On Thursday, Apr. 7, Apple shared some pictures of its newest store in Myeongdong, Seoul, South Korea. On Saturday, Apr. 9, the Apple store officially opened its doors.
The Myeongdong branch is the largest Apple Store in the country.
Apple Myeongdong Store is Open
In March, the new retail store was covered by 9to5Mac and reported that Apple was reading the store for a rather sooner than later release.
With the opening of the store on Apr. 9, the tech company shared a couple more details about it as well as some pictures of customers enjoying the new retail store.
According to Apple, Apple Myeongdong is located in the center of Seoul's vibrant and bustling shopping district.
Serving as the tech company's largest store in South Korea, the new retail store invites customers to discover Apple's latest products, receive best-in-class support from highly knowledgeable Apple Specialists and participate in Today at Apple sessions.
Apple Myeongdong will serve as a stage for established and new Korean artists, who will lead Today at Apple sessions celebrating the Korean culture.
During the opening, customers got a special bag with gifts. Customers were also able to purchase the new colors of the iPhone 13, the 2022 iPhone SE, and the newest lineup of Apple products available.
Apple's iOS Issues in South Korea
The opening of the largest Apple store in South Korea came amid the complicated relationship between Apple and the country.
In November 2021, TechTimes reported that South Korean government officials accused Apple of forcing developers to use its payment systems on the app store.
The tech giant was allegedly not complying with the official South Korean legislation.
According to Reuters, lawmaker Jo Seoung-Hae said that Apple is not doing enough to comply with the country's legislation. The legislation forbids app store operators from pushing app developers to use their payment systems only.
Through an amendment to the Telecommunication Business Act, the country is the first one that is endeavoring to stop developers from being forced to only use one payment system that the Apple app store is offering. The law came to effect in September 2021.
The exact details of what companies are expected to comply with the South Korean law were not fully revealed. In November 2021, Apple told the South Korean government that the company was complying with the new law and did not need to change its own policies.
However, in January, Apple rolled out a third-party payment option for the first time in iOS apps in order to comply with the South Korean legislation.
Alternative payments will only be available in the country, and it follows the changes made by Google in 2021.
The Korea Communications Commission (KCC) shared Apple's decision, but the details of the implementation were not revealed to the public.
Prior to this, Apple charged developers a 30% fee on any digital purchases made by customers using iOS apps.
The fee has become increasingly contentious for developers and was at the heart of the massive U.S. lawsuit between Apple and Epic Games.
Related Article: Apple iPhone, iPad, Watch in LG Retail Stores Possible in South Korea, Report Says - How About the Macbook?
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Written by Sophie Webster
