change behaviour rather than just establish fines as a modest price of doing business in the bloc, it needs to fine Big Tech bigger”. It remains to be seen if €1.84 billion is big enough.