The UK’s competition regulator, the CMA, has chosen not to prioritize opening the mobile ecosystem to alternative app stores in its recent roadmaps. This decision is a missed opportunity for introducing competition into a currently-monopolized market and unlocking economic growth and consumer choice.
Four years after concluding that the App Store and Google Play Store are parallel monopolies, the CMA has taken no action to allow competing stores. A free market requires multiple stores competing to offer consumers the best prices and services. Without competing stores, the state-sanctioned monopoly will extract all value from the market, harming creators and consumers.
The EU’s Digital Markets Act introduced competition through alternative stores in Europe, leading to the launch of stores like AltStore, Aptoide, and the Epic Games Store. However, the CMA has deprioritized store competition until 2026, a timeline that many see as too slow.
The regulator also made a vague announcement about allowing developers to steer customers to payment services outside of apps. However, without clear guidelines on restrictions and fees, it is unclear how this will benefit consumers.
This decision contrasts with other regions, where the Epic Games Store and Fortnite have been brought to market through alternative app stores. The CMA’s failure to act highlights the need for re-examination of its roadmap decisions to bring benefits of genuine app store competition to British consumers.
Source: https://www.epicgames.com/site/en-US/news/the-cma-s-roadmap-doesn-t-open-the-mobile-app-ecosystem-to-competition-in-the-uk