Seoul (South Korea): South Korea has fined Alphabet’s Google and Apple a combined 63.7 billion won ($47.6 million) for abusing their dominance in the country’s app store market, accusing both companies of forcing developers onto their own payment systems and delaying app reviews.

The Korea Media and Communications Commission imposed a 42.9 billion won ($32 million) penalty on Google and a 20.8 billion won ($15.5 million) fine on Apple. It also ordered the technology giants to allow South Korean developers to use external payment links within their apps and to improve their review procedures.

The regulator said the companies had unfairly steered developers towards their in-app payment systems while blocking payments through external websites. Although third-party payment options were technically available, the companies charged developers a 26 per cent commission and withheld certain features available through their own systems, effectively compelling developers to rely on in-app payments.

The commission also found that Google and Apple had delayed app reviews without clearly explaining the reasons or indicating when the process would resume. It further accused Apple of charging South Korean developers higher commissions than developers in other markets between 2015 and January 2023.

Neither Google nor Apple immediately responded to requests for comment.

South Korea has long scrutinised the practices of foreign technology companies. In 2021, it became the first country to enforce legislation barring app store operators such as Google and Apple from requiring developers to use their own in-app payment systems.