US Senate News:
Source: United States Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn)
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Mike Lee (R-Utah), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), and Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) introduced the bipartisan Open App Markets Act, which would set fair, clear, and enforceable rules to promote competition and strengthen consumer protections within the app market. Google and Apple 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.
“The days of Big Tech’s anticompetitive, price-gouging business practices are over;” saidSenator Durbin. “Our bipartisan Open App Markets Act places important limits on dominant gatekeeping companies in the app store market, like Apple and Google. These clear, fair, and enforceable rules will open the app markets back up to competition and give consumers more choices. I look forward to working with Republicans and Democrats to make it law.”
BACKGROUND
Mobile devices are central to consumers’ economic, social, and civic lives, and the mobile app market is a significant part of the digital economy. In 2024 alone, consumers worldwide spent 92 billion U.S. dollars on the Apple App Store, and about 35.7 billion U.S. dollars on the Google Play Store.
Both Apple and Google have appeared to use their powerful gatekeeper control to stifle competition in the app store market.
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.
These strict terms close off avenues of competition and drive up prices for consumers.
Startups also face serious challenges when Big Tech gatekeepers are able to prioritize their own apps to the disadvantage of others, make use of competitors’ confidential business information, and block developers from using features on a consumer’s phone.
THE OPEN APP MARKETS ACT
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 bill text.
ENDORSEMENTS
The Open App Markets Act is endorsed by numerous technology and consumer groups, including Spotify, the American Economic Liberties Project, the American Principles Project, Epic Games, the Bull Moose Project, the Coalition for App Fairness, Consumer Action for a Strong Economy, the Digital First Project, the Digital Progress Institute, The Ethics and Public Policy Center, the Foundation for American Innovation, the Internet Accountability Project, the National Security Institute, Proton, Public Knowledge, Tech Oversight Project, and Y Combinator:
“We applaud Senators Blackburn and Blumenthal for reintroducing the Open App Markets Act, continuing the fight for a free and fair internet in the United States. This bill takes a targeted, strategic approach that will create more economic opportunity, unlock innovation, reduce barriers for businesses and creators, and give American consumers lower prices and more control over purchases made through their iPhones,” said Dustee Jenkins, Spotify Chief Public Affairs Officer.
“Hundreds of billions of dollars pass through mobile app stores annually, and both Apple and Google have gone to extraordinary, illegal lengths to make sure they are the only stores in town, stealing untold billions from developers and consumers in the process. While Apple and Google drag out their appeals in federal court, the Open App Markets Act would tear down walled gardens, stimulate innovation, and protect developers and consumers from unfair app store taxes today,” said Lee Hepner, Senior Counsel, American Economic Liberties Project.
“The American Principles Project strongly supports the Open App Markets Act as essential legislation to protect American families from Big Tech’s monopolistic control. Apple and Google’s stranglehold over the app marketplace has created a rigged system that stifles economic opportunity for small businesses and undermines free expression online. This legislation will restore free market principles while ensuring that families have access to diverse viewpoints and applications that reflect their values. The current 30 percent tax imposed by these gatekeepers amounts to corporate welfare for Big Tech at the expense of Main Street America, and it’s time for Congress to stand with American families and small businesses against Silicon Valley’s unchecked power,” stated the American Principles Project.
“The Open App Markets Act is a must-pass bill that would force Apple and Google to end their anticompetitive mobile app store practices. Apple and Google’s unfair terms and exorbitant fees stifle competition and crush innovation, hurting developers and consumers alike. We look forward to swift passage of this bill and an open mobile app ecosystem in the U.S. with alternative app stores and in-app payment systems,” said Bakari Middleton, VP of Public Policy at Epic Games.
“The future of digital innovation depends on fair access—not corporate gatekeeping. The Open App Markets Act is a crucial step towards breaking the stranglehold of Big Tech, levels the playing field, and puts power back where it belongs: with users and creators,” stated the Bull Moose Project.
“CAF commends Senators Blackburn and Blumenthal for introducing the Open App Markets Act and Senators Lee and Klobuchar for co-sponsoring the bill. This groundbreaking, bipartisan legislation will open up Apple and Google’s mobile walled gardens to long-overdue competition. By banning harmful and anti-competitive practices, the bill would lead to lower prices and more choice in how apps are accessed and distributed. Thanks to a recent court decision, US consumers are already benefiting from app developers offering alternative ways to make purchases. But legislation is needed to fully unlock the potential of the mobile app economy and unleash a competitive marketplace that benefits users and developers alike. We are grateful to Senators Blackburn and Blumenthal for their enduring leadership on these issues, and we encourage swift passage of this vital bill,” said Gene Burrus, Global Policy Counsel for the Coalition for App Fairness.
“Imagine a fisherman sailing on a vast ocean yet having only two fishing poles from which to choose. This is our current mobile economy: vast seas of information, data, and innovation accessible only through the iron grip of the app-store duopoly of Google and Apple, who continue to game the rules in their favor. It’s time to open the digital high-seas for developers large and small, to spark more free-market innovation for America’s consumers and for our position as the global leader in digital technology,” stated Consumer Action for a Strong Economy.
