South Korea’s Fair Trade Commission has decided to allow Apple to create a series of measures to address the Cupertino firm’s anti-competitive business practices in the country.
The Korea Herald reports the FTC investigated Apple Korea for requiring SK Telecom, KT Corp, and LG Uplus Corp to pay the cost of television advertisements and warranty service for its iPhones.
The FTC investigation found that Apple’s requirement that the carriers hand over the costs of ads and warranty service was just another way to squeeze more profits from the carriers.
Apple will be required to come up with a corrective scheme to restore competition practices or to improve business practices. Once Apple comes up with such a scheme, the commission will then review the corrective measures and decide whether to approve them.
Apple Korea said it welcomed the commission’s decision and issued the following statement, which didn’t admit to any wrongdoing.
“We don’t believe we have done anything wrong but are happy to put this process behind us so we can focus on doing even more for our customers and communities,” Apple Korea said in a statement.
This isn’t the first time Apple has faced criticism over its business practices in South Korea. April saw the FTC ordering the firm to change unfair provisions in its contracts with certified repair service partners. Those contracts stipulated that the firms could not file lawsuits against Apple within a year after any dispute.
