SEOUL Reuters - South Korea's telecommunications regulator said it plans to launch an investigation into app store operators such as Apple, Alphabet's Google and One Store over suspected violations of in-app payment law.
In the last year, South Korea passed the law, an amendment to the Telecommunications Business Act, which bans major app store operators such as Google and Apple from forcing software developers to use their payment systems.
The rules have been in effect since March.
The Korea Communications Commissions said in a statement that it had conducted an inspection since May 17 to determine whether Google, Apple, and One Store had violated the revised Telecommunications Business Act. It determined that all three app operators might have been in violation of the rules.
When contacted by Reuters, Google, Apple and One Store were not immediately available for comment.
The KCC plans to take strict measures such as correction orders or fines if the probe finds barred activities.
Barred acts include app market operators delaying the review of mobile content, or refusing, delaying, restricting, deleting or blocking the registration, renewal or inspection of mobile content that uses third-party payment methods.
The rules say that potential fines for infractions will go as high as 2% of the average annual revenue from related business practices.