Arizona’s anti-monopoly bill targets Apple and Google



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Illustration from article titled Arizona Anti-Monopoly Bill Could Help Get Fortnite Back to the iOS App Store

Photo: Chris Delmas / AFP (Getty Images)

Arizona lawmakers fair passed an anti-monopoly bill in a 31-29 vote, which could have big implications for Apple, Google and, oddly enough, Fortnite.

Arizona House Bill HB2005 “Limits the ability of certain digital application distribution platforms to require the use of a specific integrated payment system.” (You can read the text of the bill here.) This restriction applies to digital application distribution platforms such as the iOS App Store and Google Play, as well as any other distribution platform that exceeds 1 million cumulative downloads in a single calendar year.

It also prohibits distribution platforms from requiring Arizona-based app developers to use “a specific in-app payment system as the sole method of accepting payments.” So Apple’s requirement that all in-app purchases go through its own payment processing mechanism would no longer apply to developers like Epic Games and others who want to offer their customers a direct payment option. .

If the bill becomes the law of the state, companies like Apple and Google would also be banned from retaliation against developers for using an in-app payment system other than their own. In the case of Epic Games, Apple and Google have been removed Fortnite of their the respective app stores, as Epic added a direct payment method, which violated Apple’s and Google’s terms of service for developers.

“Bills like the one approved by Arizona House today would help address the range of harm that gatekeepers like Apple and Google pose to small businesses, entrepreneurs, consumers and local communities,” he said. said Pat Garofalo, director of national and local policy of the Company Economic Freedoms Project, in one press release today. “The fact that the bill has been successfully passed is proof that there is a growing desire to harness the power of big tech companies that dominate key areas of commerce.”

Ultimately, HB2005 would allow Arizona-based developers to bypass the “Apple Tax,” or the 30% commission (or 15% for developers who earn less than $ 1 million per year) takes every in-app purchase. As Gizmodo reported previously, Fortnite generated $ 43.4 million in consumer spending on the App Store globally in July 2020. There is no doubt that this number has dropped considerably after Apple deleted Fortnite from the App Store in August of last year. California District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers ruled last October that Apple was legally authorized to keep Fortnite out of its App Store.

The next hearing date between Apple and Epic Games is set for May 3, with Gonzalez Rogers again presiding as a judge. According to MacRumors, the case must take place in person this time, with special accommodations for witnesses who cannot travel due to covid-19 restrictions. Before the trial, Apple CEO Tim Cook will have to sit for a 7-time available.

However, HB2005 has yet to be passed by the Arizona Senate and signed by Gov. Doug Ducey before it becomes law, and it seems unlikely to happen until Apple and Epic are on trial in two months. . It’s also unclear how exactly Arizona would enforce the law, which would almost certainly face a legal challenge if passed.

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