NTIA Seeks Comment on Mobile App 'Ecosystem'

NTIA is seeking comment through May 23 on the mobile app ecosystem as part of President Joe Biden’s July executive order on competition (see 2107090063). Biden “recognized America’s tech sector as an engine of innovation and growth, but he warned that dominant Internet platforms can ‘use their power to exclude market entrants, to extract monopoly profits, and to gather intimate personal information that they can exploit for their own advantage,’” NTIA Administrator Alan Davidson blogged Monday. The order directed the Commerce Department to “conduct a study of the mobile app ecosystem, and to use an open and transparent process to hear from the many stakeholders in the app economy, including consumers, app developers, businesses, and nonprofits,” he said: “NTIA is seeking public comment on the state of competition in the mobile app ecosystem, the factors affecting app development and distribution, and active ways to increase competition, through government or private sector action. We are interested in understanding what shapes the competitive marketplace of the apps we have on mobile phones and tablets, and how the dynamics are different from the market for apps for home computers or game consoles.” Comments should be filed through the Federal e-Rulemaking Portal at www.regulations.gov.