WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, The Coalition for App Fairness (CAF), sent letters to President-elect Trump’s nominees Ms. Gail Slater as Assistant Attorney General for the Antitrust Division at the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) and Mr. Andrew Ferguson as Chair and Mr. Mark Meador as Commissioner of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) congratulating the nominees and urging them to prioritize addressing Apple’s and Google’s abuse of millions of American developers and consumers.
“Your leadership and expertise will play a pivotal role in shaping the competitive landscape across the American economy, including our most innovative sector: technology,” CAF wrote in its letter to Slater. “The Department of Justice’s recent antitrust lawsuits against major technology companies – some of which were initiated during President Trump’s first term – were crucial steps in reining in unchecked corporate power. These cases highlight the importance of holding dominant platforms accountable, ensuring that their market influence does not harm American consumers or stifle innovation, and preventing these businesses from operating as if they’re above American law.”
“Your leadership and expertise will play a crucial role in ensuring that America’s technology sector remains innovative and competitive,” wrote CAF in its letter to Ferguson and Meador. “As you prepare to undertake these critical new roles, we urge you to prioritize holding Apple and Google accountable for their abuse of millions of American developers and consumers. Over the past decade, Apple’s and Google’s gatekeeping of the mobile app economy has inhibited innovation and economic growth, restricted businesses from competing on a level playing field, and artificially raised prices for American consumers.”
CAF applauds President-elect Trump for prioritizing antitrust enforcement and appointing leaders with the expertise and vision needed to address the challenges posed by dominant tech platforms. Once confirmed, we look forward to engaging with the DOJ and FTC under this new leadership to foster a truly competitive and innovative mobile app marketplace that benefits all Americans.
The full letters can be found here and here.
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The Coalition for App Fairness is an independent nonprofit organization formed to protect consumer choice, foster competition, and create a level playing field for all app and game developers globally. Originally formed by Basecamp, Blix, Blockchain.com, Deezer, Epic Games, the European Publishers Council, Match Group, News Media Europe, Prepear, Proton, Skydemon, Spotify, and Life360, CAF has rapidly grown from 13 to 70 members since launching in September 2020. CAF offers membership to companies of any size — join today at appfairness.org.