Japan to seek up to 20% fine for monopolistic practices by Apple
Japan is poised to dramatically increase the penalties for tech giants accused of monopolistic practices like Apple.
New Japanese laws could slap Apple with up to 20% sales penalty
In an extensive global effort to limit the power of major technology companies, the Japanese government plans to revise its antitrust regulations. The strategy could lead to fines for anti-competitive activities such as unfairly restricting access to app markets, potentially increasing to 20% of pertinent sales.
Similar actions have been undertaken in other regions, including the European Union.
Japan's new proposal amplifies the current penalties, which cap 6% of sales, signaling the country's commitment to enforcing competitive practices in the digital economy. Its adjustment aligns with actions seen in other regions, including the European Union, according to Nikkei Asia.
The backdrop of Japan's regulatory shift is a series of international debates and legal challenges focusing on the business practices of major tech companies. Apple, in particular, has been at the center of these discussions.
Japan made its intentions known to impose fines on Apple in December. The purpose is to ensure that companies like Apple and Google don't favor their services or products unfairly.
Similar to the EU, the forthcoming Japanese regulations, mobile platform operators must permit alternatives to their app stores and payment systems, facilitating a more open digital market. The change is designed to dismantle the barriers favoring incumbent platforms over smaller developers and competitors.
For those who persist in anti-competitive conduct, the fines could escalate to a staggering 30% of sales. This underscores the severity of the new policy and its determination to combat continuous anti-competitive behavior.
Japan's proposal might catalyze further regulatory reforms worldwide as countries reassess their approaches to digital market monopolies. The Fair Trade Commission plans to provide a comprehensive draft of the proposal to legislative groups, including the economy and industry unit of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party.
The commission intends to introduce the bill to parliament within a few weeks.
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Comments
- leave the Japanese smartphone market entirely,
- remove its own app store (and everyone's app store) from the Japanese smartphone market, or
- allow (or require) Android as the OS for iPhone users in the Japanese market. No more iOS on iPhones in Japan.
I favour option three.Every nation is now wanting a piece of the Apple. Looks like Apple’s legal department is going to be working overtime.
I think Apple needs to launch a large scale PR offensive to take the high ground away from government arguments. I know Apple historically has avoided this but after the battery-gate class action, the courts don’t have the technological prowess to sort through these issues.
I've lived in Japan 30 years and have seen the stupidity first hand. Every time they raise the consumption tax, things only get worse. New regulations make products more expensive and less popular as a result. Tax and spend is the norm here. There are many good things about Japan, but most of that stems from the way common people think and act, not policies by the elected leadership.
Right now, the Japanese consumer is dealing with a super weak Yen along the lines of US$1 to ¥154, which makes things more expensive, and all companies which import (and there are many) must pay much more for their imported goods, passing that along to the consumer. (FYI, the ideal rate is about $1 to ¥110.) We therefore need a stronger Yen than now, not governmental intervention about silly app stores! This is sheer madness. It's as crazy as the government demanding companies raise salaries, when they are doing all they can do right now just to stay afloat! Sadly, populations like Japan remain silent and just allow their government to do as they like. This is nothing exclusive to Japan, of course. But since I live in Japan, what goes on here matters to me.
Leave easy targets like big tech alone and focus on the most pressing matters that affect most people. App store policies and who's a "monopoly" today don't matter a hill of beans!
None of this is being done for smaller developers. They weren't the ones with the budgets for intensive lobbying.
As for "EV is a scam". It is less than half the climate impact and will be reduced further as we move towards green power and batteries using other materials.
https://www.iea.org/data-and-statistics/charts/comparative-life-cycle-greenhouse-gas-emissions-of-a-mid-size-bev-and-ice-vehicle
And could we please stop these "Apple shouldn't sell to regions with pending antitrust investigations". US, UK, EU, Japan, Australia, Brazil, India,... Apple is fighting across the globe.
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