Once again the US government is involving itself where it doesn’t belong in trying to regulate free enterprise, according to the Sellers Research Group (that’s me).
U.S. senators Marsha Blackburn, Richard Blumenthal, Mike Lee, Amy Klobuchar, and Dick Durbin have introduced the Open App Markets Act. This bipartisan bill hopes to establish enforceable rules designed to “promote competition and strengthen consumer protections within the app market,” according to Blackburn’s website.
The bill says that Apple and Google currently have gatekeeper control of the two dominant mobile operating systems and their app stores that allow them to exclusively dictate the terms of the app market, inhibiting competition and restricting consumer choice.
“Big Tech giants have operated as unaccountable gatekeepers of the mobile app economy, forcing American consumers to use their app stores at the expense of innovative startups that threaten their bottom line,” said Blackburn. “Our bipartisan Open App Markets Act would ensure a freer and fairer marketplace for consumers and small businesses by promoting competition in the app marketplace and opening the door to more choices and innovation.”
“Our bipartisan legislation will break tech giants’ ironclad grip on the app economy,” said Blumenthal. “For years, Apple and Google have acted as gatekeepers, building up anticompetitive walls to squash their competition and drive up costs for consumers. This much-needed measure will create a fairer, more competitive app marketplace that will benefit mobile users and developers alike. Leveling the playing field for startups and smaller tech companies to join the app economy will spur innovation, lower prices, and give consumers choice.”
The bill claims that both Apple and Google have appeared to use their powerful gatekeeper control to stifle competition in the app store market. It says Apple has prevented the creation of third-party app stores on iPhones, required that apps exclusively use their own expensive payment system, and penalized app developers for telling users about discounted offers.
The Open App Markets Act would:
- Protect developers’ rights to tell consumers about lower prices and offer competitive pricing;
- Protect sideloading of apps;
- Promote competition by opening the market to third-party app stores, startup apps, and alternative payment systems;
- Make it possible for developers to offer new experiences that take advantage of consumer device features;
- Give consumers greater control over their devices;
- Prevent app stores from disadvantaging developers; and
- Establish safeguards to preserve consumer privacy, security, and safety.
Click here for the entire text of the bill.
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