In brief:
- The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has formally designated Google and Apple with 'Strategic Market Status' (SMS) under the Digital Markets Competition and Consumers Act 2024 (DMCC Act), marking a significant milestone in the UK regulator's approach to digital markets.
- The designations cover:
- Google's general search and search advertising services; and
- both Google and Apple's mobile platforms (which covers, operating systems, app distribution, browsers and browser engines on smartphones and tablets).
- These SMS designations are not a finding of wrongdoing, but empower the CMA to consider imposing binding, pro-competitive conduct requirements tailored to each entity.
- At the same time as seeking public input on its proposed designations, the CMA had published detailed roadmaps of possible measures to improve competition in the relevant digital activities. Although subject to further consultation, the proposed measures set out in these roadmaps are indicative of the conduct requirements that may be imposed on Google and Apple in the future. This approach underlines how the CMA is prioritising transparency and stakeholder engagement when it comes to digital markets regulation.
- The designations represent a broader shift towards proactive digital market oversight, aligning the UK with the EU while acknowledging domestic goals and priorities for improving market outcomes in the UK.
The dawn of a new regime
Following investigations throughout the year, the CMA has issued its final decisions designating Google and Apple with SMS in relation to their mobile platforms, and Google has been further designated with SMS with respect to its general search and search advertising services. Although these and other "Big Tech" companies are not strangers to traditional anti-trust enforcement, the CMA's new digital markets toolkit reflects a strategic regulatory shift from ex-post antitrust enforcement to a forward-looking, principles-based framework – and these SMS decisions mark the culmination of the CMA’s first investigations in this new era.
The DMCC Act empowers the CMA to designate a firm with SMS in relation to a particular digital activity, where: (i) certain turnover thresholds are met (greater than £1 billion in the UK or £25 billion globally); and (ii) the firm holds "substantial and entrenched market power" and a "position of strategic significance" , in respect of a digital activity linked to the UK.
Firms designated with SMS may then be subject to bespoke conduct requirements ("CRs") and pro-competition interventions ("PCIs"), mandatory merger reporting (which stands in contrast to the otherwise voluntary nature of the UK's merger notification regime) and ongoing monitoring and scrutiny over a five-year period. The CMA can impose tailored CRs at any stage during the firm's designation period, subject to three key caveats: (i) they can only be used to achieve defined statutory objectives regarding fairness and transparency; (ii) they must be of a "permitted type" as set out in the DMCC Act; and (iii) the CMA must first carry out a public consultation. PCIs can only be made following further investigation.
Indeed, as part of the SMS investigations into Google and Apple, the CMA published "roadmaps" for consultation which outlined possible CRs and PCIs that the CMA considered might be effective in achieving certain pro-competition objectives in the relevant sectors. These measures were categorised based on their expected impact, strategic importance, suitability for CMA action, associated risks and resource demands from "Category 1" (being high priority) to "Category 3" (being lower priority), together with a fourth category of "[t]o be determined subject to international developments".
Now that these proposed SMS designations have been made final, the CMA will refine the proposed interventions set out in the roadmaps with a view to designing the CRs that will be further consulted on (or, in the case of PCIs, investigated) before being imposed. Once imposed, non-compliance with these requirements carries significant risks as the CMA can impose fines of up to 10% of global turnover, and there may be private damages actions brought by affected businesses or consumers.
Both firms were similarly designated as "gatekeepers" under the EU Digital Markets Act 2023 ("DMA") in respect of their core platform services, including Google Search, Android Mobile and Google Chrome, and Apple's AppStore and iOS. However, the imposition of tailored requirements for each designated firm under the DMCC Act marks a clear divergence from the "one-size-fits-all" approach under the DMA whereby all designated gatekeepers are subject to a set of universal obligations regardless of any specific market conditions. The UK approach aims to be more targeted and flexible, allowing the CMA to seek to proportionately address the competition concerns that it identifies in each case.
Google: search supremacy under scrutiny
Following public consultation and a proposed designation earlier in the year, on 10 October 2025, the CMA finalised its first SMS designation in respect of Google's search and search advertising services.
