Britain is investigating Google and Apple’s mobile ecosystems

Google and Apple are having a bad day. The tech giants are facing a fresh investigation into their mobile ecosystems by the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) and mounting pressure to adopt a new app store initiative in India.

Let’s start with the probe that comes one day after the CMA named a former Amazon CEO as its interim chairman. The CMA is investigating whether Apple and Google’s mobile ecosystems should have strategic market status (SMS) and thus be subject to stricter regulation and directives to promote competition. However, they are not entirely clear about exactly what aspects are being investigated. This new name is derived from UK Digital Markets, Competition and Consumer (DMCC) Actwhich came into effect on January 1. Google is also subject to first SMS investigationlaunched earlier this month and focused on possible antitrust practices surrounding the company’s search services.

The CMA’s SMS investigations can last up to nine months, with both cases currently accepting comments on the investigation and possible interventions. The regulator is accepting applications around the joint investigation of Google and Apple until February 12.

Now to Apple and Google’s other headache. In India, the technology ministry is pushing Apple and Google to offer the state-backed GOV.in app store in their markets, Bloomberg reports. The Indian government also wants the app suite to be pre-installed on all mobile devices, available for third-party downloads, and not labeled with “untrusted source” warnings. He billed the pressure as a means to further spread public social services. These apps are currently available in the Apple and Google app stores, but as separate entities.

The initial request reportedly came up in a meeting last month, but at this point Google and Apple are unlikely to say yes. The Indian government is reportedly debating using mandates or taking legal action to force compliance. In 2021 Apple started offering a similar option for Russian users due to regulations.