This move comes after the company published its Mobile Ecosystem Market Study in June, which concluded that the two firms “have an effective duopoly… that allows them to exercise a stranglehold over operating systems, app stores, and web browsers on mobile devices.”
According to the CMA, nearly all (97%) of UK mobile web browsing occurred on Safari, Chrome, or Firefox browsers last year.
It claimed that the feedback it received on its report showed that there was widespread interest in learning more about the companies’ monopoly on mobile browsers and Apple’s regulation of cloud gaming through the App Store.
For instance, the iOS browser is the only way to access Xbox Cloud Gaming at the moment, while the Xbox Game Pass app supports cloud gaming on Android devices.
The CMA stated that “millions of people in the UK play computer games,” making the industry worth billions of pounds. Despite the fact that there are already over 800,000 users of cloud gaming services in the UK, growth in this industry could be stunted if restrictions on their distribution on mobile devices are allowed to remain in place.
It claimed that many businesses, including browser makers, web designers, and cloud gaming service providers, were worried that Apple’s and Google’s market dominance was hurting their bottom lines, stifling innovation, and driving up costs.
Sarah Cardell, interim chief executive of the CMA, stated, “We want to make sure that UK consumers get the best new mobile data services and that UK developers can invest in innovative new apps.”
Businesses and web developers in the UK have complained to us that they are being stifled by regulations imposed by Apple and Google. To find out if the worries we’ve heard are grounded, and if so, to figure out what can be done to boost competition and innovation in these industries.
To date, the CMA has investigated Microsoft’s proposed $68.7 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard, and its typical market investigation is completed within 18 months.
The CMA has the authority to impose its own remedies on companies if it determines that market characteristics have a deleterious effect on competition. These remedies may include compelling companies to sell off divisions of their operations.
