WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Rick VanMeter, Executive Director of the Coalition for App Fairness (CAF), released the following statement after the U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear appeals from both Apple and Epic Games contesting aspects of a Ninth Circuit ruling that found Apple’s business model didn’t violate antitrust laws, but that it did violate California’s Unfair Competition Law by limiting developers’ ability to communicate directly with customers about alternate payment systems.
“The Supreme Court’s decision not to take up Apple’s appeal confirmed that the company’s anti-steering policy is illegal, anti-competitive and must come to an end,” said Rick VanMeter, Executive Director of the Coalition for App Fairness. “It’s a win that developers can now point their customers to their websites to make purchases, which will lower prices and increase consumer choice. This is a step in the right direction and highlights the need for legislation – like the Open App Markets Act – to create an open and free app store ecosystem.”
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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 Tile, CAF has rapidly grown from 13 to over 70 members since launching in September 2020. CAF offers membership to companies of any size — join today at appfairness.org.