Brussels has accepted measures from Apple that grant the iPhone manufacturer's competitors access to its contactless payment technology system, sparing the company a significant fine at the end of a lengthy antitrust investigation.

The US technology giant will allow developers to use its "tap-and-go" technology or Near-Field Communication (NFC) as a concession to EU demands, in order to use Apple Pay and Apple Wallet as "a simple, secure, and private payment method as well as for displaying passes," the company announced on Thursday.

Apple will thus avoid a fine of up to 40 billion dollars from Brussels and a formal charge of violating EU law. This step marks a rare respite in the conflict between both parties following a series of antitrust allegations from European regulators.

The decision today makes Apple's commitments binding," said Margrethe Vestager, the Executive Vice President of the EU Commission responsible for enforcing competition rules, on Thursday. "It opens up competition in this important sector by preventing Apple from excluding other mobile wallets from the iPhone ecosystem.

The competitors of the technology company will now be able to "effectively compete with Apple Pay for mobile payments on the iPhone in stores," she added, which will provide consumers with a "broader selection of secure and innovative mobile wallets.

Hundreds of millions of iPhones use Apple Pay, and the end of this long-standing investigation comes at a time when regulators in the EU and the USA are intensifying their scrutiny of Apple's business practices.

Brussels accused Apple in 2022, after a two-year investigation, of violating competition law by denying competitors access to its technology to favor its own payment system.

Officials have been testing concessions from Apple since January that allow developers free access to its NFC technology on iOS devices without using Apple Wallet or Apple Pay. The Financial Times reported last month on an impending agreement in this case.

Sanctions by the EU for anti-competitive behavior could have resulted in a fine of up to 10 percent of the global annual revenue of the corporation. With Apple's revenues of $383 billion in 2023, this would have meant a fine of around $40 billion, although regulators rarely impose the maximum fine and penalties are typically reduced after appeals in court.

Apple was recently accused as the first company of violating the EU Digital Markets Act, a strict legislation aimed at improving consumer choice and opening up digital markets in Europe.

Moreover, Apple was recently fined a record 1.8 billion euros for anticompetitive practices related to music streaming services. Apple has sued the EU and appealed the fine.