Meta, Spotify, and Match Launch Coalition Against Apple and Google

[MacRumors]

A new lobbying group formed by Meta, Spotify, and Match Group is challenging Apple and Google's role in the mobile app ecosystem, arguing the company should bear legal responsibility for verifying users' ages and accusing them of anti-competitive business practices that disadvantage developers, Bloomberg reports.

The "Coalition for a Competitive Mobile Experience" is a coordinated effort by these major companies to influence federal and state legislation amid mounting pressure to implement digital safeguards for minors. The coalition intends to lobby lawmakers, engage with federal regulators, and support ongoing antitrust enforcement actions against Apple and Google.

The group's immediate concern is a growing legislative push to require age verification for users downloading mobile apps that may be unsuitable for minors. A law enacted in Utah in March requires app stores to verify a user's age and obtain parental consent before allowing minors to download certain applications. Additional proposals are reportedly being drafted at the federal level.

The coalition's members argue that Apple and Google, as gatekeepers of the iOS App Store and Google Play Store respectively, are best positioned to implement uniform age verification protocols across devices and markets. By contrast, Apple and Google have maintained that responsibility should lie with individual app developers, who are directly collecting and processing user data within their apps.

In recent years, Apple has introduced features aimed at limiting children's exposure to harmful content, including communication safety tools and default app restrictions for child accounts, but the company has been reluctant to assume primary responsibility for verifying user identities at the download stage.

Beyond age verification, the coalition aims to highlight broader concerns over Apple's app distribution practices. These include the company's 15–30% commission on digital transactions, mandatory use of its in-app purchase system, and restrictions on alternative app marketplaces or payment methods.

Article Link: Meta, Spotify, and Match Launch Coalition Against Apple and Google

 

[WilliApple]

Getting rejected for adding a "Buy me a coffee" link should not happen.

 

[nuckinfutz]

A Triumvirate of "Loser" companies.

I will never subscribe to Spotify again. I detest their CEO and thus the company.

I would abandon Facebook tomorrow if there existed a credible competitor. I am actively De-Googling my life.

Apple is not perfect but I trust them a hell of a lot more than the aforementioned companies.

 

[gleepskip]

Age verification? No thanks. I'll parent my children myself without forcing everyone in the country to show their "papers" to get on the internet.

 

[Artemiz]

You lost me at Meta

 

[Lounge vibes 05]

I’m confused, I thought these companies wanted Apple to open iOS up… so everything *wouldn’t* have to go through the AppStore?


Now, they want Apple to handle all age verification and related tasks… because they own the AppStore? Wha? Which way do you want it?


Either you can have Apple control everything, from App distribution to payments to age verification… or you want Apple to open its platform. You can’t have both, you can’t have the cake and eat it too.


For anything like this to actually be *useful* it’s pretty much required to go through one single App Store controlled by one single company, in this case Apple.


Or else it does nothing. If Facebookcan be downloaded outside of the AppStore, but the AppStore handles *everything* including age verification, now there’s a simple way around any verification, which is to… not use the AppStore.


Again Meta, Spotify, Epic, you either want Apple in charge of everything or Apple in charge of nothing. You can’t have both.


They are literally making Apple’s argument against sideloading for them.

 

[diskrisk]

The three worst tech companies I can think of have coalesced together because they want other companies to do their job and still pay less for that service.

 

[aloysiusfreeman]

There should be a coalition that seeks to try Mark Zuckerberg for crimes against humanity.

 

[Bustycat]

LOL Meta

 

[ipacers]

Beyond age verification, the coalition aims to highlight broader concerns over Apple's app distribution practices. These include the company's 15–30% commission on digital transactions, mandatory use of its in-app purchase system, and restrictions on alternative app marketplaces or payment methods.

Let's not pretend this is about anything other than the App Store commission.

 

[cale508]

A Triumvirate of "Loser" companies.

I will never subscribe to Spotify again. I detest their CEO and thus the company.

I would abandon Facebook tomorrow if there existed a credible competitor. I am actively De-Googling my life.

Apple is not perfect but I trust them a hell of a lot more than the aforementioned companies.

Yet, I bet you use google search.

 

[StudioMacs]

A Triumvirate of "Loser" companies.

I will never subscribe to Spotify again. I detest their CEO and thus the company.

I would abandon Facebook tomorrow if there existed a credible competitor. I am actively De-Googling my life.

Apple is not perfect but I trust them a hell of a lot more than the aforementioned companies.

I trust Apple more than the mentioned companies as well, which is precisely why I would prefer they handle age verification that involves uploading my driver’s license.

 

[xander49x]

Meta is the biggest offender and I do not use Spotify, all I hear is crying from a bunch of losers who product I will never use as they can't be trusted with personal data. #boycottmeta #boycottspotify

 

[xander49x]

Yet, I bet you use google search.

I use DuckDuckGo, Their are alternatives to Google.

 

[spazzcat]

Meta only cares about one thing: your data to sell to make money. If they are unhappy with Apple, then Apple is slowing them down from being able to get our data.

 

[ipacers]

I use DuckDuckGo, Their are alternatives to Google.

Yup, I use Kagi. I find the search results genuinely much better than google. And it's great to be able to tell it, never show my results from this site again.

 

[cale508]

I use DuckDuckGo, Their are alternatives to Google.

We can't see you anyways, you can say you use whatever you want.

 

[cocky jeremy]

The whole thing is stupid as hell. The same as it's always been. It's Apple's platform. If you don't like their rules, don't develop for it. And crying about 15-30%? That's not even a lot. My company won't touch anything under 40-45%.

 

[TechRunner]

Nothing like watching a bunch of billionaires (trillionaires) argue over who has the moral high ground.

 

[dreamerstree]

That's like blaming a shopping mall for letting people into the mall that are too young to use the products that their store, which is located inside the mall, sells. I kind of see what they're saying, but I think it is up to the app to gatekeep against underage usage.

 

[zahuh]

GO META! Interesting Epic was not involved. Hope they can REMOVE the 15-30% in-app purchase fees! A joke Apple gets 15-30% of in-app purchases and requires developers to use their system. I would happily pay with Apple Pay or Paypal instead for in-app purchases and pay 2% fees for in-app purchases. More money should go to the developers that make these great apps! Not the STORE that NEVER improves, seriously anyone name three things the "App Store" app has done that is innovative? Nothing. It's a self-created scam!

 

[klasma]

Getting rejected for adding a "Buy me a coffee" link should not happen.

Maybe "Buy me a Polishing Cloth" would be admissible.

 

[Think|Different]

What…in…the…world…

 

[Art Mark]

Forest meet trees. Really? The fear is kids downloading 'bad' apps? Really? We're toast if this is an issue gaining traction. We can't even stop kids from getting alcohol or smoking. I'm pretty sure this is a waste of time.

 

[GMShadow]

So, a company that harvests user data, a company that steals from artists and can't make a profit so they try to get various governments to do their dirty work, and a company that exists to scam lonely men into signing up for dating sites where the women are AI profiles or con artists themselves.

Real winning coalition there.