The UK's Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has today decided to launch an in-depth investigation into Apple and Google, looking at the restrictions set by each company that affect access to smartphone cloud gaming.
The move follows an earlier proposal to investigate the two companies' market power, and a year-long study of the iPhone and Android ecosystems. That report, published in June, determined Apple and Google held "an effective duopoly" over smartphone markets, allowing them to "exercise a stranglehold" over mobile operating systems, app stores and web browsers.
Further work by the CMA included consultations with unnamed "cloud gaming service providers", as well as web developers and browser makers, who said Apple and Google's approach was "harming their businesses, holding back innovation, and adding unnecessary costs". These concerns will be investigated further as part of a far-reaching "Phase 2" CMA investigation.