Australia’s competition watchdog wants to reduce phone app duopoly of Apple and Google

ACCC won't rule out regulation of tech giants if people aren't given more choice when setting up a new device

People should be given a choice of apps other than the default Apple and Google phone apps when setting up a new device, under a raft of proposals from Australia's competition watchdog to reduce the duopoly the two tech giants have over the app store marketplaces.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission's latest interim report arising from the long-running digital platforms inquiry has found that while Apple and Google compete with each other, both companies face very little competition in app distributions on their respective mobile platforms.