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| ▲ Google has decided to enforce a plan next year to apply a 30% fee to the payment amount for all apps and content sold in its app market (Photo = Yonhap News). |
Google announced on the 29th that applications that provide in-app payment (IAP) for digital goods among applications distributed through Google Play must use the Google Play payment system.
Newly registered applications on Google Play will be required to apply in-app payment on Google Play from January 20 of next year and from October of next year for existing applications. This means that a 30% fee applies to virtually all quantities.
In-app payments are currently required for games only, and other apps like music and webtoons allow some of their own payment methods, but other methods will be excluded next year.
Google explained: “This makes it possible to continue investing in the platform and through this business model Google Play and the developers are looking for shared growth.”
However, the national mobile content industry is concerned and says: “The global giant platform will eventually force the ‘application toll’.”
Previously, Apple has already forced in-app payments for all apps, taking 30% of their sales as commission.
Google’s policy change is the same as Apple’s, but the reason Google’s move has rebelled is because Google’s share of the domestic mobile content market is much higher.
According to the Korea Mobile Industry Association, the Google Play payment amount in Korea last year was KRW 5,999.6 billion. This is a figure that reaches 63.4% of the market share.
The remaining market share is Apple, which accounts for 25%, and One Store, a local application market, accounts for about 10%.
The Internet Enterprise Association and the Korea Startup Forum, a startup organization, chaired by Naver and Kakao, reported to the Korea Communications Commission last month, saying, “Please review the mandatory payment law in the app of Google”.
Accordingly, Korea Communications Commissioner Han Sang-hyuk attended the National Assembly on the 2nd of this month and replied: “According to the Telecommunications Business Law, it is considered an ‘act of improper imposition of conditions. or unreasonable or discriminatory restrictions’ “.
Chairman Han also said, “Apple had the ability to select from the beginning of the service, but there is a difference that Google applies it after securing market power.”
Experts predicted that in the end, consumers will be the victims.
This is because if in-app payment and 30% commission are applied, content companies are very likely to reflect the commission burden on consumer prices.
This has proven to be a higher content price at Apple than at Google.
A content industry official said: “If the price goes up, consumers will only leave the top apps that are hard to delete like Naver and Kakao and delete the rest,” raising concerns that “the ‘rich, rich, poor and industrial poor ‘will become severe.’
Economist Moon Seong-bae, a professor at Kookmin University, said at a recent discussion meeting: “Because Google and Apple take all consumer purchasing information, they may launch similar applications or services to restrict entry to the potential developer market. ” I can have it.”
Some voices worry that once the regulatory blade of the authorities turns to Google, regulation will one day return to the national platform.
An IT company official said: “I think it is better to discuss what should be received from Google in exchange for fees, rather than against Google.”
However, there are also observations that the position of Google and the national authorities and the industry will be drastically mixed, so that, eventually, several years of legal battle will be inevitable.
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