Japan Law Opening Phone App Stores to Go Into Effect
Key topics
As Japan's new law opens up phone app stores to competition, commenters are weighing in on the implications, drawing comparisons to Apple's EU policies and debating the extent to which the law will promote competition. Some, like idle_zealot, note that the law's guidelines may still allow Apple to exert control over third-party app stores through signing and review requirements. Meanwhile, others, such as socalgal2, argue that Sony and Nintendo's closed ecosystems are distinct from Apple and Google's, as they only sell games, whereas the tech giants gate access to a broader range of services. The discussion highlights the complexities of regulating tech monopolies and the varying perspectives on what constitutes a level playing field.
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Dec 12, 2025 at 11:59 AM EST
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Curious to see how Apple and Google are going to circumvent this.
That's not to say Sony and Nintendo shouldn't be opened too but their impact is much smaller (game devs) than Apple (nearly all businesses)
No, the better law is the one that exists.
Yours doesn't.
Apple, Google. Two app stores that are basically necessary for existing in the modern world, which include apps covering Japanese government services.
In the gaming space, you’ve got PlayStation Store, Xbox Store, Nintendo eShop, Steam, Epic Game Store, GOG, a bazillion publisher storefronts, Apple and Google (again), Itch.io, physical media for the big 3 consoles at dozens of brick and mortar retailers, or even installing games directly with no store at all (Minecraft originated from its own online purchase portal).
These exist?
Honestly asking, I've never been there myself so my only contact to their government is via social media, and the Japanese people can't stop talking about how you need to go there in person for everything and how absolutely nothing official is digital
https://apps.apple.com/jp/app/id1476359069 https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=jp.go.cas.mpa
- The Switch is primarily a gaming device for entertainment purposes.
- The eShop overwhelmingly focuses on providing games for said entertainment purposes.
- It can be assumed that the overwhelming majority of people do not use the Switch, or expect to use the Switch, for general lifestyle purposes.
(That said, I wish we lived in a world where the eShop wasn't the only way to get digital games on the Switch, but phones have evolved to impact a large segment of the economy in many ways)
“Mr hacker man can trick you to download an app and take all of grandmas money from the bank”, “North Korean hackers can tap into your baby cameras unless we gate the app installation process and charge 30%.”, etc.
On Apple platforms, for most of the things mentioned, web apps are an option and don't have any restrictions. This was Apple's original plan, but the people fought for local apps. Now companies fight for space on people's home screens. If they get an app on the device they can get more info and send notifications and things, which they apparently love. A lot of apps these days are glorified web apps. There are also the ones that exist for a one-time setup, which then sit on people's phones for years. It's kind of a mess the way companies use apps.
Meanwhile Google is trying to go the opposite way with mandatory developer registration/verification. In the US we will likely let them. Who needs freedom if there is money to make (and Google is just making a fake security argument.)
It shouldn't be that hard to do with my phone what I want, including accepting the consequences of my actions.
Most of the revenue from the App Store is from games, so it's not surprising that they charge the same 30% platform fee that Nintendo charges.
Japan to open up Apple and Google app stores to competition (2023)
https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=36368735
Japan enacts law to promote competition in smartphone app stores (2024)
https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=40662176
iOS 26.2 to allow third-party app stores in Japan ahead of regulatory deadline (Nov 2025)
https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=45822302
I'm constantly amazed by how many people have fallen for this trick.
I know that from time to time people have argued that jailbreaking should have resulted in more creativity if it were going to, but with that tiny, tiny market, it's hard to believe that many developers, relatively speaking, would have been able to go hard at building something custom and impressive. With this larger market, hopefully folks will get the chance to do that now.