S.Korean trade watchdog alleges Google abused its position in Android app store

South Korea's antitrust regulator alleged on Wednesday that Alphabet's Google abused its dominant position in the Android app marketplace to hinder competition and will recommend corrective measures and a financial penalty.



The Korea Fair Trade Commission's (KFTC) Market Surveillance Bureau found Google's alleged abuse of market dominance in the Android app marketplace affected 14.16 trillion won in revenue, the bureau said in a media briefing where it released its examiner's report on the matter.



From July 2019 to March 2026, Google's Games/Google Velocity Program, which it internally called "Project Hug", offered domestic and overseas game developers financial support for using Google services such as Cloud, Ads and YouTube, provided that they launched games on Google's app store on terms at least as favourable as rival app marketplaces, the report said.



The contracts were also structured so that Google's financial support increased progressively as developers generated more revenue through Google Play, creating stronger incentives to prioritise Google's marketplace.