A Japanese government panel has drawn up a set of regulations to create an environment of healthy competition in the Japanese market and reduce the monopoly of two giants Apple and Google. According to the Japantimes report two companies dominating the smartphone operating system market will be obliged to allow their users to download apps by using services other than their own app stores.
Most of smartphones either use Android OS or Apple’s iOS. And this gives Apple and Google immense power to control how apps are installed and paid for on their devices. Japan’s government wants to crack down on it through this move in which it will create a list of what OS providers should abide by to stop them from favoring their own service and payment platforms over others. These crucial developments were made at the government’s headquarters for digital market competition, headed by Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno. The government will be submitting this legislation next year in the parliament.
On one side where Apple makes it impossible for users to download any app from third-party app providers, other side Android users can download it from it anywhere. Both of the companies’ OS ban third-party app providers from accepting payments from the app users through any payment platform other than Apple’s or Google’s.
Regulations will oblige Google and Apple to allow their users to download any app from a third-party app provider. Google has earlier been accused of harming competition by the US. Last year was also no good for Google as India’s competition regulator fined Google $ 161.9 million for anti-competition practices.
