An American law wants to “break the stranglehold” of Apple and Google on the app market – Frandroid

A bipartisan law called the Open App Markets Act directly attacks the rules that govern Android and iOS stores. It focuses in particular on in-app purchases and the ability of developers to generate profits on the App Store and the Play Store.

The Google application on an Android smartphone // Source: Unsplash / Daniel Romero

Marsha Blackburn is a Republican senator. Richard Blumenthal is a Democrat. They may not be on the same political camp, but they have tabled side by side a law entitled “Open App Markets Act” (Law for open application markets in good French).

As its name suggests, it directly attacks the application distribution systems set up by both Google and Apple, considered as monopolies that do not speak their name.

A procompetition law

the Wall Street Journal took a keen interest in this law. According to him, it would impose restrictions onApp Store and at Play store, in particular on the rules they can impose on application developers.

Source: James Yarema on Unsplash

Of course, such a law naturally comes to provide an answer to the debates which surrounded the trial. Epic vs Apple, which focused in particular on the capacity of a developer –Epic Games in this case – to offer in-app purchases without going through Apple’s payment systems. Google had also excluded Fortnite from the Play Store for the same reason shortly after Apple.

Richard Blumenthal commented on the law he has just co-tabled as follows: “For years Apple and Google have crushed their competition and kept consumers in the dark – pocketing huge gains while acting as supposedly benevolent stewards of a multi-billion dollar market. This partisan bill will help break the stranglehold of these tech giants, open up the app economy to new competitors, and give mobile phone users more control over their own devices. “

Apple comments, Google is silent

Apple commented on the filing of this law, claiming that its App Store “Is the cornerstone of our work to connect developers and customers in a safe and trustworthy way. The result has been an unprecedented engine of economic growth and innovation. ” The implication: they weren’t the only ones to benefit from it and the growth generated by the App Store has radiated outside of Apple’s offices.

Google for its part has so far declined to comment on this bill. Already last July, 36 US states attacked the Mountain View firm by suing him for his practices considered monopolistic on the Play Store.