U.K. Regulator Grants Apple and Google “Strategic Market Status,” Signaling Tighter Oversight of Mobile Platforms

The United Kingdom’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has formally designated Apple and Google as holding “strategic market status” (SMS) within their respective mobile ecosystems, marking one of the most consequential regulatory actions in recent years aimed at curbing the dominance of the two companies in the smartphone sector.

The designation, announced on Wednesday, covers the companies’ operating systems, app stores, browsers, and browser engines. According to the CMA, the new classification grants it expanded powers to impose “targeted interventions” designed to foster competition and prevent what it described as entrenched market control.

The announcement follows months of investigation and consultation involving more than 150 stakeholders, including app developers, businesses, consumer groups, and both companies themselves. The regulator said its findings revealed that Apple and Google possess “substantial, entrenched market power and a position of strategic significance in their respective mobile platforms.”

The CMA’s decision stems from an inquiry launched in January 2025 into how Apple’s iOS and Google’s Android ecosystems shape competition in the U.K. mobile sector. In July, the regulator had already signaled that both companies could qualify for SMS under Britain’s Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act — a law passed earlier this year to give the CMA more authority to scrutinize powerful digital platforms.

The designation is not a finding of wrongdoing but rather a legal classification that enables the regulator to intervene where it identifies anti-competitive practices.

“This allows the regulator to consider proportionate, targeted interventions to ensure that mobile platforms are open to effective competition,” the CMA said. It added that the framework aims to guarantee that “consumers and businesses that rely on Google and Apple can have confidence that they are treated fairly.”

Will Hayter, executive director for digital markets at the CMA, said in a statement that Apple and Google’s mobile ecosystems underpin significant portions of the U.K. digital economy and have far-reaching effects on innovation.

“Apple and Google’s mobile platforms are used by thousands of businesses right across the economy to market and sell products and services to millions of customers, but the platforms’ rules may be limiting innovation and competition,” Hayter said.

The CMA’s 2025 investigation reaffirmed that both Apple and Google exercise deep control over how apps are distributed, monetized, and accessed. According to the regulator, users of either company’s mobile ecosystem are “unlikely to switch between Apple and Google’s mobile platforms once they have adopted the ecosystem of their choice.”

That lack of mobility, the CMA said, has entrenched the companies’ power. Both platforms effectively require app developers and businesses to distribute applications through their respective app stores — Apple’s App Store and Google’s Play Store — which serve as the exclusive gateways to mobile users.

In addition to app distribution, the CMA examined browser engines and search integration, finding that Apple and Google each maintain ecosystem-wide influence through default settings and preinstalled software. The regulator’s report also highlighted how both companies’ control extends beyond mobile phones into wearables, home devices, and connected cars, creating an “interlocking web of dependencies” that limits user choice.

The CMA further concluded that the rapid rise of artificial intelligence would not meaningfully alter this dominance in the near term. It stated that “new technologies, like AI, were unlikely to eliminate Apple or Google’s market power over the five-year designation period.”

Potential Regulatory Actions

The CMA gains the ability to impose legally binding conduct requirements by designating Apple and Google with SMS. These could include measures to increase interoperability between platforms, lower barriers for rival app stores, or limit the companies’ ability to prioritize their own products and services.

The regulator did not specify which actions it would take next, emphasizing that any interventions would be “proportionate” and “targeted.” The CMA added that its approach will focus on ensuring that competition and innovation thrive without “undermining the user experience or security.”

However, the decision marks the most assertive move yet under the U.K.’s new digital markets regime, which aims to create a more level playing field for app developers, advertisers, and consumers. It follows similar efforts by regulators in the European Union, where the Digital Markets Act (DMA) has already forced Apple and Google to make technical and policy changes to their mobile ecosystems.

Apple and Google Push Back

Both Apple and Google have expressed disagreement with the CMA’s decision, arguing that the designation could harm consumers and hinder the rollout of new products and services in the U.K.

Apple, in a statement, warned that the ruling could slow down access to key innovations for British users. The company said the decision could mean that users in the U.K. would lose access to getting new features in a timely fashion, referencing its recent delay in releasing Apple Intelligence features to U.K. users pending regulatory reviews.

Google also challenged the rationale behind the regulator’s findings. The company said it “didn’t see the rationale for the decision,” suggesting that its Android platform already provides users and developers with extensive freedom and competition.

Both companies are expected to engage in further discussions with the CMA as it develops specific obligations tied to the SMS designation.

The CMA’s move underlines a global trend of antitrust regulators stepping up oversight of large technology platforms. In recent years, the European Union, the United States, and Australia have each taken steps to examine the dominance of Apple and Google in mobile software, payments, and advertising.

In the U.K., the CMA’s action signals an intention to align with the EU’s more aggressive stance while carving out its own approach under post-Brexit competition law. The regulator’s Digital Markets Unit, which leads these investigations, now has the power to impose fines of up to 10% of global turnover for violations of conduct requirements once they are established.

Analysts believe the SMS designation could pave the way for structural remedies, including opening Apple’s iOS to third-party app stores or relaxing restrictions on browser engines. However, the CMA has maintained that its first priority is to ensure fairness and transparency, not to dismantle existing ecosystems.