ACT: The App Association came to the defense of Apple after Sen. Al Franken wrote the Federal Trade Commission and Department of Justice to ask them to scrutinize Apple Music, the new streaming service, over his concerns it could undermine the competition.
ACT suggested that competition, singling out Spotify, was "is playing the defenseless ingénue when it’s really a foreign competitor [it launched in Sweden] worth billions."
"We are disappointed in Senator Franken’s response to Apple's new music offerings," said App Association Executive Director Morgan Reed. "Senator Franken is out of sync when he asserts that the company’s entrance into the music streaming market is anticompetitive. The mobile app marketplace is one of the most vibrant ecosystems in the world, and the introduction of Apple Music does nothing to make it less competitive. Further, while app makers make more money on Apple’s platform, it occupies a relatively small share of the global market."
Reed said that Apple provided a "safe and secure" marketplace in which its members thrive and was just trying to "occupy a moderately-sized space alongside other established services."
ACT represents more than 5,000 small and mid-sized mobile app software companies.
