Kakao, Should 'Web Payment Outlink' Be Removed?

[Asia Economy Reporter Kang Nahum] As Kakao and Google, who have been in conflict over the 'mandatory in-app payment system,' have agreed to resolve the issue amicably, attention is focused on whether Kakao will withdraw its web payment outlink policy.

According to industry sources on the 10th, Kakao and Google mutually agreed to make efforts to resolve the current situation amicably during a joint meeting held on the 7th under the auspices of the Korea Communications Commission.

Previously, Kakao requested a review from Google for the KakaoTalk update, but Google rejected the review of the latest version of the KakaoTalk app. This was a retaliatory measure by Google against Kakao for defying Google's mandatory in-app payment policy and maintaining a ‘web payment’ outlink that allowed some paid content (KakaoTalk emoticons) to be purchased at a lower price.

As updates became impossible through Google Play, Kakao began distributing the installation file (APK) of the KakaoTalk Android version directly as a temporary measure. In response, Google offered content discounts to users who had not yet updated, encouraging them to think that maintaining an older version of KakaoTalk was advantageous, deepening the conflict between the two sides.

Although the recent meeting found a clue to resolving the conflict, it remains uncertain whether Kakao will remove the outlink from the app. Kakao is reported to decide on deletion after internal review.

Industry insiders largely predict that Kakao will not easily withdraw its outlink maintenance policy. Google currently allows exceptions to in-app payments for some overseas apps such as Netflix and Tinder, and it is interpreted that Kakao, boasting 47 million monthly active users, will not easily back down in order to obtain the same status.

An industry official said, "It would be a considerable burden for Google to continue rejecting update reviews for KakaoTalk, the ‘national app’ used by virtually the entire population," but added, "However, since Google has not yet allowed exceptions for domestic apps and could face backlash from other app developers, we need to watch Google's future actions closely."

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