Apple is the target of proposed regulations that will see its market share in the tap-and-go market dwindle.
At the moment, Apple Pay represents 40 per cent of all tap-and-go payments, and 80 per cent of all payments made through digital wallets, according to CBA chief Matt Comyn (below).
The bank is backing the ACCC’s proposal to open up access to tap and go payments on iPhones to other institution.
Apple’s monopoly over its own near field technology may constitute a “refusal to deal” according to ACCC.
“It is important that gatekeeper digital platforms that both control and compete in related markets ensure a level playing field on their platform and do not exploit their rule-setting powers to extract inflated prices or to unfairly restrict competition,” the ACCC said.
“Concerns about this conduct and the potential implications for competition in payments and financial services markets have been raised in a number of recent government, parliamentary and regulatory reviews in Australia.”
ACCC Chair Gina Cass-Gottlieb told The Australian Financial Review Banking Summit on Wednesday that “one area where Apple engages in self-preferencing and restriction of competitor access to functionality is in its reservation of tap-and-go, contactless payments using the NFC chip on Apple mobile devices to its own Apple Pay app and Apple Wallet.”
CBA has called for Apple to be part of the ePayments Code, administered by ASIC.
“As digital platforms’ role in payments and financial services continue to evolve, strong competition will be crucial to ensure that the many benefits that flow from these technologies result in better consumer outcomes,” the bank said last month in a submission to the ACCC.
”However, this surge in digital payment services coincides with incomplete and inconsistent regulatory treatment of those services, with some providers operating outside of the existing formal and self-regulatory frameworks that govern payment systems in Australia.
“Like many areas of the digital economy where proposals to ensure open and fair access are canvassed to unlock value for the economy as a whole, fair, reasonable and open access to mobile device ecosystems will deliver increased value for Australians in the financial services and payments sectors.”
