The North Dakota Senate introduced a new bill this week that would prevent Apple and Google from requiring developers to use their respective app stores and payment methods, paving the way for alternative app store options. according to reports The tribune of Bismarck (via The Verge).
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According to Sen. Kyle Davison, who introduced Senate Bill 2333 yesterday, the legislation is designed to “balance the playing field” for app developers in North Dakota and protect customers from “monopolistic and devastating spending. imposed by the big tech companies “, which refers to the cut that Apple and Google take from developers.
Specifically, the bill would prevent Apple from requiring a developer to use a digital app distribution platform as the sole mode of distributing a digital product and would prevent the company from using in-app purchases. as the sole mode of accepting payments. of a user. There is also a wording that prevents Apple from retaliating against developers who choose alternative distribution and payment methods.
Apple’s chief privacy engineer, Erik Neuenschwander, spoke out against the bill and said it “threatens to destroy the iPhone as you know it” by demanding changes that “undermine privacy, security,” security and performance “of the iPhone.
Neuenschwander said Apple is “working hard” to keep bad apps from the App Store and that the North Dakota bill “would require us to let them in.”
Apple does not allow the installation of apps on iOS devices outside of the “app store” and there are no alternative app store options available. Apple reviews all apps that customers can download, which wouldn’t happen with a third-party app store option.
Apple also doesn’t allow app developers to accept payments using methods other than in-app purchases, except in certain situations, a policy that has led to Apple’s legal struggle with Epic Games. PEpic Games added an alternative payment method to Fortnite last year, which led to a ban on the ppApp Store app.
Basecamp co-founder David Heinemeier Hansson, who was also embroiled in a legal fight with Apple over the “HEY” email app last year, testified in favor of SB 2333 and said it gives him the l hope that “technological monopolies will not rule the world forever.”
North Dakota’s SB 2333 is the first real, concrete legislative proposal I’ve seen that gives me hope that technology monopolies won’t rule the world forever. Fargo or Bismarck look like wonderful places to settle under a shield against abuse 😂😍 – DHH (@dhh) February 9, 2021
In 2020, Apple faced a U.S. antitrust investigation into its “App Store” rates and policies, which resulted in a 450-page report calling for new antitrust laws focused on promoting fair competition in the United States. digital markets, strengthening merger-related laws and monopolizing and restoring vigorous oversight and enforcement of antitrust law.
No federal legislation has yet been introduced and the North Dakota Senate committee did not take action on the bill. Senator Jerry Klein said “there are still some reflections to be made” in reference to the bill.