South Korea 'puts the brakes' on Google's app store dominance

South Korea's Fair Trade Commission today commenced monitoring of Google's app store operations – an action that follows its April decision to fine the advertising and mobile OS giant for its competition-crimping activities. A Wednesday statement from the Commission brought news that in late July it wrote to Google to inform …

[Alan Mackenzie]

Justice?

> Soon afterwards, Google told developers they were free to sell their wares in OneStore – but doing so would see them removed from the Play store.

How can things like this happen, and nobody end up in prison?

[ChoHag]

Re: Justice?

You buy the phones, don't you?

[v13]

I'm confused

I can't say I understood the article. Is this another case of someone wanting to use them Play store but not pay fees? Because anyone can install a 3rd party store on Android, unlike iPhones. The app store policy is the same everywhere: Play, Apple, Samsung, Xbox, PlayStation, even Steam to some extent.

Stores take a cut, like banks take a cut on every business transaction and currency conversion. It sucks but things don't happen for free.

[Pascal Monett]

Re: I'm confused

No, it is not. This is a case of a local Play Store being created, and Google saying "if you put your apps there, we will delist them here", in other words, Google is using its muscle to choke local options.

You may not care about local options, but Google is not a South Korean company, which means, in my mind, there are things it does not understand. A local option should be a good thing to have, and I do not see that Google has the moral right to throw the toys out of the pram on this.

This is about Google wanting every single cent that can be made, when Google already has its own money printing machine.

It's about greed, and how to curtail it.

I say bravo to South Korea.

[v13]

Re: I'm confused

I don't think that's true. Apps already coexist on Play and Samsung stores without problems. Epic has its own Android store without issues. I'm not aware of a policy that says that. Hence they "I'm confused" part.

The article isn't clear about what the problem is.

[mattaw2001]

Re: I'm confused

If you re-read the article, Google threatened to cut you off if you tried to list your apps on the competing local stores. Which is pretty much a textbook abuse of monopoly.