Times Online columnist Bernhard Warner on Wednesday said that "an iTunes/iPod monopoly is in nobody's interest." He also said that "it seems to be more a question of when, not if " the European Union Competition Commission will take on Apple over the issue. He noted that the EU's law centers around the idea of a company using a dominant position in an industry to exclude rivals from competing in it.

Mr. Warner wrote: "The phrasing 'dominant position' is the key. Regulators are loath to enter into an investigation if it is deemed the market in question is not fully mature for fear of trampling on innovation and natural market forces. Apple may have 80 percent share of the music download market in some countries, but this market is anything but mature, it could reasonably be concluded. The number of gadget makers and mobile phone manufacturers that have launched so-called iPod killers in the past year would attest to that."

He also noted that European regulators have previously gone after Microsoft and even the music industry, over CD prices. An EU competition specialist told Mr. Warner: "A key point to establish is Apple's dominance. Is it a dominant player in the market? The next point would be: are they carrying out a practice that has an exclusionary effect? If the answer to both these questions is yes, then Apple could be in trouble."