(Bloomberg) — Apple Inc. will face its first-ever fine under the European Union’s new digital antitrust rules for Big Tech, escalating a clash with regulators over the dominance of the hugely profitable App Store.

Most read from Bloomberg

Watchdogs are preparing punishment after the iPhone maker failed to allow app developers to steer users to cheaper deals and offers outside the App Store, according to people familiar with the matter who spoke on condition of anonymity .

The punishment, under the tough new Digital Markets Act, will come just months after Cupertino, California-based Apple was fined €1.8 billion ($2 billion) for similar abuses under the bloc’s traditional competition rules – involving music streaming services. Spotify.

The European Commission could impose the fine before current EU Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager leaves office later this month, people said.

But there was a chance it could be postponed later this year, they said. The fine could also come with penalties imposed on Apple until it complies with the law, the people said, adding that the decision was still being finalized.

Apple spokespeople did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The European Commission declined to comment.

The move follows a warning to Apple in June that it must give developers effective tools to drive users away from the App Store or face future fines. Unlike traditional antitrust law, the DMA is intended to stop anti-competitive behavior before it is too late to destroy markets for good.

Under the law, EU regulators have the power to fine the world’s most powerful tech companies 10% of their global annual turnover, 20% for repeat violations, or periodic fines of as much as 5% of average daily turnover.

In its fourth-quarter results released last week, Apple reported revenue of $94.9 billion, compared to an average estimate of $94.4 billion. iPhone revenue came in at $46.2 billion, beating estimates of $45 billion.

Shares of Apple rose less than 1% to $223.45 at the close in New York on Tuesday. This year they are up 16%.

Vestager worked with Apple several times during her time in Brussels. In the Spotify dispute, she accused Apple of preventing its rival from informing users of cheaper offers outside Apple’s App Store.

Story continues