UK drops App Store investigation, says it has better things to do

AppleInsiderAppleInsider
Posted:
in General Discussion

After three years and, significantly, a change in government, the UK's competition regulator has closed its App Store investigation before reaching a conclusion.

UK Parliament
UK Parliament



The UK's Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) first announced the investigation in 2021, saying that it followed an unspecified number of complaints sent to it. At the time, the regulator said that the complaints "warrant careful scrutiny."

According to the UK government's own documentation, the investigation opened on March 3, 2021, and an initial information-gathering process ran until February 2022. Then in March 2022, the CMA decided it had sufficient grounds to proceed, and it had conducted what it described as analysis and review.

Now, however, the investigation has been dropped. A statement from the CMA says it has "closed its investigation... on the grounds that it no longer constitutes an administrative priority for the CMA."

"For the avoidance of doubt," it continues, "this does not constitute a decision by the CMA as to whether the Chapter II prohibition of the Competition Act (the 'Chapter II prohibition') is being or has been infringed."

The CMA's statement leaves open the possibility it could be reopened at some point. It also notes that it has now gained further powers under the UK's new Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act (DMCC) 2024.

That new DMCC act will see the CMA designating some firm as having Strategic Market Status in a digital activity. The CMA can then set requirements for such companies.

Part of the CMA's decision to drop the investigation will be because the DMCC received royal assent in May 2024 and will be enacted presently. But there is also that the UK's government has just changed.

Prior to the change, the previous Tory government abandoned some plans and rushed others through, such as its Digital Markets Act. Since the change, the new Labour government has been reappraising where to concentrate its resources.



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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 13
    Cesar Battistini MazieroCesar Battistini Maziero Posts: 383member
    There's more money to take somewhere else I guess.

    Governments being governments.
    ForumPostwatto_cobraBart Y
  • Reply 2 of 13
    nubusnubus Posts: 566member
    New left wing gov outsourcing the heavy liftning to EU before copying. Worked with NFC and USB-C.
    No surprise as UK has kept and copied more than 6,700 pieces of EU legislation.
    watto_cobra
  • Reply 3 of 13
    apple4thewinapple4thewin Posts: 199member
    Lol “too much work”
    watto_cobra
  • Reply 4 of 13
    foregoneconclusionforegoneconclusion Posts: 2,793member
    It's not a priority because it never made sense as a priority regardless of which party was in charge. Mobile computing always had inexpensive apps relative to desktop. Most consumers complain about having too much choice in the app stores, i.e., "Apple should curate their store and get rid of the junk apps". And companies like Epic and Spotify that complained about the commission rates in the App Store had very little to complain about in reality. Spotify had a plan for avoiding the commission entirely back when the App Store originally launched in 2008. Epic didn't make apps specifically for mobile at all. They just ported their most successful PC/console apps to mobile later on to maximize revenue. 
    edited August 21 williamlondonkillroyForumPostwatto_cobraBart Y
  • Reply 5 of 13
    jeffharrisjeffharris Posts: 821member
    The UK is suffering greatly from the travesty and sheer idiocy of Brexit. 
    Chasing Apple for isn’t worth the effort, apparently.
    williamlondonkillroywatto_cobradanoxBart Y
  • Reply 6 of 13
    freeassociate2freeassociate2 Posts: 205member
    I suspect that while the UK government’s tactics have changed, the game hasn’t, so to speak. They’ve stayed the stick, so now will come carrots.
    watto_cobra
  • Reply 7 of 13
    shrave10shrave10 Posts: 61member
    Maybe they wanted to protect their iPhones from Chinese and Russian app stores?  Smart move.
    watto_cobrawilliamlondon
  • Reply 8 of 13
    kaithefilmgeekkaithefilmgeek Posts: 14member
    nubus said:
    New left wing gov outsourcing the heavy liftning to EU before copying. Worked with NFC and USB-C.
    No surprise as UK has kept and copied more than 6,700 pieces of EU legislation.
    Left wing...lol....
    watto_cobradanoxwilliamlondonBart Y
  • Reply 9 of 13
    manwithnonamemanwithnoname Posts: 12member
    The UK is suffering greatly from the travesty and sheer idiocy of Brexit. 
    Chasing Apple for isn’t worth the effort, apparently.
    I notice how you seem to forget the artificial global shutdown of the world economy for a contrived virus! We in the UK are not suffering from Brexit but from not having leaders with vision, stamina, and balls like Trump. Stop whingeing about Brexit and maybe make Britain Great Again.
    williamlondon
  • Reply 10 of 13
    avon b7avon b7 Posts: 7,951member
    manwithnoname said:
    The UK is suffering greatly from the travesty and sheer idiocy of Brexit. 
    Chasing Apple for isn’t worth the effort, apparently.
    I notice how you seem to forget the artificial global shutdown of the world economy for a contrived virus! We in the UK are not suffering from Brexit but from not having leaders with vision, stamina, and balls like Trump. Stop whingeing about Brexit and maybe make Britain Great Again.
    Just had a lot of family over for holidays. All of them bar one voted in favour of Brexit. 

    They all now regret voting for it and admit Brexit has brought nothing but pain and loss. 
    danoxBart Y
  • Reply 11 of 13
    danoxdanox Posts: 3,223member
    nubus said:
    New left wing gov outsourcing the heavy liftning to EU before copying. Worked with NFC and USB-C.
    No surprise as UK has kept and copied more than 6,700 pieces of EU legislation.
    The right wing in the United States is no friend of Silicon Valley…..
    Bart Y
  • Reply 12 of 13
    danoxdanox Posts: 3,223member
    manwithnoname said:
    The UK is suffering greatly from the travesty and sheer idiocy of Brexit. 
    Chasing Apple for isn’t worth the effort, apparently.
    I notice how you seem to forget the artificial global shutdown of the world economy for a contrived virus! We in the UK are not suffering from Brexit but from not having leaders with vision, stamina, and balls like Trump. Stop whingeing about Brexit and maybe make Britain Great Again.
    A lifelong bad businessman, a convicted felon, a tax cheat, woman hater and a supporter of Putin is a great man? Your standards are low.
    muthuk_vanalingamMacProwilliamlondonBart Y
  • Reply 13 of 13
    MacProMacPro Posts: 19,807member
    danox said:
    manwithnoname said:
    The UK is suffering greatly from the travesty and sheer idiocy of Brexit. 
    Chasing Apple for isn’t worth the effort, apparently.
    I notice how you seem to forget the artificial global shutdown of the world economy for a contrived virus! We in the UK are not suffering from Brexit but from not having leaders with vision, stamina, and balls like Trump. Stop whingeing about Brexit and maybe make Britain Great Again.
    A lifelong bad businessman, a convicted felon, a tax cheat, woman hater and a supporter of Putin is a great man? Your standards are low.
    Agreed but that’s an insult to ‘low’.
    williamlondonBart Y
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