[Asia Economy Reporter Kang Nahum] Will it be possible to see messages sent on KakaoTalk on Naver Line, and messages sent on Naver Line on KakaoTalk?
Naver founder and Global Investment Officer (GIO) Lee Hae-jin and Kakao founder and Future Initiative Center head Kim Beom-su expressed positive views on ensuring interoperability between messenger services. In Europe, starting next year, interoperability between messengers will be mandated to prevent monopolies. Attention is focused on whether similar 'messenger integration' will be achieved domestically through related legislation.
Europe's 'Digital Markets Act' Guarantees Interoperability of All Messengers Starting Next Year
According to the industry on the 25th, during the Ministry of Science and ICT's audit at the National Assembly's Science, Technology, Information and Broadcasting Committee held the previous day, Democratic Party lawmaker Ko Min-jung asked Center head Kim and GIO Lee about their opinions on Europe's 'Digital Markets Act' (DMA).
The DMA, passed by the European Parliament last July and effective from next year, targets IT companies with a market capitalization of 75 billion euros (about 100 trillion won), annual revenue of 7.5 billion euros (about 10 trillion won), and over 45 million monthly users. These companies are designated as 'gatekeepers' and regulated; they are prohibited from prioritizing their own services over competitors' or preventing users from uninstalling pre-installed software or apps.
In particular, gatekeepers must guarantee interoperability of messenger services to alleviate monopolies. For example, if gatekeepers like Meta, which operates Facebook Messenger and WhatsApp, receive interoperability requests from smaller messengers, they must open their services to allow users on both sides to exchange messages. Simply put, if you send a message or file on KakaoTalk, it can be checked on Naver Line as well.
Kakao: "Possible if Law Passes" · Naver: "Will Consider"
Lawmaker Ko explained, "The core of the DMA is to curb the monopoly of messenger usage," adding, "This bill includes interoperability provisions, so even if the messenger I use is KakaoTalk, I can share photos and messages with someone using Line."
In response, Center head Kim said, "This is not a matter for negotiation between the two companies; I think it can be done if the legal issue passes." Kakao CEO Hong Eun-taek also said, "We will review whether it is technically possible." GIO Lee said, "I will review it and get back to you as this is the first time I have heard about it."
Given the recent KakaoTalk outage caused by a data center fire, which revealed the risks of relying on a single platform company for daily life, the industry expects a high possibility that a law similar to the DMA will be enacted domestically. If such a law is established, the 'lock-in effect' of each messenger (tying customers) will collapse, making it easier to switch main messengers.
However, it is too early to judge which messenger will lose or gain. KakaoTalk holds a dominant position domestically with about 50 million users. Line has a high overseas service ratio, with 200 million users in Japan and Southeast Asia. This could provide an opportunity for each messenger to increase both domestic and global market shares.
An industry insider said, "While mandatory interoperability could be seen as regulation, it might actually create synergy for both companies by expanding their market reach."
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