Japan: Regulator takes aim at app store – as in Europe
Japanese Free Trade Authority investigates Apple for years. Now it says the company must allow third-party marketplaces and payments.
Japanese flag made of particles (symbolic image).
(Image: muhammadtoqeer/Shutterstock.com)
Possibly soon no longer “Big in Japan”: Apple's App Store could now also lose market share to rival marketplaces in the Land of the Rising Sun. The local authority, the Japan Fair Trade Commission, which promotes free trade in the country, has decided to regulate Apple's iPhone software store similarly to the EU Commission (as part of its Digital Markets Act, DMA). A corresponding investigation has been underway since 2020 and a final report of almost 120 pages has now been published.
Rules take effect from December 18
According to the report, from December 18, Apple will no longer be allowed to favor its apps over those of third-party providers, which means that Apple will no longer be allowed to “profit” from the data it collects from the operating system. It is also not permitted to “unfairly delay, reject or otherwise hinder” third-party apps in terms of their visibility in the App Store.
The Japan Fair Trade Commission requires a “firewall” between the various teams – App Store employees should no longer have access to certain data that could give them an advantage. Finally, third-party app marketplaces will be permitted in Japan for the first time, as well as third-party payment services, either in competing app marketplaces or in the company's own apps. All of this is very reminiscent of the regime that the EU DMA also wants to achieve and that is being pursued in the US courts by Epic Games and other providers.
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Japan also takes action against Google
Meanwhile, the measures not only affect Apple, but also Google with its Play Store. However, as is already the case within the EU, Apple in particular is at the center of reporting on the topic – even though Android is the market leader in Japan, just as it is in Europe and the USA.
According to the authority, the new rules will be enforced step by step, even if they come into force on December 18. The Japan Fair Trade Commission is also planning a kind of “awareness campaign” to let developers and users know what (new) rights they have. Like the EU, the regulator has enforcement measures at its disposal if Apple and Google do not implement the new rules.
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