South Korea Fines Google and Apple, Orders Payment Link-Outs

South Korea's Korea Media and Communications Commission (KMCC) fined Google KRW 42.9 billion and Apple KRW 20.81 billion on 28 October 2026, a combined KRW 63.71 billion (about USD 47.6 million), and ordered both companies to let app developers offer other ways to pay, including links to outside payment pages.

It is the first time the regulator has enforced the 2021 amendment to the Telecommunications Business Act that barred app store operators from forcing developers to use a specific payment method. The KMCC said both companies allowed only their own in-app billing or third-party billing built into the app, blocked external payment, and charged a 26% commission on third-party payments while offering fewer features, such as subscription management, than their own systems.

What the regulator found

The commission said Google restricted how developers could show prices for different payment methods, and Apple required developers who adopted third-party payment to submit a separate app. It found that both delayed app reviews without giving specific reasons or timelines. Apple was also found to have charged discriminatory commissions: from July 2015 to January 2023 it took 30% of the VAT-inclusive price from Korean developers, against 30% of the price excluding VAT from foreign developers.

The corrective orders require both companies to change policies that limit the choice of payment method and to fix their app-review procedures, and Apple to stop treating domestic and foreign developers differently. The KMCC first notified the companies of proposed fines of up to KRW 68 billion in October 2023, according to The Paypers; Chairperson Kim Jong-cheol said he hoped the decision would bring a real change in market structure that developers and users can feel.

Korea is missing from Apple's link-out list

Apple's documentation shows how far the Korean rules currently lag the order. Developers in South Korea can use one of four pre-approved payment providers, KCP, Inicis, Toss or NICE, inside a separate Korea-only version of the app, and pay Apple 26%. The country is one of 28 storefronts, with the 27 EU states, where Apple allows that. But it is not among the 30 storefronts, the EU states plus Iceland, Norway and Russia, where Apple lets apps link to a website to buy. In the United States, Apple's guidelines say no entitlement is needed for such links.

Google lists South Korea for user choice billing, under which Google's service fee is “reduced by 4%” when a developer's own billing is used. Under the new fees Google announced on 4 March 2026, which apply whether a purchase goes through Google Play Billing, alternative billing or an external web link, South Korea is scheduled for 31 December 2026, six months after the United States, the UK and the EEA.

What this does not show

The comparison covers only what the two stores document; it does not show how many Korean apps use third-party payment or what developers pay in practice once payment provider fees are added. Neither company's response was included in the KMCC release. HaiPay did not contact the KMCC, Google or Apple.

What to watch

How Apple and Google change their Korean terms to comply, and whether either challenges the decision.

Whether Apple adds South Korea to its link-out storefronts, and what commission it sets.

And how Google's new Korean fees compare when they take effect on 31 December 2026.

About HaiPay's local payment methods

HaiPay, which publishes this news section, offers local payment methods through one integration. For South Korea, its local payment page lists Kakao Pay, Naver Pay, Toss, PAYCO and Samsung Pay alongside Apple Pay, Google Pay, Visa, Mastercard and BC Card, and bank payments from NongHyup, Hana, Woori and Shinhan. HaiPay is not one of Apple's pre-approved payment providers for Korea. Learn more about HaiPay's local payment methods.