Google vs. the CMA: Android Gets a “Strategic Market” Badge It Never Wanted

When regulators start handing out designations, they usually sound like awards. “Strategic market status” sounds impressive, until you realise it’s the UK’s polite way of saying, “You’re too powerful for your own good.” The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has officially given that label to Google’s Mobile Platform, a catch-all term covering Android, Play, Chrome, and the Blink engine. Google, predictably, is not flattered.

The “Strategic” Label No One Wants

This latest move falls under the UK’s new Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act (DMCC), which gives the CMA new powers to rein in “digital gatekeepers”. If a company’s products or services are deemed crucial to how other businesses reach consumers (think Google’s search, Apple’s App Store, or Meta’s ad empire) it can be slapped with “strategic market status”.

For Google, that means a new layer of oversight over how it runs Android, Chrome, and the Play Store. The CMA can now set conduct requirements, demand changes to business practices, and impose fines of up to 10% of global revenue for breaches. That’s a potential US$30 billion bite if Google steps out of line.

Google’s Not Having It

In a blog post, Oliver Bethell, Google’s Senior Director of Competition, called the decision “disappointing and unwarranted”. He said the CMA’s logic for singling out Google’s mobile ecosystem was “unclear” and warned that the regime was meant to be “pro-growth and pro-innovation” — not punitive.

Google insists its ecosystem promotes choice rather than limits it. The company says there are 24,000 Android phone models from 1,300 manufacturers globally, and that more than two-thirds of UK Android devices already come with a non-Play app store preinstalled. In other words, the company’s argument is that Android isn’t a monopoly, it’s a marketplace, albeit one that happens to be run by Google.

The company also claims Android has generated over £9.9 billion for UK app developers, portraying itself as an enabler of the digital economy rather than its overlord.

The CMA’s Perspective

The CMA’s move is part of a broader crackdown on Big Tech dominance. Earlier this month, the regulator also designated Apple’s iOS ecosystem and Meta’s advertising services for similar scrutiny. Each designation opens the door to tailor-made rules that could include data-sharing obligations, limits on self-preferencing, or even requirements to make rival app stores easier to use.

According to the CMA, Google’s control over mobile distribution gives it “enduring strategic significance” in the UK market — meaning that competitors, advertisers, and consumers are effectively operating inside its walled garden, even if the garden has a few open gates.

The CMA’s next steps will involve detailed consultations with industry stakeholders and could result in binding conduct requirements as early as next year.

Why This Matters

The designation has the potential to reshape how Android operates in the UK, and possibly across Europe, where regulators often move in lockstep. The EU’s Digital Markets Act (DMA) already forces similar concessions from Big Tech, including interoperability mandates and limits on bundling core services.

In practice, Google could soon face tighter limits on how it integrates apps like Chrome and Maps into Android, or on how it steers developers toward in-app billing systems that feed its bottom line. The CMA could even demand that Android phones make it easier to set non-Google defaults — a move likely to thrill competitors like Microsoft and DuckDuckGo.

The Fine Print

Google’s argument that its ecosystem fosters innovation isn’t entirely baseless. Android’s open-source model has driven down smartphone costs and allowed smaller manufacturers to compete globally. But critics point out that “open” doesn’t necessarily mean “equal”. Google’s dominance in app distribution, search, and browser defaults effectively keeps rivals playing catch-up.

The CMA now has to walk a fine line: too light a touch and the new regime looks toothless; too heavy and it risks discouraging investment in the UK tech sector. As Bethell put it, “The UK’s digital markets regime was introduced with the promise of being pro-growth and pro-innovation.” Whether that promise holds true depends on how the CMA wields its new powers.

The Bottom Line

The CMA’s decision to put Google under “strategic” supervision signals a clear message: the era of unregulated platform dominance in the UK is over. For Google, the designation is an unwanted badge of honour; proof of influence it would rather not have acknowledged so publicly.

It is also a test case for Britain’s digital regulator-in-chief. If the CMA can balance fairness and innovation, it might just set a global precedent for how to rein in Big Tech without breaking the ecosystem. If not, Android users might find themselves caught in the crossfire between regulators and one of the most powerful companies on Earth.

Source: Google Blog – “CMA’s designation of Google’s Mobile Ecosystem”,