WASHINGTON, D.C. – Rick VanMeter, Executive Director of the Coalition for App Fairness (CAF) released the following statement after the United Kingdom’s Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport announced a Voluntary Code of Practice for App Store Operators and Developers, which will help address security and privacy of apps and app stores.
“Safety, security, and privacy are always a top priority for developers, and our members support the DCMS Code of Practice objective to better protect consumers from bad actors. Transparent standards for privacy and security, like the Code of Practice, are necessary to give consumers and developers confidence that their personal information and data are protected.
“Objective standards like those contained in the Code of Practice will also help to raise the bar for all app stores and unlock competition, which will further accelerate innovation in safety and security. Mobile app gatekeepers frequently use the pretext of privacy and security as justification for their anti-competitive practices and efforts to cement their market power; however, it has been well documented that malicious apps continue to run rampant on the dominant app stores.
“Consumers should be able to choose which apps they download and where they download them, including outside of Apple and Google app stores. Increasing the number of app stores available on mobile devices would foster competition among each store, incentivize the stores to enhance their privacy and security, and deliver higher quality services at lower prices. A truly competitive mobile app ecosystem that adheres to a Code of Practice will deliver the best results for consumers.”
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About the Coalition for App Fairness
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.
CAF Contact
December 9, 2022