App Store Developers in South Korea Can Now Use Alternative Payment Providers

Apple has informed App Store developers in South Korea that they can now begin offering users alternative payment systems in their apps. The change comes after the country passed a law that bans app store operators from requiring developers to use their own in-app purchase systems.

General App Store South Korea Feature Feature
Apple's developer update on apps distributed in South Korea begins with Apple saying that the ‌App Store‌ was designed "to be a safe and trusted place to discover and download apps," but continues by explaining that the change is simply to ensure that the company is complying with local law:

The Telecommunications Business Act in South Korea was recently amended to mandate that apps distributed by app market operators in South Korea be allowed to offer an alternative payment processing option within their apps. To comply with this law, developers can use the StoreKit External Purchase Entitlement. This entitlement allows apps distributed on the App Store solely in South Korea the ability to provide an alternative in-app payment processing option. Developers who want to continue using Apple's in-app purchase system may do so and no further action is needed.

Apple goes on to caution developers that using the entitlement will cause some ‌App Store‌ features like Ask to Buy and Family Sharing to be unavailable to their users. The reason for this, Apple explains, is because payments that take place outside of the ‌App Store‌'s own payment system cannot be validated. As such:

"Apple will not be able to assist users with refunds, purchase history, subscription management, and other issues encountered when purchasing digital goods and services through an alternative purchasing method."

Apple provides developers with a list of pre-approved payment service providers (PCPs) in South Korea that includes KCP, Incise, Toss, and NICE. Developers can still use a different PSP, but it must meet the same criteria of having a secure payment processing system and an established track record of protecting user privacy. Notably, Apple will earn a 26% commission on all processed sales, despite the Korean regulator's misgivings about commissions taken on third-party payment systems.

Developers interested in using the StoreKit External Purchase Entitlement for apps in South Korea can get started by submitting an entitlement request form.

Popular Stories

Apple Glass

Apple Smart Glasses: Everything We Know So Far

Wednesday May 21, 2025 8:21 am PDT by
Google recently made waves by showcasing a set of lightweight smart glasses featuring deep Gemini integration and an optional in-lens display. The demo has reignited interest in Apple's own smart glasses project, which has been the subject of rumors for nearly a decade. Here's a recap of where things stand. Current Development Status Apple is actively working on new chips specifically...
Apple CarPlay Ultra instrument cluster themes 01

Apple's CarPlay Ultra Is Here – Does Your iPhone Support It?

Thursday May 15, 2025 5:17 am PDT by
Apple's recently announced CarPlay Ultra promises a deeply integrated in-car experience, but not all iPhone users will be able to take advantage of the new feature. According to Apple's press release, CarPlay Ultra requires an iPhone 12 or later running iOS 18.5 or later. This means if you're using an iPhone 11, iPhone XR, or any older model, you'll need to upgrade your device to access...
iPhone 17 Air Pastel Feature

iPhone 17 Air Battery Capacity and Weight Allegedly Revealed

Monday May 19, 2025 2:22 am PDT by
Apple is expected to launch an all-new ultra-thin iPhone 17 Air later this year, and while there have been plenty of rumors about the camera's overall design and thinness, we haven't heard any details about the device's weight and battery capacity until now. According to the leaker going by the account name "yeux1122" on the Korean-langauge Naver blog, the 6.6-inch iPhone 17 Air has a weight ...
Apple Glasses Purple Feature

Apple Smart Glasses Launching in 2026

Thursday May 22, 2025 12:22 pm PDT by
Apple is planning to launch a set of smart glasses by the end of 2026, reports Bloomberg. The glasses will be comparable to the Meta Ray-Bans and the Android XR glasses that Google showed off earlier this week. Apple's smart glasses are expected to include cameras, microphones, and AI capabilities, much like the Meta Ray-Bans. The glasses will be able to take photos, record video, provide...
WWDC 2025 Banner

