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Japan has become the latest country to enact regulatory laws targeting companies such as Apple Inc. and Google LLC from limiting third-party companies that want to distribute and monetize their own apps on Google and Apple devices.
Per Kyodo News, “The law will prohibit the providers of Apple’s iOS and Google’s Android smartphone operating systems, app stores and payment platforms from preventing the sale of apps and services that directly compete with the native platforms’ own.” This is to prevent the platform providers from “gatekeeping” while also forcing more competition between their own apps and others on the platforms.
While Japan’s existing antimonopoly law imposes fines of 6% on revenues gained via anticompetitive practices, the penalties in this new more specific law are 20% on domestic revenues gained on services in breach of this law, increasing to 30% if the problem practices are not discontinued.
The new law is expected to take effect by the end of 2025, which Kyodo News points out is similar to one of the EU’s recent regulations (presumably the EU’s Digital Markets Act).
Kyodo News also reports that both Apple and Google released statements about their continued engagement with Japanese regulators.
An earlier article from Kyodo News regarding the regulation being first passed by Japan’s Cabinet described its approval of the regulation as “a move to challenge the duopoly exerted by industry giants Apple Inc. and Google LLC,” and that this regulation shows the Japanese government’s desire to align with the EU in enacting more regulations “of Big Tech firms such as Apple, Google and Amazon.com Inc., which have grown to wield significant influence over digital services around the world.”
Related Reading
- News: U.S. Federal Judge and Epic Games Challenge Whether Apple Has Complied With Order to Allow Payment Steering (May 2024)
- News: U.S. Supreme Court Rejects Appeals From Apple and Epic in Antitrust Case (January 2024)
- Is What Epic Wants for App Stores What Other Game Developers Actually Want? (December 2023)
- News: Potential Apple App Store Policy Changes Due to EU’s Digital Markets Act (November 2023)
- News: Tentative Settlement in Google Play Direct-to-Consumer Antitrust Lawsuit Announced (September 2023)
- What the Epic Games vs. Apple Injunction Means for Software Companies (October 2021)
- Visit FastSpring’s game monetization page to learn more about how FastSpring supports game developers.
- FastSpring CEO David Nachman participated in Epic’s antitrust case against Google. Read FastSpring’s press release on the December 11, 2023 ruling in the case. “This is a win for gamers and studios.”
- Get tips on How to Sell a Mobile App or Game Outside App Stores.
- Listen to a podcast episode with the CEO of Skillshot Media and Ghost Gaming about Marketing Your Video Game Outside of Game Marketplaces & App Stores.
- Already using a merchant of record to monetize your game directly to consumers? Here are seven great reasons to use FastSpring as an additional D2C solution, or learn more about four Xsolla competitors in 2024.
About FastSpring
FastSpring powers global direct-to-consumer (D2C) payments for game studios and publishers. As a Merchant of Record, FastSpring provides a fully managed payment solution including checkout, fraud mitigation, and 100% automated sales tax and VAT compliance. With FastSpring, gaming businesses can level up quickly in the global market and do what they do best, build great games. Founded in 2005, FastSpring is a privately owned company headquartered in California with offices in the UK, Netherlands, and Canada. For more information, please visit https://fastspring.com/solutions/gaming.
