S. Korea passes bill to curb Google, Apple's in-app fee monopolies
The South Korean parliament on Tuesday passed a bill that would
rein in the dominance Google and Apple exert over
payments on their respective app stores. It became the first nation in the
world to enact such a law.
The South Korean lawmakers voted to approve the amendments to the
Telecommunications Business Act, which bars app market operators from forcing
certain payment systems on mobile content businesses by abusing their market
positions, reports news agency Yonhap.
The move comes amid growing global scrutiny of Google and Apple, who
maintain a strong grip over mobile ecosystems, for requiring developers on
their app stores to use their proprietary payment systems that charge fees of
up to 30 per cent when users purchase digital goods within apps.
Developers around the world have questioned app market operators'
exclusive in-app payment systems, opposing their relatively high commissions
and demanding that they should be able to freely use other systems, the report
said.
The latest legislation in South Korea is expected
to give app developers the choice to use other payment systems, potentially
signalling a major shift in how Google and Apple run their app
markets, it added.
The legislative movement in South Korea picked up
after Google announced in September last year it would enforce its billing
system on all developers on its Play Store starting October this year.
Local tech groups vehemently opposed the move, calling it a
monopolistic measure and saying it would likely lead to a price hike in the
broader digital content industry, the report said.
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