UK’s CMA Suspends Apple and Google App Stores Probes, Anticipates New Digital Laws

The United Kingdom’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has officially halted its ongoing investigations into Apple and Google’s app store practices as it awaits the implementation of new laws aimed at regulating digital markets. The decision comes as both tech giants continue to face global scrutiny over the dominance of their respective platforms, the Apple App Store and Google Play Store.

According to Reuters, critics have long accused Apple and Google of leveraging their platforms to impose unfair charges on app developers and restrict competition. These concerns led the CMA to conduct a comprehensive market study in 2022, which concluded that the two companies effectively hold a monopoly over app distribution in the UK. Following this study, the CMA launched investigations into both companies for suspected anticompetitive behavior.

However, per Reuters, the CMA announced on Wednesday that it has decided to drop these probes. The decision is largely in anticipation of the forthcoming Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act (DMCCA), which is expected to be enacted later this year. This new legislation is designed to address the very issues that the CMA has been investigating, providing the authority with broader powers to regulate digital markets.

Related: EU to Investigate Apple and Google’s Compliance with New Tech Rules

“Once the new pro-competition digital markets regime comes into force, we’ll be able to consider applying those new powers to concerns we have already identified through our existing work,” stated Will Hayter, Executive Director for Digital Markets at the CMA.

In response to the CMA’s decision, a Google spokesperson emphasized the flexibility and choice offered by its Android operating system, which they claim allows for multiple app stores, unlike other platforms. “We have engaged with the CMA over the course of many months during their investigation. As part of this, we made a number of significant commitments to further broaden the billing options available to developers through Google Play,” the spokesperson added.

Source: Reuters