President Lee Jae-myung's 'Online Platform Act (Onple Act)', presented as a campaign promise during the presidential election period, is facing a crisis of being sidelined amid trade turbulence. U.S. officials are raising the Onple Act issue at the Korea-U.S. trade negotiation table, intensifying their pressure. The bill, which the government has shown strong will to pursue, is not making any progress in the face of diplomatic realities.
According to government sources on the 28th, the Fair Trade Commission is preparing explanatory materials related to the Onple Act in response to a request from the U.S. House of Representatives Judiciary Committee. The committee sent a letter directly to the Fair Trade Commission on the 24th (local time), stating that 'the Onple Act could negatively affect domestic corporations' and requested an explanation of the legislative progress and potential impacts on U.S. corporations by the 7th of next month. The Fair Trade Commission has stated that it will respond appropriately after reviewing the contents and methods.
The Fair Trade Commission has been promoting the Onple Act since 2021 during the Moon Jae-in administration. The U.S. is viewing the monopoly regulation bills related to the Onple Act proposed by ruling party lawmakers such as Park Joo-min of the Democratic Party of Korea, as well as the partial amendment to the Fair Trade Act submitted by People Power Party lawmaker Kang Min-guk, as major points of contention. Each bill prohibits abusive acts of 'self-preference', 'tie-in sales', and 'multi-homing restrictions' by platform operators and imposes penalty surcharges for violations. Although it is specified that both domestic and foreign corporations are subject to regulation, there are concerns that U.S. platforms like Google, Apple, and Amazon could be the main targets, making diplomatic friction unavoidable.
In light of U.S. backlash, the government has been prioritizing the fair competition law (regulating transaction conditions for platforms such as delivery apps) and the monopoly regulation law (regulating the market dominance of powerful platforms), starting with the fair competition law, which has less direct relevance to the U.S. However, the United States is viewing even this segregated approach as a regulatory attempt aimed at domestic corporations. The U.S. House of Representatives has expressed that Korea's legislation is similar to the European Union's Digital Markets Act (DMA) and is excessively targeting U.S. corporations while excluding Chinese corporations from the regulation.
The Fair Trade Commission has reiterated that it 'has no intention to discriminate against any specific country,' but similar issues have arisen in high-level Korea-U.S. trade meetings, leading to a subdued atmosphere within the government. In particular, the Fair Trade Commission's recent indication that it will refrain from foreign remarks regarding the Onple Act and leave discussions to the National Assembly is interpreted as an attempt to adjust the atmosphere in consideration of trade friction.
In the National Assembly, there are evident differences between the ruling and opposition parties regarding the issue. On the 22nd, during a regulatory review subcommittee meeting, a proposal came from ruling party lawmakers to 'postpone discussions until August 1,' ultimately pushing the legislation process to the August extraordinary session.
Some point out that if the legislative process continues to be delayed due to concerns over trade conflicts with the U.S., there is a significant risk that Korea alone may face a regulatory vacuum, termed 'reverse discrimination.' The EU has already implemented the DMA, and Japan has also introduced a Specific Digital Platform Act requiring major platforms to disclose transaction conditions to their partner corporations in advance. This situation could lead to domestic platform operators enduring unfair contract structures while competing against U.S. platforms.
Civic groups have also sharply criticized U.S. intervention. The 'Joint Action to Urge the Enactment of the Online Platform Act,' composed of seven organizations including the People's Solidarity for Participatory Democracy and the Merchants' Association, stated, 'This is tantamount to demanding an illegal license so that U.S. corporations are not penalized for monopolizing the market and engaging in unfair practices in Korea,' claiming, 'Due to the tyranny of monopolistic platform corporations, citizens are suffering from excessive commission burdens, algorithm manipulation, and unfair practices such as tentacle-like market expansions.'
There are also criticisms that making exceptions for specific countries in legislation undermines the equity of the law. Professor Lee Jeong-hee of Chung-Ang University stated, 'The concerns from the U.S. arise from the structural issue that domestic corporations like Google, which have significant market dominance, are included while Chinese corporations can evade regulations,' adding that 'there is a need to thoroughly explain and persuade that the Onple Act does not target any specific country or corporation.'