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South Korea fines Google and Apple for app store payment violations
South Korea’s Korea Communications Commission (KCC) has fined Google and Apple a combined 63.7 billion won (approximately 47.6 million USD) for abusing their dominant market positions. The regulator found that both companies effectively forced developers to use their proprietary in-app payment systems, despite legal requirements to allow alternatives.
Although the companies nominally permitted third-party payments, the KCC noted they imposed commissions as high as 26 percent on these alternatives, making their own systems the only practical choice. Additionally, the companies were found to have restricted access to certain features for those using external payments and failed to provide transparent timelines or reasons for app review delays.
Apple specifically faced scrutiny for discriminatory commission practices between 2015 and early 2023, where it allegedly applied different calculation methods for South Korean developers compared to overseas developers by including VAT in the commission base.
In addition to the fines, the KCC ordered both companies to allow South Korean developers to include external payment links directly within their apps and to improve the transparency and speed of their app review processes.
Entities
Alphabet Inc. · Apple · Celltrion Inc. · Fair Trade Commission · Google · Korea Communications Commission · Korea Media and Communications Commission · South Korea
Claims
What the coverage asserts, and how many sources carry each claim.
- [● 4 SOURCES] The total fine imposed on Google and Apple is approximately 47.6 million USD. www.brif.mk · raillynews.com · cafebiz.vn · vtv.vn
- [● 3 SOURCES] The Korea Communications Commission fined Google 42.9 billion won. news.mydrivers.com · cafebiz.vn · vtv.vn
- [● 5 SOURCES] The KCC ordered the companies to allow external payment links within apps. www.europesays.com · www.brif.mk · raillynews.com · cafebiz.vn · vtv.vn
- [● 7 SOURCES] Google and Apple were found to have forced developers to use their official in-app payment systems. news.mydrivers.com · www.europesays.com · www.laikas.lt · www.brif.mk · raillynews.com · +2 more
- [● 3 SOURCES] The Korea Communications Commission fined Apple 20.8 billion won. news.mydrivers.com · cafebiz.vn · vtv.vn
- [● 5 SOURCES] The companies were ordered to improve the transparency and speed of app review procedures. www.europesays.com · www.brif.mk · raillynews.com · cafebiz.vn · vtv.vn
- [● 6 SOURCES] The companies imposed commissions of up to 26 percent on third-party payment options. www.europesays.com · www.laikas.lt · www.brif.mk · raillynews.com · cafebiz.vn · +1 more
- [● 4 SOURCES] Apple applied different commission calculation methods for South Korean developers compared to overseas developers between 2015 and January 2023. www.europesays.com · www.laikas.lt · cafebiz.vn · vtv.vn