WASHINGTON – Today ACT | The App Association filed an amicus curiae brief in the ongoing case of Epic Games, Inc., v. Apple Inc., et al. representing the views of small app developers and the disruption to their businesses that Epic’s selfish profiteering would cause.
The App Association’s members are small business developers, innovators, and entrepreneurs who leverage the connectivity of smart devices to create innovative software applications used on mobile devices to solve everyday consumer and enterprise challenges. Epic Games is a multi-billion-dollar company that profits from the vibrant and expansive global app ecosystem our members, companies like them, and mobile platform operators have created.
“The district court’s injunction runs the risk of chilling innovation, distorting markets, and upending a properly functioning competitive ecosystem,” said Morgan Reed, president of ACT | The App Association. “Epic Games is upset that they have to pay, just like every other business, for the services and benefits they receive from listing their apps on the App Store and Google Play, so they are trying to tear down the thriving online app marketplaces that they used to build their business and continue to profit from, and don’t care that they are taking down small app developers with them.”
The App Association has long advocated for maintaining the many ways mobile platforms have supported a robust and competitive online marketplace for goods and services. Before mobile platforms, app developers paid publishers and other intermediaries for listing services, plus engaged in time-consuming marketing campaigns to reach users. These higher costs imposed formidable barriers to entry meaning higher prices and fewer choices for consumers.
Mobile software platforms provide one-stop shops that lower overhead costs, simultaneously freeing up capital to invest in growth and improvements while also enabling developers to reach consumers around the world.
Today, developers overwhelmingly use mobile platforms to distribute their applications in a mutually beneficial relationship. Developers provide useful and enjoyable digital content that attracts consumers to the platform, while platforms provide developers with a host of benefits like simplified market entry and consumer trust, and services that reduce overhead costs such as dispute resolution, data analytics, and strengthened IP rights enforcement.
The App Association urges the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit to reconsider the district court’s imposition of this injunction and consider the concerns of our many small app company members who will be harmed if the injunction continues.
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