Apple Announces WWDC 2025 Schedule, Including Keynote Time

Tuesday May 20, 2025 8:13 am PDT by
Apple today announced a more detailed schedule for its annual developers conference WWDC, which runs from June 9 through June 13. The schedule confirms that Apple's keynote will begin on Monday, June 9 at 10 a.m. Pacific Time, with a live stream to be available on Apple.com, in the Apple TV app, and on YouTube. During the keynote, Apple is expected to announce iOS 19, iPadOS 19, macOS 16,...
macOS 16 visionOS Inspired Feature 1

macOS 16: Everything We Know So Far

Tuesday May 20, 2025 7:31 am PDT by
The Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC), Apple's annual developer and software-oriented event, is less than three weeks away. We haven't heard a great deal about macOS 16 ahead of its announcement this year, so we could be in for some major surprises when June 9 rolls around. Here's what we know so far about the next major update to Apple's Mac operating system. macOS 16 Name? Every year ...
maxresdefault

OpenAI Buys Jony Ive's AI Startup to 'Completely Reimagine What It Means to Use a Computer'

Wednesday May 21, 2025 10:27 am PDT by
OpenAI is acquiring io, the hardware-based AI startup co-created by Jony Ive, OpenAI announced today. Ive has been working with OpenAI CEO Sam Altman on io for two years, and the duo expects to develop a family of AI devices. In a video shared by OpenAI, Altman and Ive outlined their partnership and what they expect to create as a result of the merger. "I have a growing sense that everything ...

Top Rated Comments

The_Gream Avatar
38 months ago
So many people don’t understand business. They seem to live in an oblivious utopia to how things really work.

“But we pay a yearly developer fee”

That fee is like buying a Sam’s Club or Costco Membership. All it does it get you in the door. You can’t just walk through those stores fill up your carts and walk out with everything for free. You still have to pay for the products/services rendered.

Apple has a right to do business the way they want within the guidelines of the law.

“Oh but Apple wouldn’t be anything with out the developer”

Yeah, but those developers wouldn’t be anything with out the system Apple created and paid for. The street goes both ways, but someone had to pay for it. Apple has a right, just like any other business, to turn a profit.

Is there room for improvement? Yes.
If you don’t like something, don’t support it.
Score: 20 Votes (Like | Disagree)
no_idea Avatar
38 months ago

For doing precisely nothing. This is monopolist behaviour that needs to be stopped.
Lol…sure, how about you go procure your own hardware, networking, service providers, storage, SRE’s, marketing team, and host the apps yourself.
Score: 17 Votes (Like | Disagree)
glindon Avatar
38 months ago

For doing precisely nothing. This is monopolist behaviour that needs to be stopped.
Free development software and access to the highest per user spending store does not (and will never) come free.
Score: 16 Votes (Like | Disagree)
wanha Avatar
38 months ago

For doing precisely nothing. This is monopolist behaviour that needs to be stopped.

Do you seriously believe creating and maintaining the developer tools, the OSes, the App Store, app review, hosting, and so on is "nothing"?

Elizabeth Warren, is that you?
Score: 14 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Wildkraut Avatar
38 months ago

So many people don’t understand business. They seem to live in an oblivious utopia to how things really work.

“But we pay a yearly developer fee”

That fee is like buying a Sam’s Club or Costco Membership. All it does it get you in the door. You can’t just walk through those stores fill up your carts and walk out with everything for free. You still have to pay for the products/services rendered.

Apple has a right to do business the way they want within the guidelines of the law.

“Oh but Apple wouldn’t be anything with out the developer”

Yeah, but those developers wouldn’t be anything with out the system Apple created and paid for. The street goes both ways, but someone had to pay for it. Apple has a right, just like any other business, to turn a profit.

Is there room for improvement? Yes.
If you don’t like something, don’t support it.
Exactly and that’s why laws are being rewritten worldwide, to catch up newer shady anticompetitive practices, simply as that.

LOL developers wouldn’t be anything without Apple. LOL² that was a good one!
You’re talking about it as if Apple invented the software development industry. ?

I would rather say Apple wouldn’t be anything without the developers, because most of their crap are built on stuff which existed already, from core libraries to kernels to drivers and core development tools parts and CPU architecture(ARM).

Even their crapy anticompetitive AppStore runs on Java.

Apple is a good puzzler, that’s it.
And since Steve Jobs passed away, they released just crap.
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
contacos Avatar
38 months ago
Why even bother with additional integration troubles as a developer if Apple still takes 26% commission?

Just as inconvenient as Apples „Right to repair“ process.

Sounds nice on paper but
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)