Company under fire for app commissions, barring outside stores.
China's antitrust regulator is preparing for a possible investigation into Apple's policies and App Store fees, Bloomberg News reported on Wednesday, citing people familiar with the matter.
The State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR) is examining Apple’s policies, which include taking a cut of as much as 30% on in-app spending and barring external payment services and stores, people familiar with the matter said.
Chinese regulators have been in discussions with Apple executives and app developers since last year, as per the report.
The US firm has argued that its App Store is the safest way for users to access applications on its devices, and that the fees it charges helps ensure quality.
The sources note that SAMR will not initiate a formal investigation into Apple if negotiations with the company go well. However, the regulator will resort to this measure if the company resists the changes, they say.
More broadly, Beijing has wielded its regulatory powers against both domestic and foreign technology companies, notes Bloomberg. Regulators forced changes on Tencent and Alibaba Group after they came to dominate the country’s tech sector. They also opened a probe into Nvidia in December over suspicions that the US chipmaker broke anti-monopoly laws around a 2020 deal.
Earlier this week, just after new U.S. tariffs on Chinese goods went into effect, Chinese authorities announced measures against U.S. businesses including Google, farm equipment makers and the owner of fashion brand Calvin Klein.
The regulator said on Tuesday that Google was suspected of violating the country's anti-monopoly law. It did not provide further details on the investigation or on what it alleged Google had done to breach the law.
Google is believed to be suspected of violating China's anti-monopoly laws, but SAMR did not provide additional details regarding the reasons for the investigation.
According to Chinese experts, the investigation against Google may be related to the dominance of Google's Android operating system and Google’s imposing restrictions and constraints on Chinese mobile phone manufacturers in terms of technology and business.
