by Tim Hardwick
The UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) on Wednesday issued its final verdict on the state of the country’s mobile browser market, and the regulator has concluded that Apple’s policies are largely responsible for hampering competition and innovation.
The CMA’s independent inquiry group’s investigation found that Apple’s requirement for all iOS browsers to use its WebKit engine is stifling competition, and effectively prevents rival browsers from introducing unique features or optimizations on iPhones and iPads, regardless of their capabilities on other platforms.
The full report outlines several problematic Apple practices beyond the WebKit requirement, including giving Safari preferential access to iOS features compared to competing browsers, imposing limitations on in-app browsing, and prominently displaying Safari as the pre-installed default browser on all iPhones.
Google also came under scrutiny for pre-installing Chrome on Android devices, but the investigation found that Apple’s restrictions were more fundamental to market competition. The CMA also flagged the lucrative arrangement where Google pays Apple billions annually to remain the default search engine on iOS devices, noting this deal “significantly reduces their financial incentives to compete.”
Both companies have made some concessions since the CMA published its preliminary findings last November. The report acknowledges these improvements have “addressed some, but not all, of the concerns relating to choice architecture,” specifically mentioning Apple’s December software update that modified how users can change default browsers.
However, to address the remaining issues, the regulator proposed several potential remedies including forcing Apple to allow alternative browser engines on iOS, implementing browser choice screens during device setup (similar to the one found in the EU), and restricting the revenue-sharing search deal between Apple and Google.
These recommendations aren’t immediately enforceable, as the CMA is first proceeding with separate investigations to determine whether Apple and Google should be designated with “strategic market status” (SMS) under the UK’s Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act. The designation is expected to be decided later this year, and would give the CMA authority to impose stricter regulations on the companies.
If granted SMS designation, Apple and Google could face legally binding conduct requirements and risk substantial penalties — up to 10% of their annual global turnover — for violations.
The cloud gaming portion of the investigation, which had previously raised concerns about Apple’s App Store restrictions, concluded that “no further action is necessary” following policy changes Apple made during the course of the investigation.
The UK report follows similar scrutiny from other global regulators, including the European Commission and the United States Department of Justice, which are also examining mobile browser competition.
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