Korea's public delivery apps struggle to turn low fees into lasting loyalty

President Lee Jae Myung on Tuesday called for measures that would help public delivery apps become a meaningful counterweight to dominant private platforms whose high fees are considered a burden on small businesses. But despite initially winning users over with cheaper rates, many public apps have struggled to maintain their user base and transaction volume once state subsidies scale back, raising questions about whether they can become self-sustaining. At a Cabinet meeting at Cheong Wa Dae in Seoul, Lee described the food delivery market as “effectively a powerful oligopoly,” after being told that food delivery apps Baemin and Coupang Eats together account for roughly 93 percent of the market. Lee Byeong-gweon, second vice minister of SMEs and startups, stated that the government plans to use next year’s budget to give public delivery apps a major boost. “We are planning a support program aimed at raising their combined market share to 15 to 20 percent.” There are currently 12 public delivery apps operated or supported by local governments across the country. Since 2020, loca