“Our team at Digital First Project is proud to support the reintroduction of the Open App Markets Act. This essential reform is a crucial step toward restoring competition and fairness in the digital marketplace by ending the gatekeeper control of dominant app store platforms such as Google and Apple. By promoting consumer choice and giving developers more freedom, this proposal fosters innovation among app developers and enables more choice for consumers,” stated theDigital First Project.
“Apple and Google are the choke points of the mobile ecosystem and their Herculean control over app stores is at the heart of it. OAMA is a bipartisan, responsible approach to ensure the innovation economy can flourish and not be bridled by Big Tech. This is a welcomed and needed reform!” stated the Digital Progress Institute.
“For years, Apple and Google have failed to protect children from harmful content on their app stores. Even worse, they have promoted inappropriate apps to children in their stores. But because of their market power, parents and children have no alternatives in the mobile ecosystem. The Open App Markets Act would enable different app stores and app distribution methods that cater to the specific needs of families. OAMA would critically allow for family-friendly and child-safe app stores to arise as competitors to give parents alternative options that better protect kids. I commend Senators Blackburn and Blumenthal for this effort and their continued leadership in protecting children from digital harms,” said Clare Morell, Fellow at The Ethics and Public Policy Center.
“Apple and Google are the gatekeepers to the mobile ecosystem, and they have continually abused that power. Their app store monopoly rents are an effective tax on the entire app economy, and other anti-competitive practices have further limited choice and innovation. The Open App Markets Act would help lift the millstone that Apple and Google put on consumers and developers by bringing much-needed competition to mobile app stores and app distribution. I commend Senators Blackburn, Blumenthal, Lee, and Klobuchar for their leadership and urge all members of Congress to join this effort,” said Evan Swarztrauber, Senior Fellow at the Foundation for American Innovation.
“The reintroduction of the Open App Markets Act is another crucial step in the battle to rein in the unchecked power of Big Tech. Senators Blackburn and Blumenthal deserve credit for their continued bipartisan leadership and commitment to restoring fairness and competition in the app marketplace. Apple and Google have operated as unaccountable, monopolistic gatekeepers on the app store market for far too long. This bill would finally give small businesses and entrepreneurs a real shot to compete. The Internet Accountability Project proudly supports this legislation that stands up for fairness and competition,” stated the Internet Accountability Project.
“I have observed in my doctoral thesis of 2017 that there is a de facto app store duopoly between Apple and Google, controlling which apps are seen and under which conditions. Whether an app can even be found requires an investment in app store optimization (ASO). App developers have only two means to access end users, and there is limited competition on the conditions, leaving app developers as price takers. While there are benefits of centralization of app markets, there are tradeoffs in privacy and choice. In any event, the scale of such concentration would bring regulatory scrutiny in any other industry. The two app stores have enjoyed a relative regulatory free ride for a long time. Few policymakers have been interested in taking on this behemoth. Hence I applaud Senator Blackburn and Senator Blumenthal for their leadership,” said Roslyn Layton, PhD, Senior Fellow at the National Security Institute.
“App stores are the lifeblood of all digital companies, including disruptors like Proton. Gatekeepers like Apple and Google have been consolidating market power in their app marketplaces for years, ultimately to the detriment of consumers. They have exploited their control to impose extortionate conditions on developers, like compelling use of their own payment systems and charging 30% transaction fees. This amounts to a massive tax on the Internet, one that often gets passed onto consumers through higher prices or reduced investment in competitive innovations. Ending these monopoly abuses on mobile payments would not only create fairer prices, but also promote competition while benefiting developers and consumers alike. Proton applauds Senators Blumenthal, Blackburn, and X for recognizing these realities, and drafting a bill that would unleash a seismic level of innovation,” said Andy Yen, Founder & CEO of Proton.
“Too often, the tech giants have controlled the app marketplace, dictating who gets access and under what terms. The Open App Markets Act represents a much-needed shift toward a more competitive, open ecosystem where developers are empowered to innovate and users are the ultimate beneficiaries. We need policies that prioritize security, transparency, and choice, rather than allowing corporations to dictate the rules. It’s time for users, not Big Tech, to decide what apps thrive in the marketplace. This bill is a step toward restoring market fairness and putting users back in the driver’s seat,” stated Public Knowledge.
“Google and Apple’s app store monopolies have not only artificially inflated prices, they’ve also blocked new and innovative products from hitting the market. Their gatekeeping has been a drag on our entire economy, and it’s time to make their monopolies illegal. The Open App Markets Act will help dislodge app store monopolies, lower prices, and build a better, more open internet,” said Sacha Haworth, Executive Director of the Tech Oversight Project.
“This bipartisan legislation ends the practice of dominant app stores forcing their own payment systems and self-preferencing, while giving consumers the freedom to install and set third-party stores and payment options—common-sense rules already embraced in other markets. Enacting it will spur competition, lower prices, and unleash a new wave of American innovation that keeps our startup ecosystem the most dynamic in the world,” said Luther Lowe, Head of Public Policy for Y Combinator.
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