Rep. Cammack Introduces App Store Freedom Act To Promote Competition & Protect Consumers

Rep Kat Cammack (R-FL) introduced the App Store Freedom Act, which seeks to promote competition and protect consumers and developers in the mobile app marketplace by prohibiting certain anticompetitive practices by dominant app store operators. The bill supports interoperability and consumer choice by requiring large app store operators (100 million+ U.S. users) to allow users to set third-party apps or app stores as default; install apps or app stores outside of the dominant platform; and remove or hide pre-installed apps. Additionally, the bill directs companies to provide developers equal access to interfaces, features, and development tools without cost or discrimination.