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South Korea: regulation of app marketplaces

This dossier follows South Korean penalties and requirements concerning payments and app review in mobile application marketplaces.

Last updated : 1 key moments
Google Play booth at the 2017 Taipei Game Show.
Google Play booth in Taipei, January 2017. Archive photograph; it does not show the Korean regulator’s decision. — Solomon203 / Wikimedia Commons — CC BY-SA 4.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/ ; 23 janvier 2017, sans modification.

Where things stand

On 28 October 2026, the regulator approved fines of 42.9 billion won for Google and 20.81 billion won for Apple, alongside corrective orders.

Confirmed

Seoul fines Google and Apple a combined 63.71 billion won

South Korea’s media and telecommunications regulator approved penalties against Google and Apple on 28 October 2026 over their app marketplace practices. The fines amount to 42.9 billion won and 20.81 billion won respectively.

Google Play booth at the 2017 Taipei Game Show.
Google Play booth in Taipei, January 2017. Archive photograph; it does not show the Korean regulator’s decision. — Solomon203 / Wikimedia Commons — CC BY-SA 4.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/ ; 23 janvier 2017, sans modification.

The decision addresses restrictions on payment choices and unjustified delays in app reviews. According to the regulator, conditions imposed on developers made competing payment options difficult to use.

The authority cited a 26% commission on third-party payments, in addition to costs borne by developers. It also faulted Apple for treating local developers differently when calculating certain commissions.

Corrective orders accompany the fines, requiring the companies to stop the practices concerned and improve their procedures. These are regulatory requirements; their effects on fees actually paid remain to be observed.

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