Three United States senators have introduced a bill that strikes at the "grand intimidation of technology” (big tech bullying).
The Open App Markets Act, introduced by Democrats Richard Blumenthal and Amy Klobuchar and Republican Marsha Blackburn, is taking aim at Apple and Google and their respective app stores.
The senators say the bill aims to establish fair and clear regulations to protect competition and strengthen consumer protection in the app market.
In a statement, they said that Apple and Google have their gatekeeper role two dominant mobile operating systems. They stated that their respective app stores solely dictate the terms of the app market, stifling competition and limiting consumer choice.
Blumenthal expects the legislation will inevitably break down anti-competitive walls in the application economy, giving consumers more choice and giving smaller start-ups a chance.
"For years, Apple and Google crushed their competitors and kept consumers in the dark, making big profits while acting as ostensibly well-meaning guardians of this multi-billion dollar market," he said, referring to the bill as "a huge blow to of big tech bullying ”.
“This bipartisan bill will help break the stranglehold of these tech giants, open up the app economy to new competitors, and give mobile users more control over their Appliances".
“Apple and Google want to prevent developers and consumers from using apps bedspread of third parties that would threaten theirs. Their anti-competitive behavior is a direct affront to a free and fair market. Senator Blumenthal, Klobuchar, and I are committed to ensuring that American consumers and small businesses are not penalized by the dominance of Big Tech," said Marsha Blackburn.