In its final decision, the CMA noted that Google's strong position in general search services is persistent because competitors face barriers to developing a viable and effective alternative product. These barriers include Google's distribution agreements, as well as its vast data resources and user base which enhance both search quality and advertising effectiveness. The CMA concluded that Google holds substantial and entrenched market power in the UK search market, with Google Search accounting for over 90% of search queries in the UK and around £10 billion in UK search advertising revenues.
The designation covers Google Search, including AI-powered features such as AI Overviews and AI Mode, and advertising tools like Google Ads, Search Ads 360, and AdSense for Search. It excludes Google News and Gemini AI Assistant, though the CMA reserves the right to revisit the scope of the designation if technologies evolve.
The Category 1 proposed interventions outlined in the roadmap include:
- Choice screens: ensuring users can easily choose and switch between search services, (and potentially AI assistants), including through choice screens.
- Fair ranking principles: requiring Google to ensure its search results ranking and presentation are fair and non-discriminatory, supported by an effective complaints process for affected businesses.
- Publisher controls: granting publishers transparency, attribution, and control over the use of their content in Google's AI-generated responses (e.g., AI Overviews, Gemini AI Assistant), without impacting their visibility in search results.
- Data portability: enabling users to transfer their search data (such as search history) to other services, thereby supporting competition and innovation.
These measures aim to prevent self-preferencing, foster interoperability, and give consumers and competitors greater agency in the digital search ecosystem. As noted above, the measures set out in the roadmap will inform any proposed CRs (and/or PCIs), which will be subject to further consultation (or investigation) before they are imposed.
Apple and Google: mobile platforms called out
On 22 October 2025, the CMA confirmed its second and third SMS designations, covering Apple's and Google's mobile platforms. The designations follow the CMA's proposed decisions and roadmaps in July 2025 ("Mobile Platform Roadmaps"), which found that both firms enjoy strong end-to-end control across the mobile value chain, creating structural barriers for rival app developers and browser providers. Mobile operating systems (iOS and Android), native app distribution (App Store and Play Store) and mobile browsers and browser engines (Safari and Chrome) all fall under the CMA's spotlight.
The CMA describes both mobile platforms as being a "vital gateway" for thousands of UK businesses distributing content and services to consumers via their mobile devices. Mobile devices with Apple’s Mobile Platform have a 50-60% share of supply and those with Google’s Mobile Platform, like Samsung, have a 40-50% share. Given the crucial role these platforms play for UK mobile users, the CMA highlighted the importance of users having open choices and access to a wide range of content and for content providers to be able to compete fairly.
In its Mobile Platform Roadmaps, the CMA set out plans to tackle barriers related to app distribution through a range of possible Category 1 interventions in respect of both Google and Apple including:
- App review and ranking: requiring them to ensure their review of apps to be distributed on their app stores and the ranking of apps is conducted in a fair, objective, and transparent way.
- Data use: requiring they use the data collected for the purpose of reviewing the apps fairly and not for the purpose of developing their own apps.
In addition, the CMA is considering measures to address "steering" (i.e., ensuring Apple allows app developers to direct their potential customers off the App Store) and third-party interoperability as potential Category 1 interventions, reflecting the greater concerns associated with Apple's closed ecosystem. These measures were noted as Category 2 interventions (and therefore lower priority) for Google, which highlights the flexible and tailored approach adopted by the DMCC Act, allowing the CMA to explore the case for intervention in each investigation.
What is next on the cards?
While the CMA has confirmed that consultations with stakeholders will continue until it updates its roadmaps in the "first half of 2026", it has not specified a date for finalising the CRs which will be published in Conduct Requirement Notices – nor is it clear if either firm will appeal their respective designations. Regardless, these designations have a broader significance: they represent a key step towards the increased regulation of 'Big Tech' as regulators seek to ensure a level playing field and effective competition in digital markets.
For businesses operating in these markets, including advertisers, app developers, publishers and AI firms, the new obligations on these firms are likely to reshape commercial relationships. It will be important to stay tuned in to the CMA's consultations and wider implementation of the regime going forward, in order to take advantage of the opportunities (and address any challenges) that this new era may present.