Japan has joined the list of countries determined to break Apple and Google’s monopolies on their respective mobile operating systems’ app stores.
According to The Register, the Japanese government recently held its seventh Digital Market Competition Conference, the main output of which was a Final Report on the Competitive Evaluation of Mobile Ecosystems.
According to the report, mobile ecosystems have become critical infrastructure, but more consumer options, as well as an equal and equitable competition environment, are required.
According to the report, Apple and Google should allow third-party payment services to access their app stores so that developers can offer more payment options to users.
Furthermore, Japan wants the two tech behemoths to stop giving their own apps preferential treatment in their digital tat bazaars and instead make them easier to remove from devices.
Furthermore, the reforms are intended to reduce the price Japanese consumers pay for apps, possibly by encouraging third-party app stores to charge lower fees than Apple’s 30% and Google’s variable rates.
Both companies claim that the fees they charge cover their app store costs as well as reasonable profits.
However, because neither has any real competition and both make huge profits, regulators believe there is almost certainly a margin to be cut, according to the report.
South Korea’s National Assembly passed legislation in 2022 prohibiting app store operators such as Google and Apple from forcing developers to use their in-app payment systems, making it the world’s first country to do so.
