US Lawmaker: "Forcing In-App Payments is an Anticompetitive Act Exploiting Monopoly Power"

Internet Business Association Forum... 'The Direction of Global App Fairness (Mandatory In-App Payments)'
Keynote Speech by Regina Cobb, Chair of the Arizona House Appropriations Committee

[Asia Economy Reporter Eunmo Koo] As Google is set to enforce in-app payments in the second half of this year, criticism has emerged that the current app market platforms are in an anti-competitive situation where Google and Apple hold complete decision-making power by leveraging their monopolistic positions.

On the 8th, Lee Won-wook, Chairman of the National Assembly's Science, Technology, Information and Broadcasting Committee, and Cho Seung-rae, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea, jointly hosted an online international conference titled "The Direction of Global App Fairness (In-App Payment Enforcement)" together with the Korea Internet Corporations Association and the Northern Nevada International Center (NNIC).

Regina Cobb, Chair of the Appropriations Committee, Arizona House of Representatives, USA.

At the conference, Regina Cobb, Chair of the Appropriations Committee of the Arizona House of Representatives, delivered a keynote speech on "The Status and Prospects of In-App Payment Legislation in the United States," introducing the in-app payment enforcement prohibition bill 'HB2005' she proposed and raising critical voices against big tech companies such as Google and Apple.

In March, the Arizona House of Representatives, led by Representative Cobb, passed a bill that prohibits Google and Apple from forcing app developers to use only their own transaction methods (in-app payments). The bill stipulates that app developers located in Arizona cannot be penalized for using payment systems other than in-app payments.

However, the Arizona Senate did not even hold a vote on the bill, and it was eventually discarded. Representative Cobb stated, "When we tried to pass HB2005 in the state senate, opposition from Google and Apple was very strong," adding, "They hired many lobbyists to respond and exert pressure, resulting in the bill failing to pass the senate and being discarded."

The in-app payment enforcement prohibition bill proposed by Representative Cobb centers on allowing app developers to freely use third-party payment systems. In this case, developers can avoid paying app sales commissions (15-30%) to Apple and Google, benefiting the developers and enabling consumers to purchase app content at lower prices. Cobb's bill applies only to digital app distribution platforms with annual cumulative downloads exceeding one million.

Representative Cobb criticized, "Currently, if app developers add their own payment methods, they are expelled from the Play Store or App Store," adding, "This means that Apple and Google have complete decision-making power, which would not be valid in a typical contractual relationship."

She further added, "Apple and Google argue that they set commissions under contracts where they solely decide the fees, but negotiations occur between two parties, and such commission policies do not protect consumers."

Cho Seung-rae, Democratic Party Whip of the National Assembly Science, ICT, Broadcasting and Communications Committee.

Meanwhile, Representative Cho, who proposed a bill last year to prevent abuse of power by app market operators, emphasized the need for global solidarity on the in-app payment prohibition bill at the event. Representative Cho said, "There are no borders online, but regulations on companies are implemented by individual countries," adding, "There are various issues regarding global corporate regulation, including trade issues, tax matters, and delays in innovation, but it is time to establish international standards that transcend all these to regulate global companies."

He also added that related discussions should proceed beyond the state level to the federal level in the United States to establish such international standards. Representative Cho pointed out, "The U.S. Embassy in Korea is currently sending opinions to the National Assembly that such bills and related matters constitute unfair discriminatory regulations," adding, "If this issue continues to be handled at the state level, it will be difficult to resolve."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.