STORY: Apple is set to be the first company fined under new EU new rules aimed at reining in the power of Big Tech.

That's according to sources with direct knowledge of the matter on Tuesday.

EU regulators charged in June that the iPhone maker had breached the bloc's tech rules.

The charge against Apple was the first under the EU's Digital Markets Act, or DMA, which came into force earlier this year.

Bloomberg reported on Tuesday that Apple was found to have failed to allow app developers to steer users to cheaper deals and offers outside of the App Store.

The Reuters sources said the fine is likely to come this month, although the timing could still change.

DMA violations could result in a fine of as much as 10% of a company's global annual turnover.

Apple declined to comment, while the European Commission did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.

The new penalty comes just months after Brussels fined Apple over $2 billion for thwarting competition from music streaming rivals via App Store restrictions.

Apple also lost a long-running court battle with the EU in September.

That resulted in the company being forced to pay over $14 billion in back taxes to Ireland.