United States of America: Published NTIA Report on Competition in the Mobile App Ecosystem

On 1 February 2023, the US National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) released the Report on Competition in the Mobile App Ecosystem. The Report was commissioned in the 2021 Biden Administration Executive Order on Promoting Competition in the American Economy. The Report analyses the mobile app ecosystem and the significant role played by Apple and Google in setting market conditions in the sector, concluding that competition conditions are "suboptimal", with unnecessary restrictions and disadvantages for competitors regarding both applications themselves and distribution mechanisms. The Report makes a number of policy recommendations, including adopting measures to prevent or limit app store operators from engaging in anticompetitive practices like self-preferencing, restricting access to third-party apps, browsers, and payment services, and requiring greater transparency in app screening processes.