Australian Federal Court Rules Apple and Google Engaged in Anti-Competitive App Store Conduct

Australia's Federal Court ruled Tuesday that Apple and Google violated competition law through anti-competitive app store practices. Judge Jonathan Beach found both companies breached section 46 of the Competition and Consumer Act by misusing market power to reduce competition.

The decision covers class actions representing 15 million consumers and 150,000 developers seeking compensation for inflated prices from 2017-2022, plus separate Epic Games cases. Apple's exclusive iOS App Store and mandatory payment system, along with Google's Play Store billing requirements, were ruled anti-competitive despite security justifications. Compensation amounts will be determined at subsequent hearings, with estimates reaching hundreds of millions of dollars.

Re:

[sabbede]

Nope, just the number of lethal animal species. Found in any given acre.

Inspiring!

[TwistedGreen]

This is a true David and Goliath story. It's so inspiring to see. I can't wait for their lawyers' winnings to trickle down to the regular people.

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[Sebby]

I can't wait for their lawyers' winnings to trickle down to the regular people.

Trickle down awards/settlements.

Walled Garden

[StormReaver]

This is potentially great news. The best possible outcome is the destruction of the walled program prison created by Apple and Google.

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[Anonymous Coward]

This is potentially great news. The best possible outcome is the destruction of the walled program prison created by Apple and Google.

Yes, make it a crime to ever create anything, all because without a law against you buying things you don't want, you're just not capable of not buying things you don't want.

People who can't control their own actions are dangerous and oh so obviously destructive to society.
Learn some self control.

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[registrations_suck]

It's not a prison when you choose to be there.

When you choose to be there, it's an all-inclusive resort.

Only one solution makes sense.

[sabbede]

And that solution is for Google to allow iTunes on Android, and for Apple to allow Google Play on iPhones.

Same binaries, same storefronts, different hardware. That should satisfy the regulators, right?

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[test321]

One of the the plaintiffs is Epic Games and they say Apple arbitrarily rejects its games and both Apple and Google force they own payment systems through restrictive contracts. Your solution creates a duopoly on each platform, but does not solve the case of Epic, and does not solve the case of other publishers who would also want to do direct distribution.

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[sabbede]

I don't care about the plaintiffs, they're dicks. I care about annoying the regulators, who are also dicks.

That's what every store does

[nospam007]

They don't like competition.

"Security justifications" my a**e

[pendolino]

Can this "despite security justifications" nonsense die already? Will anyone clue them in?

The reason iOS and Android suffer much less from security issues is nothing to with the app stores and everything to do with the apps-share-nothing permissions.