FT: Asia and Australia follow EU and US lead to curb dominance of big tech like Apple and Google
Kyiv • UNN
Japan, South Korea, and Australia are tightening regulations to limit the market power of large tech groups such as Apple and Google, creating new regulatory challenges similar to those in the EU and the US.
Japan, South Korea and Australia are tightening rules to curb the market power of large tech groups, creating new regulatory challenges for Apple and Google after similar actions in the EU and the US, the Financial Times reports, according to UNN.
Details
The cabinet of Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida recently approved a landmark law aimed at preventing major online platforms from using their dominant position in mobile software to prevent new competitors from entering the market.
The rules - a narrower version of the EU's comprehensive Digital Markets Act - aim to offer consumers more choice, for example by making it easier to switch between mobile operating systems and allowing users to download apps from other sources.
Despite Apple's intense lobbying to block the bill, people familiar with the discussions said its scope was deliberately narrowed to avoid delays in implementing the new rules, which are expected to come into effect late next year if parliament passes the bill.
The law will allow Japanese regulators to impose huge fines on companies, which can amount to up to 20 percent of domestic annual revenue, if they are found guilty of non-compliance. For repeated violations within 10 years, the fine can be increased to 30 percent of annual turnover.
Google said it has been "actively engaged" with the government to explain its practices, adding that "we will continue to work with the government and industry stakeholders throughout this process.
The move in Tokyo comes as South Korean officials are set to pass sweeping legislation to regulate online platforms, targeting e-commerce players, streaming services, and social media providers. In Australia, observers are pushing to expand the online regulatory regime to include areas such as digital payments.
In South Korea, regulators are trying to enforce a 2021 telecommunications law designed to affect Apple and Google's control over in-app payments by forcing the US tech giants to lower transaction fees and offer third-party payment options.
South Korean officials also intend to introduce broader legislation, which, like the EU's DMA, should identify dominant online platforms that will be subject to stricter scrutiny.
Australia has also been a pioneer in technology regulation, introducing legislation to combat multinational tax evasion, online security, and measures that force large digital companies to pay media companies to support the news industry.
In recent months, Canberra has expanded regulatory oversight of digital payments and enforced existing measures that are being resisted by tech companies. As part of these efforts, the government will introduce legislation this year that will impose mandatory obligations on social media companies, banks and telecommunications companies to fight fraud, the publication points out.
Among the proposals in the country, it is noted, is also the verification of social media companies on their platforms. Another area under consideration is digital payments, where banks are regulated but companies such as Apple and Google, which offer similar services, are not.
Representatives of the tech industry said that the spread of regulatory control from Europe and the United States to Asia's largest markets is creating more serious problems for the world's largest tech companies.
In the EU, legislation has forced Apple to change major parts of its closed mobile operating system, such as allowing users to download apps from other sources for the first time and changing the structure of fees charged to developers. In the US, the iPhone maker has been hit by a major antitrust case alleging that the Silicon Valley giant is using its power in the smartphone sector to suppress competitors and limit consumer choice.
Although regulators around the world have been given broader powers to enforce compliance, some industry players remain skeptical that the rules being introduced globally will have the desired effect of opening up more competition in the digital market, the publication points out.
