Apple Given 'Strategic Market Status' by UK Regulator, Clearing Path for New App Store Rules

The UK's Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has officially designated Apple with 'strategic market status' (SMS) for its mobile platform, a significant move under the country's new digital markets competition regime. The decision, announced today, also applies to Google for its rival mobile ecosystem.

The CMA confirmed its proposed decisions from July, finding that both Apple and Google have 'substantial, entrenched market power' and a 'position of strategic significance' in their mobile platforms, which include operating systems, app distribution, browsers, and browser engines. The SMS designation is not a finding of wrongdoing, but it allows the CMA to consider and impose 'proportionate, targeted interventions' to improve competition.

The authority's decision highlights several key market dynamics. It noted that most mobile users in the UK use either Apple's or Google's platform and are unlikely to switch between them. As a result, businesses must develop content for both platforms to reach the entire market. The CMA also concluded that ongoing technological developments, including AI, are unlikely to diminish Apple's or Google's market power within the five-year designation period.


The move places the UK alongside several other jurisdictions that have recently increased regulatory scrutiny of Apple's App Store and mobile ecosystem. In the European Union, Apple has been in a protracted battle over the Digital Markets Act, recently lashing out at the rules which it called a 'hugely onerous' burden, while probes and legal challenges are also underway in the U.S., Japan, and Colombia.

"Apple and Google's mobile platforms are used by thousands of businesses right across the economy to market and sell products and services to millions of customers, but the platforms' rules may be limiting innovation and competition," said Will Hayter, Executive Director for Digital Markets at the CMA. "Having taken into account the feedback received since our proposed decision, we have today designated Apple and Google's mobile platforms with strategic market status."

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