At its annual developer conference, Apple announced a new program - Swift Playgrounds - that could dramatically improve the accessibility of coding education for children. The App Association’s Morgan Reed explains how this could benefit app companies. “At the WWDC keynote, Tim Cook explained that ‘coding should be a required language in all schools.’ This is a sentiment strongly shared by our 5,000 member companies. Fifty of our tech executives flew to Washington, DC, in April to meet with their [...]

Today, the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) announced it has approved a proposal from the ICANN community for the U.S. government to relinquish its oversight role of the domain name system. This marks the final stages of the IANA transition announced in 2014. “The announcement from NTIA provided just the impetus the community needed to round out the accountability mechanisms inside ICANN and harden the organization against capture by governments,” said Jonathan Zuck, president of ACT | The App [...]

Most Americans have access to paid television, and consumers who subscribe to these services by cable or satellite – provided by what the FCC calls multichannel video programming distributors, or MVPDs – use a device commonly called a “set-top box” in their homes to connect to these services. Rather recently, the Federal Communication Commission (FCC) proposed new rules aiming to “tear down anti-competitive barriers and pave the way for software, devices, and other innovative solutions to compete with the set-top [...]

Today, ACT | The App Association called on Senators Blunt, Murray, and Capito to make computer science education a national priority. Throughout the country, companies in the $120 billion app economy are looking to grow. In fact, there are more than a half-million unfilled software development positions across the country. Even though these positions boast six-figure salaries on average, there are not enough qualified graduates to fill them. Congress must prioritize computer science education to ensure our economy and our children’s [...]

Earlier this week, I testified before the House Small Business Committee at its hearing, “The Sharing Economy: A Taxing Experience for New Entrepreneurs.” The discussion focused on how labor laws and tax policy should evolve to better reflect the American workforce of today. As executive director of ACT | The App Association, I represent the interests of more than 5,000 app makers and connected device companies across the country. Our members leverage the connectivity of smart devices to create innovative [...]

Here at ACT | The App Association, we make a habit of watching HBO’s Silicon Valley for a weekly dose of startup hilarity. While the show is based in the Bay Area, it provides a fairly accurate portrayal of the challenges and triumphs experienced by app makers across the country. A recent episode highlighted something we know all too well: the fierce competition to attract and retain skilled software developers. For those who don’t watch the show, here’s a quick [...]