The U.S. Justice Department and 16 attorneys general sued Apple Inc., accusing the iPhone maker of violating antitrust laws by blocking rivals from accessing hardware and software features on its popular devices.

The suit, filed Thursday in New Jersey federal court, marks the culmination of a five-year probe into the world’s second-most-valuable technology company. The Biden administration has made competition a cornerstone of its economic policy, with Silicon Valley becoming a key focus. And it comes as the European Commission is gearing up to announce probes into compliance with the Digital Markets Act — the European Union’s new gatekeeper rules for Big Tech — by Apple and Alphabet Inc.’s Google.

Shares of Apple slid more than 4% Thursday, erasing about $115 billion in market value.

The lawsuit alleges that Apple has used its power over app distribution on the iPhone to thwart innovations that would have made it easier for consumers to switch phones. The company has refused to support cross-platform messaging apps, limited third-party digital wallets and non-Apple smartwatches, and blocked mobile cloud streaming services.

“This case is about freeing smartphone markets from Apple’s anticompetitive and exclusionary conduct and restoring competition to lower smartphone prices for consumers, reducing fees for developers, and preserving innovation for the future,” according to the suit, which seeks changes in Apple’s practices.

‘Dangerous precedent’

U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland said at a press conference that Apple has “consolidated its monopoly power not by making its own products better but by making other products worse.”

The company said the lawsuit was “wrong on the facts and the law,” warned that it would “set a dangerous precedent, empowering government to take a heavy hand in designing people’s technology” and vowed to “vigorously defend against it.”

“At Apple, we innovate every day to make technology people love — designing products that work seamlessly together, protect people’s privacy and security, and create a magical experience for our users,” the company said in a statement. “This lawsuit threatens who we are and the principles that set Apple products apart in fiercely competitive markets.”

Apple recently added support for cloud-based gaming services and said it would add RCS cross-platform messaging later this year.

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