A regulatory move against the mobile duopoly could let you bypass app-store commissions and funnel customers directly to your site. Here's what's shifting.
The UK's Competition and Markets Authority is challenging Google and Apple's control over mobile platforms, a move that could fundamentally alter how you pay to reach customers on phones. Right now, if you sell through their app stores, they take a cut. The challenge is designed to let developers and merchants steer users to outside websites for purchases, potentially bypassing that cost entirely.
Apple and Google typically charge between 15 and 30% in app-store commissions. That's money that comes directly off your margin. If the UK ruling succeeds, you'd be able to direct customers from an app (or from mobile web) to your own site for checkout, sidestep the platform fee, and keep that commission. For a small business operating on thin margins, that shift is material.
This regulatory push benefits merchants who own their own storefronts, Shopify users, self-hosted sites, and direct-to-consumer brands. Instead of being forced to use the app store as a toll booth, you'd have a legal path to funnel traffic straight to your domain. The ruling doesn't kill app stores; it kills the lock-in.
The UK's Competition and Markets Authority is challenging Google and Apple's duopoly over mobile platforms, which could allow developers to steer users to outside websites for purchases and bypass up to 30% app-store commissions.
LinkedIn / Shopifreaks, July 6, 2026
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WebKing tracks regulatory and platform changes that move the margin needle for your business. When app-store rules shift, conversion paths and profitability shift with them. We help you capitalize on those windows.
The UK's Competition and Markets Authority is challenging the duopoly to allow developers and merchants to steer users to outside websites for purchases, which would bypass app-store commissions. Whether and when this becomes global practice depends on the outcome of the challenge, but it signals a crack in the current model.
The ruling targets mobile platform control, which affects both in-app and link-driven traffic. The main prize is letting you direct app users to your website for checkout, avoiding the commission entirely.
Right now it's a UK regulatory challenge. Regulatory momentum often spreads, but you should monitor updates; any win would strengthen similar arguments in other regions and with other authorities.
Ensure your website checkout and mobile experience are optimized to convert traffic, especially if app-to-web redirects become easier. Having a direct-to-site path ready means you can capture that freed-up margin as soon as the rules shift.
Sources
The Lab is original analysis by WebKing. We summarize and interpret developments from the sources above for industrial, commercial, and small business owners. Figures are reported as published by their sources.
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