Computer companies including the biggest Big Tech targets of a potential revamp of antitrust regulations have told the National Telecommunications & Information Administration that  the mobile app market is already a 'fair, open and competitive marketplace' and that using antitrust enforcement to go after perceived inequities could hurt consumers and innovation.

That is according to comments filed by the Computer & Communications Industry Association.

NTIA, the White House’s chief communications policy adviser, last month asked for input on the state of mobile app competition, a request that suggested app competition needed "restoring" and that the goal was one of the "critical priorities" of President Biden's Executive Order on Promoting Competition in the American Economy."

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CCIA, whose members include Amazon, Apple, Facebook and Google, essentially told NTIA 'nothing to see here,' or at least nothing that can't be fixed by Congress with federal privacy standards. “Growth and innovation in the mobile app ecosystem, together with rapid advancements in the power and diversity of mobile devices, have created a fiercely competitive environment benefiting consumers, developers, and the computer industry," it said.

CCIA renewed its call for Congress to come up with federal privacy legislation to protect consumers' privacy on mobile apps rather than have the Federal Trade Commission and Justice Department "rewrite antitrust practice and jurisprudence accumulated over the course of many decades," in the process "overlooking the significant constraints that multi-sided firms face and, accordingly, finding anticompetitive conduct where none exists."

It said that such "false positives” by either regulators or the courts "deter innovation and hinder consumer welfare." ■

Digital cricket brand ESPNcricinfo has updated its signature mobile app, featuring its fastest ever performance and a range of new features.

Delivering the most comprehensive cricket coverage from across the world, the refreshed app, timed for the worldwide leader's subscription streaming presentation of 2015 ICC Cricket World Cup, enhances fans’ ability to stay up to date with the latest news, info, scores and more.

The updated ESPNcricinfo app is available on iOS, Android and Windows 8.

The app provides faster than ever live match scores and data alongside a range of new and updated features will increase user engagement with the app and provide additional methods of interaction with other cricket fans. The updates include:

·         World Cup – dedicated section featuring exclusive content from ESPNcricinfo

·         Content – updates provide unlimited news loading and access to additional content through a simple swipe process

·         Matches –calendar includes rich enhanced filters to access all matches

·         Scores – access to archives of match results from previous years

·         Match Centre – newly restructured featuring full scorecard, commentary – including a new summary feature allowing for a quick preview of each piece of content – and extensive match coverage

·         Improved Functionality – a newly enhanced UI experience across all content

“Mobile is critical to the modern fan, and is central to all of our thinking at ESPNcricinfo and across ESPN digital,” said Ramesh Kumar, head of ESPNcricinfo and ESPN India.  “The new app offers enhanced performance and superior user interface, as well as new features and sections, and all of the industry-leading, trusted content that cricket fans turn to ESPNcricinfo for.”