Indonesia's antitrust agency, KPPU, has fined Google 202.5 billion Rupiahs, equivalent to $12.6 million, for violating antitrust laws related to its payment system services for the Google Play Store. The agency has ordered the tech giant to cease the mandatory use of Google Play Billing and to allow all developers to participate in the User Choice Billing (UCB) program.

The KPPU launched an investigation into Google in 2022, citing concerns over the company's market dominance, particularly its requirement that Indonesian app developers use Google Play Billing (GPB) for in-app purchases. The agency found that the Google Pay Billing System had charged fees of up to 30%, higher than other payment systems. This limited payment options, leading to fewer app users, reduced transactions, and lower revenue.

The Google Play Store, which is pre-installed on all Android devices, has a market share of over 50% in Indonesia. Google's search engine market share in the country stands at 95.16%, with other search engines such as Bing, Yahoo!, DuckDuckGo, and Yandex holding the remaining share. The agency's ruling aims to promote competition and provide more choices for developers and users.

In response to the ruling, Google plans to appeal the decision. A Google spokesperson, Danielle Cohen, stated that the company "strongly disagrees" with the KPPU's decision and will appeal. Cohen argued that Google's current practices foster a healthy, competitive Indonesian app ecosystem, offering a secure platform, global reach, and choice, including user choice billing.

Google's commitment to complying with Indonesian law and collaborating with the KPPU and stakeholders throughout the appeals process was reiterated by Cohen. The company has been investing in the success of Indonesian developers through initiatives such as Indie Games Accelerator, Play Academy, and Play x Unity.

This ruling is the latest in a series of legal disputes involving Google, which has been fined for breaching anti-competitive practices in various countries, including India, South Korea, France, the EU, and the U.S. Japan's antitrust regulator is also likely to determine that Google has breached Japan's antitrust laws and will order the company to cease its monopolistic behaviors.

The tech industry has been closely watching these developments, and the KPPU's ruling is seen as a significant step towards promoting competition and fair practices in the digital market. The outcome of Google's appeal and the implications of this ruling on the tech industry will be closely monitored in the coming months.