Legislation introduced in the U.S. Senate Wednesday would impose new restrictions and requirements on Apple’s App Store and Google Play — designed to end the two tech giants’ virtual monopoly control over the app ecosystem.
Companies like Spotify and Epic Games have been rallying against the big app stores for years, calling for change to challenge their power in app distribution.
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The new Senate bill, the Open App Markets Act, among other things would prohibit Apple and Google from requiring developers use their in-app payment systems, which take a standard 30% commission — and would let consumers select different third-party app stores for their mobile devices. The legislation was introduced by Sens. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), and Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) on Wednesday.
According to the lawmakers, the Open App Markets Act would: protect developers’ rights to tell consumers about lower prices and offer competitive pricing; require devices to allow “sideloading” of apps (something Google’s Android allows, but Apple’s…
