One of the most important complaints from developers worldwide is that developers don’t have enough payment options to urge paid using the Google or Apple platforms. Both Google and Apple charge significant sums to several developers, which significantly cuts into the profits of the businesses working to develop the games and apps. However, the stranglehold Google and Apple wear commissions from software developers could also end in South Korea.
The South Korean parliament legislation and judiciary committee is predicted to approve an amendment today to the country’s Telecommunications Business Act. The amendment has been nicknamed the “Anti-Google law” and aims directly at operating app stores within the country, including Google and Apple. The bill still needs final approval, which final vote will happen tomorrow.
Both Google and Apple currently use systems that developers despise that force them to use proprietary payment systems in their respective app stores, which will take the maximum amount as 30 percent of their earnings on some purchases. South Korean lawmakers say that developers will need to tend options to use other independent payment systems if the bill is passed into law.
Developers would flock to alternative payment systems that take less of their profits. For example, both Google and Apple earn massive sums of cash in South Korea and worldwide from their respective stores. Reports indicate Google Play earned over $5 billion for Google in South Korea during 2019.
Paying commission fees related to the Apple App Store or Google Play is usually among the most important expenses developers face in bringing apps to plug. Both Apple and Google have fought vigorously to stop any alternative payment options from being available for developers. For instance, the developers of the favored game Fortnite and Apple fought in court over massive amounts of cash paid in commissions thanks to Apple’s commission payment scheme.
