The Japan Fair Trade Commission (JFTC) has published guidelines that will require companies such as Apple and Google to allow third-party payment systems and third-party app stores within their mobile ecosystems.
According to reporting from 9to5Mac, the Mobile Software Competition Act Guidelines will go into effect on Dec. 18, 2025 and force companies such as Apple and Google to stop favoring their own apps over other third-party competitors.
The English-language “tentative translation” version of the guidelines, released officially by the JFTC and linked from the same 9to5 Mac article, does not appear to refer to Apple or Google by name, instead referring to applicable entities as “designated providers.”
9to5Mac also points out that the requirements in the guidelines include providers like Apple and Google needing to establish firewalls preventing them from accessing sensitive developer data, and requiring them to submit yearly compliance reports.
FastSpring previously covered earlier developments in Japan’s actions to curb mobile app gatekeeping, per which fines of 20%-30% may be levied on revenues gained from services in breach of the 2024 regulatory law.
Related Articles
- Latest Epic Win in Epic vs. Google Means Major Changes Ahead for Android App Developers (August 2025)
- Apple’s Court Loss Is a Win for Mobile Game Developers — What It Means for You (May 2025)
- European Commission Fines Apple €500 Million for Preventing Steering From App Store to Other Offers (April 2025)
- Brazil Joins Growing List of Countries Calling for Apple to Allow Steering to Payments Options Outside App Store (November 2024)
- Judge Issues Injunction With Details of How Google Must Open Up Android App Store to Competition in US (October 2024)
- Japan Enacts Regulatory Law Targeting Apple and Google Smartphone Marketplace Dominance (June 2024)
- Find more related industry news on our blog.
About FastSpring
FastSpring is how gaming publishers sell in more places around the world. For nearly two decades, FastSpring has been a trusted payment provider you can use to sell games or in-game items on your website, web shop, or embedded directly into your game with fully customizable and branded checkouts just for you. FastSpring allows you to offload the complexity of global payments, sales tax and VAT compliance, player payments support, and many other aspects of payments management. Spend less time managing your payments and compliance and more time making great games! To learn more about how FastSpring supports game developers, visit fastspring.gg.
