{
  "id": 16877944,
  "title": "Korea fines Google, Apple combined $47.6 mil. over in-app payment practices",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/28/korea-fines-google-apple-combined-47-6-mil-over-in-app-payment-16877944",
  "topic": "tech",
  "section": "Tech",
  "published": "2026-10-28T09:32:03.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The Korea Times",
    "slug": "the-korea-times",
    "url": "https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/business/companies/20261028/korea-fines-google-apple-combined-476-mil-over-in-app-payment-practices"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "On Wednesday, the Korean government imposed a combined fine of 63.7 billion won, equivalent to $47.6 million, on tech giants Google and Apple for their questionable in-app payment practices. This marks the first enforcement of the new law passed in 2021, which prohibits such practices. During a plenary session, the Korea Media and Communications Commission (KMCC) levied fines of 42.9 billion won against Google and 20.81 billion won against Apple, along with corrective orders. The commission alleged that the U.S. tech behemoths violated the Telecommunications Business Act, which prevents app market operators from forcing developers to exclusively use particular payment methods. Despite allowing third-party payments, Google and Apple imposed a 26 percent commission and unreasonable conditions on these options, effectively compelling developers to use their in-house systems. The commission also pointed out that the two companies delayed app reviews by not providing explicit reasons for the delays or clear responses to developers.",
  "summary": "The Korean government on Wednesday slapped Google and Apple with a combined 63.7 billion won ($47.6 million) in fines for practices including forcing app developers to use their in-app payment systems, marking the first enforcement of the relevant provisions since Korea amended its law in 2021 to prohibit such practices. During a plenary session, the Korea Media and Communications Commission…",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 4,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Yonhap News",
        "title": "(URGENT) Communications watchdog fines Google, Apple over in-app payment policies",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/28/urgent-communications-watchdog-fines-google-apple-over-in-app-payment",
        "published": "2026-10-28T07:33:41.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "Channel News Asia",
        "title": "South Korea media commission fines Google and Apple over app payment systems",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/28/south-korea-media-commission-fines-google-and-apple-over-app-payment",
        "published": "2026-10-28T10:46:59.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "AppleInsider",
        "title": "South Korea becomes the latest to fine Apple and Google millions over their App Stores",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/28/south-korea-becomes-the-latest-to-fine-apple-and-google-millions-over",
        "published": "2026-10-28T12:35:40.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}