New Senate Bill Would Reshape App Stores
Aug 12, 2021, 10:02 AM by Rich Brome @richbrome
A bipartisan group of three US Senators has introduced new legislation that would place major new rules on the app stores run by Apple and Google. The Open App Markets Act would:
- Ensure users could access third-party app stores and make them the default.
- Ensure users could access third-party apps and make them the default.
- Ensure users could install third-party apps and app stores through a method other than the main app store (side-loading).
- Ensure users could hide or delete default apps, the default app store, and pre-installed apps from business partners.
- Ensure developers could use third-party systems for in-app payments.
- Ensure developers could offer more favorable pricing outside of a given app store.
- Prevent Apple and Google from giving preference to their own apps (or those of business partners) in search results and rankings.
- Prevent Apple and Google from giving their own apps special API access not available to third-party apps. This clause has special exceptions for user privacy, security, and digital safety; spam or fraud prevention; and complying with Federal or State law.
Comments
Is this for real?
Is this some kinda .... what.... WHAT FRESH HELL IS THIS?
(continues)
Politics as usual
Hopefully this gets negotiated down to a few concessions from Apple & Google that won't wreck what is in place. That may be the strategy anyways.