New Delhi: Apple Inc.’s decision to allow third-party app stores to operate on iPhones and iPads in the European Union (EU) is likely to have a cascading impact on Indian app developers as well, industry experts said.
Even without a direct equivalent of the EU’s Digital Markets Act (DMA), the move will set precedent, and push Apple to initiate similar measures in other markets, they added.
On 14 December, Bloomberg reported that Apple plans to change a long-standing policy of not allowing app downloads on iOS from third-party stores, following the EU’s new competition regulation, which mandates an open consumer market where users will have a choice in terms of the services they wish to use. The law will come into effect from March 2024, and Apple is reportedly tweaking its policy to comply with the DMA.
Ajay Data, secretary general, Alliance of Digital India Foundation (ADIF), said Android allowing the use of third-party marketplaces should serve as an example.
“The moment such a move is adopted in a market, India will push to adopt a similar policy. The industry will also immediately make a push to adopt similar policy for the Indian market as well, and it will be a matter of time before Apple is forced to adhere to it. Else, it will be a single Competition Commission of India (CCI) directive away,” he said.
Google’s Android platform allows users to download apps from third-party app stores or from a developer website directly, such as those of original equipment manufacturers Xiaomi or Samsung. The Centre also has a marketplace, mSeva, which does not charge commissions from developers.
In May, ADIF filed a complaint with CCI against Apple for allegedly misusing market dominance and charging 30% commissions on the App Store which is deemed very high by developers. While a verdict is expected in the coming weeks, experts said Apple may manage to escape heavy penalties, unlike rival Google, by citing iOS as a non-licensable (and thus proprietary) operating system.
While India does not have a equivalent regulation such as the DMA to take on Big Tech, lawyers said the involvement of CCI could be key to enforcing rules on the likes of Apple. “While India’s proposed Digital India Act, or Competition (Amendment) Bill, 2022, do not hold direct parallels to the EU DMA to regulate BigTech, we have seen the CCI directing remedies to achieve the same result in specific cases against Big Tech. Apple’s EU move may set guiding principles for more such verdicts, even in the absence of a specific law,” said Anisha Chand, partner, competition and antitrust practice at law firm Khaitan & Co..
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