wearables2016-12-21T00:14:06-05:00

DOJ v Apple Statement

On Thursday, March 21, the Department of Justice (DoJ) announced its lawsuit against Apple, challenging several aspects of Apple’s ecosystem. ACT | The App Association President Morgan Reed responded: “This lawsuit would do nothing to help small app companies and would weaken the distribution options they rely upon. “Managed app ecosystems have proven critical to the success and growth of small app companies because they enable these developers to compete directly with the largest, most well-resourced entities doing business on [...]

AI Can Make a Difference for Healthcare, but It Needs Support

The American healthcare system desperately needs support. The American population is aging, and life expectancy is increasing, with those 65 or older accounting for one out of every five Americans by 2030—and 80 percent of those having at least one chronic condition. Healthcare costs are increasing; costs have already risen to approximately $4.3 trillion annually, representing at least 17 percent of the U.S. gross domestic product. Finally, and no less troubling, the healthcare workforce is experiencing a growing shortage, with [...]

Begging the Question Again: What’s a Better Alternative than the Online Marketplace Model?

With the tide of Digital Markets Act (DMA)-style regulatory proposals abating somewhat in Congress, antitrust maximalists have turned to the courts to continue their war on online marketplaces. The Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC’s) case against Amazon takes aim at the same procompetitive marketplace management activities that are the center of these debates in the legislative branch. In its latest move, the FTC has asked to bifurcate the case to consider liability (whether Amazon is liable under antitrust law) and remedies [...]

Statement by ACT | The App Association on Digital Trade Barriers

“Small businesses in the app economy depend on tech platforms for three things: reduced overhead, instantaneous trust, and access to a global market. By stepping away from the negotiating table on digital trade issues in October and signaling that digital trade barriers are less important than traditional trade barriers in the National Trade Estimate (NTE) Report, the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) is degrading those services and harming small businesses. Rather than retreating from last year’s strong stance protecting U.S. digital [...]

They Thought it Was a Goner, but the App Came Back the Very Next Day

In the famous children’s song by Laurie Berkner, the narrator goes to cartoonish lengths to rid themselves of the eponymous cat, only to have it return from each attempt. Congress’s latest effort to require a sale of TikTok (the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act, or PAFACA) appears impossible to circumvent. However, if either the Open App Markets Act (OAMA) or the American Innovation and Choice Online Act (AICOA) were enacted, Congress should fully expect foreign adversary-owned apps [...]

The No AI FRAUD Act: Good Intentions, Flawed Execution

Generative artificial intelligence (GAI) has been shown to support small business innovation in several ways. For example, small companies use GAI in ways that reduce time, cost, and efficiency barriers, advancing avenues for expansion, and otherwise enabling innovation. Yet, potential consequences from utilizing GAI as a commercial tool, including the unintentional facilitation of malicious and nonconsensual use of someone’s likeness, have given rise to concerns, prompting legislative proposals aimed at reducing the risks associated with GAI technologies. But the rush [...]

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