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January 22, 2025 | 11:58 am
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Indonesia’s Business Competition Supervisory Commission (KPPU) has found Google LLC guilty of monopolistic practices related to the use of Google Play Billing in its app store.
“We declare that the reported party has been legally and convincingly proven to have violated Article 17 of Law Number 5 of 1999,” said Hilman Pujana, Chair of the KPPU Commission Panel, during the verdict reading on Tuesday, January 21, 2025.
The Panel determined that Google's policy restricting developers from using alternative payment methods within their apps constitutes a violation of competition law.
Furthermore, the Panel found Google in violation of Article 25 paragraph 1 b, which prohibits the abuse of a dominant market position to restrict market development and technological advancement.
As a result, the KPPU imposed a fine of Rp202.5 billion on Google. "This fine must be deposited into the state treasury,” Hilman emphasized.
The KPPU also ordered Google to cease its mandatory use of Google Play Billing and to allow developers to participate in the "user choice billing" program. The program is designed to provide an incentive to reduce service fees by at least 5 percent for a period of one year since the KPPU decision is final or has permanent legal force.
The Commission Panel instructed Google to submit a bank guarantee of 20% of the fine to the commission within 14 days of receiving the decision if they intend to appeal. Hilman said the decision must be implemented within 30 days of becoming final. “Failure to pay the fine on time will result in a late fee of 2% per month.”
Google has two weeks from receiving the decision to file an objection with the commercial court. However, if Google fails to object within this timeframe, the KPPU decision will be considered final and legally binding. Notably, Google was not present during the verdict reading.
The KPPU Commission Panel found Google guilty of forcing developers to use Google Play Billing (GPB) for in-app purchases on the Google Play Store. Google's policy prohibits developers from using alternative payment methods within their apps.
The Google Play Billing System policy, implemented on June 1, 2022, was deemed detrimental to Indonesian app developers while benefiting Google. The Commission Council concluded that this policy stifles competition in the payment service provider market, limiting consumer choice and creating an unfair playing field.
Developers cannot easily circumvent this policy as Google can impose severe sanctions, such as removing the app from the Google Play Store or denying app updates.
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