Evaluation on Transparency and Fairness of Specified Digital Platforms Compiled

1. Background and purpose

Based on Article 9, Paragraph 2 of the Act on Improving Transparency and Fairness of Digital Platforms (Act No. 38 of 2020; hereinafter referred to as the "TFDPA"), the Minister of METI is required to evaluate the transparency and fairness of specified digital platforms.

Under the TFDPA, "specified digital platform providers," which are subject to the TFDPA’s regulations, are required to voluntarily strive to improve the transparency and fairness of specified digital platforms based on the results of this evaluation.

Note: The TFDPA has adopted a co-regulation method in which the government indicates overall directions while businesses are entrusted with voluntarily working on more specific decisions from the viewpoint of balancing innovation and regulation. The core of co-regulation is a mechanism that encourages specified digital platform providers to voluntarily improve their operations through the government’s continuous evaluations by listening to the opinions of experts, businesses and other stakeholders that use specified digital platforms. The mechanism works as the core of the co-regulation and has an important role from the viewpoint of ensuring the effectiveness of the TFDPA. This mechanism and the process therefor are called "monitoring and review.”

2. Outline of the assessment

Today, METI released this evaluation—the second evaluation for the fields of online shopping malls and app stores and the first one for the field of digital advertisements since the TFDPA came into effect—after compiling it based on the opinions sent through public comments on the draft evaluation solicited from December 5, 2023, to January 12, 2024.

The specified digital platforms reviewed in this evaluation are as follows.

Business category	Specified digital platform	Specified digital platform providers
Comprehensive online shopping malls	Amazon.co.jp	Amazon Japan G.K.
	Rakuten Ichiba	Rakuten Group, Inc.
	Yahoo! Shopping	LY Corporation
App stores	App Store	Apple Inc. and iTunes K.K.
	Google Play Store	Google LLC
Digital advertisements (media-integration type)	Posting advertisements on the Google Search and YouTube websites	Google LLC
	Posting advertisements on the Facebook and Instagram websites	Meta Platforms, Inc.
	Posting advertisements on the Yahoo!JAPAN, LINE, and Family Services websites	LY Corporation
Digital advertisements (advertisement-intermediary type)	Posting advertisements in the media owners’ ad spaces	Google LLC

This evaluation is based on the opinions of experts from the Monitoring Meeting on the Transparency and Fairness of Digital Platforms (Mr. Okada Yosuke, Professor, Faculty of Social Innovation, Seijo University) and business owners who make use of digital platforms in addition to the content of the reports submitted by the specified digital platform providers, information given to the Digital Platform Consultation Desk, and other information.

In addition, this evaluation also expresses the direction of efforts expected of specified digital platform providers, taking into consideration the guidelines set by the Minister of METI. Specified digital platform providers are required to voluntarily and actively strive to improve their operations based on the results of this evaluation. METI will continue to confirm these providers’ efforts for improving their operations, including the monitoring and review in FY2025.

Moreover, if it finds that these providers do not strive to improve their operations based on the results of the evaluation, METI will consider taking certain measures regarding them, including issuing a recommendation under the TFDPA.

Note: This evaluation includes summaries of the “Individual cases regarding enforcement of the TFDPA” (November 1, 2022, to October 31, 2023). The purpose is to increase the transparency of the operation of the TFDPA and to encourage specified digital platform providers' compliance, voluntary cooperation with investigations, and implementation of improvement measures.

3. Related materials

• Evaluation on Transparency and Fairness of Specified Digital Platforms (Comprehensive Online Shopping Malls, App Stores, and Digital Advertisements) (in Japanese)(PDF:2,185KB)
• Appendix 1: Individual cases regarding enforcement of the TFDPA (November 1, 2022, to October 31, 2023) (in Japanese)(PDF:171KB)
• Appendix 2: Summary of complaint and dispute resolution by specified digital platform providers (FY2022) (in Japanese)(PDF:998KB)

4. References

• Summary of the public comments that METI received and METI's responses thereto (in Japanese)(PDF:9,962KB)
• Opinions of the Monitoring Meeting (comprehensive online shopping malls and app stores) (released on December 5, 2023) (in Japanese)(PDF:1,869KB)
• Opinions of the Monitoring Meeting (digital advertisements) (released on December 5, 2023) (in Japanese)(PDF:1,540KB)
• Yearly Report summary (Amazon Japan G.K.) (in Japanese)(PDF:982KB)
• Yearly Report summary (Rakuten Group, Inc.) (in Japanese)(PDF:1,608KB)
• Yearly Report summary (LY Corporation) (in Japanese)(PDF:2,838KB)
• Yearly Report summary (Apple Inc. and iTunes K.K.) (in Japanese)(PDF:6,590KB)
• Yearly Report summary (Google LLC) (in Japanese)(PDF:1,001KB)
• Yearly Report summary (Google LLC) (digital advertisements) (in Japanese)(PDF:717KB)
• Yearly Report summary (Meta Platforms, Inc.) (in Japanese)(PDF:1,365KB)
• Yearly Report summary (LY Corporation) (digital advertisements) (in Japanese)(PDF:3,240KB)

5. Related links

• Digital Platforms
• Monitoring Meeting on the Transparency and Fairness of Digital Platforms (in Japanese)
• Evaluation on Transparency and Fairness of Specified Digital Platforms (in Japanese)

Division in Charge

Digital Market Policy Office, Digital Economy Division, Commerce and Information Policy Bureau