Hausfeld Partner Christopher L. Lebsock Addresses the National Assembly of the Republic of Korea on Global Antitrust Enforcement in Big Tech

Hausfeld Partner Christopher L. Lebsock Addresses the National Assembly of the Republic of Korea on Global Antitrust Enforcement in Big Tech

On September 24, Hausfeld Partner Christopher L. Lebsock participated in a hearing in the National Assembly of the Republic of Korea (“South Korea”). The purpose of the hearing was to air concerns about allegedly anticompetitive activity within the Google and Apple app stores, and the effects this conduct has on content creators, consumers, and competition.

The hearing, titled "Google's In-App Payment Damage and Our Response," was led by National Assembly Member Choi Su-jin of the People Power Party (Proportional) and held in collaboration with the Federation of Korean Industries Forum. Panelists included representatives from the Korea Game Consumers Association, the Korea Mobile Game Association, the Ministry of Science and ICT, the Korea Communications Commission, the Financial Justice Coalition, as well as esteemed Korean antitrust professionals and attorneys.

In 2021, South Korea’s National Assembly passed the so-called “Anti-Google law,” intended to prevent Google and Apple from forcing developers to use their in-app billing systems for apps within their app stores. This marked the first instance globally of a government intervening to stop Google and Apple from requiring the use of their own payment systems for in-app purchases.

Despite the good intentions of this law, Google and Apple have been able to avoid competition with third party payment providers. To comply with South Korea’s law, Google and Apple have allowed third-party payments to occur, but both companies maintain a high commission fee, even for those content providers that would prefer to use outside vendors to process payments for them. As a result, third-party payment providers have been unable to secure a foothold in the market because it is not economical for content providers to use third party payment services while simultaneously paying substantial commissions to Apple and Google. The hearing focused on these issues and potential remedies, including the enactment of anti-retaliation provisions in Korea’s antitrust laws that would provide comfort to private parties bringing good faith antitrust lawsuits designed to stop this anticompetitive conduct from continuing.

At the meeting, Chris presented an update on various global antitrust litigation claims and regulatory actions against Google and Apple, many of which have been initiated by Hausfeld. He discussed the central premise of these lawsuits, which argue that the companies are abusing their market power to set app commissions at an anticompetitive and inflated rate.

Hausfeld is a recognized leader in antitrust litigation, having successfully resolved claims against major companies in the Big Tech industry, including Apple and Google.

Chris’ testimony was covered by the major Korean newspapers:

To read Chris' testimony before the Korean National Assembly, click here. 

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