Meta, Spotify, Match Launch Coalition to Challenge App Store Dominance
A United Front Against the 'Duopoly'
▼ Summary
– Several major tech companies, including Meta and Spotify, have formed the “Coalition for a Competitive Mobile Experience” to challenge Apple and Google’s control over the mobile ecosystem.
– The coalition aims to advocate for better interoperability, fight discriminatory app store practices, and support antitrust actions against Apple and Google.
– The group emphasizes collective strength to oppose platform fees, restrictive rules, and limitations on accessing device features.
– Their immediate legislative focus is on shifting the burden of age verification for app access from developers to app stores, supporting laws like Utah’s.
– The coalition’s formation coincides with increased scrutiny of Apple and Google’s market power, including antitrust investigations and legal battles.
Several prominent technology companies, including Meta, Spotify, Match Group, and Tile, have formally banded together to create a new lobbying group aimed squarely at the power held by Apple and Google in the mobile ecosystem. Dubbed the “Coalition for a Competitive Mobile Experience,” the group intends to advocate for developer interests on multiple fronts where they often clash with the platform giants.
The coalition argues that Apple and Google wield excessive control through their App Store and Play Store policies, hindering competition and innovation. Their stated goals include pushing for better interoperability between dominant platforms and rival services, fighting perceived discriminatory practices within the app stores, and supporting ongoing government antitrust actions against both Apple and Google.
Power in Numbers
“What these founding companies share in common is they rely on the mobile ecosystem in order to serve their customers,” Brandon Kressin, the coalition’s director, explained to Bloomberg. “They each recognize there’s power in numbers, especially when going up against companies as powerful as the duopoly.” This collective action signifies a more organized pushback against platform fees, restrictive rules on directing users to alternative payment methods (anti-steering), and limitations on accessing device hardware features or fair placement within app stores.
First Priority: Shifting Age Verification Burden
While the coalition has broad aims, its immediate legislative focus is on age verification for app access. Echoing Meta’s previous arguments, the group contends that the responsibility for verifying user age and controlling which apps children can download should lie with the app stores themselves (Apple and Google), not with individual application developers.
This position directly counters Google’s stance, which has accused Meta of trying to “offload” its safety responsibilities onto the platform level. The coalition is throwing its weight behind efforts to pass laws similar to one already enacted in Utah, which mandates app store-level age verification. They plan to support similar bills emerging in other states and potentially at the federal level.
Context of Broader Platform Battles
The formation of this coalition arrives amidst heightened global scrutiny of Apple’s and Google’s market power, including major antitrust investigations by the US Department of Justice and regulatory actions under laws like the EU’s Digital Markets Act. The timing was also notable, with the coalition’s announcement occurring just before Apple faced a significant ruling in its long-running legal battle with Epic Games, further restricting Apple’s ability to enforce its in-app payment rules. This new group adds another organized voice demanding changes to how the mobile world operates.
(Inspired by: The Verge)
