The UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has officially closed its ongoing investigations into Apple and Google’s app store practices as it awaits the implementation of new laws regulating digital markets. The decision comes as both tech giants continue to face global scrutiny over the dominance of their respective platforms, the Apple App Store and Google Play Store.
According to Reuters, critics have long accused Apple and Google of using their platforms to impose unfair fees on app developers and limit competition. These concerns led the CMA to conduct a comprehensive market study in 2022, which concluded that the two companies have a de facto monopoly on app distribution in the UK. Following that study, the CMA launched investigations into both companies on suspicion of anti-competitive behavior.
However, according to Reuters, the CMA announced on Wednesday that it had decided to close these investigations. The decision was made largely in anticipation of the upcoming Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act (DMCCA), which is expected to come into force later this year. This new law is designed to address precisely the issues the CMA has been investigating and give the authority broader powers to regulate digital markets.
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“Once the new pro-competitive regime for digital markets comes into force, we may consider applying these new powers to concerns we have already identified through our existing work,” said Will Hayter, Executive Director of Digital Markets at the CMA.
Responding to the CMA’s decision, a Google spokesperson highlighted the flexibility and choice offered by the Android operating system, which, unlike other platforms, allows for multiple app stores. “We have been working with the CMA over many months during its investigation and, as part of that, we have made a number of important commitments to further expand the billing options available to developers through Google Play,” the spokesperson added.
Source: Reuters
