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PRESS RELEASE
04/29/2020
Contact: Greg Guice, [email protected]

Washington, D.C. — Leading application companies (apps) across a range of technology sectors launched the App Coalition today, the first organization to solely focus on developing regulatory policies and legislation to ensure unfettered consumer access to apps and digital content.

While the Coalition has broader, longer term policy goals, the Covid-19 pandemic has added another area of focus for the app economy as consumers use apps to stay connected to content, news, services and community. While overall app usage has surged in recent weeks among numerous technology verticals as most Americans have adapted to shelter-in-place, social distancing and quarantine orders, in other verticals, such as travel and hospitality, usage has dramatically declined.

As Congress reconvenes this week, App Coalition members are seeking legislation to modify Small Business Administration (SBA) industry size standards for software developers and the affiliation rules to better reflect the way app developers start and grow their businesses.

“A dynamic app economy is critical to consumers who rely on apps as their primary means of accessing digital content and information,” said Eric Silverberg, CEO of Perry Street Software. “It’s important that Congress recognizes that the multi-billion dollar app ecosystem remains vital as part of the overall efforts to restart and rebuild the economy.”

The broader objective of the Coalition is to promote a market where consumers have unimpeded access to the content of their choosing on their devices through apps. The App Coalition is working with several ranking members of Congress, and has provided congressional committee testimony and responses to several regulatory agency inquiries as part of its goals to develop policies and legislation relating to content moderation, privacy, access, and other elements of a functioning app economy.

“The App Coalition is distinct in that it represents independent app companies that are driving innovation across a range of verticals, unlike other organizations that focus on issues relevant to a single company or vertical,” said Greg Guice, Executive Director of the App Coalition and Senior Vice President at McGuireWoods Consulting.

Further, the Coalition is planning its first App Economy Virtual Summit in June 2020, which will include current and prospective members, members of Congress, regulatory agencies, academics, and developers. The summit will provide participants a forum to discuss policies, outline goals, and network with each other on topics including privacy, data security, content moderation, access, Covid-19 relief, and other topics relevant to a thriving and growing app economy.

App Economy Key Stats

Consumer Preference Has Shifted to Apps

  • Consumers spend an average of 69% of digital media time on smartphone and tablet apps and only 23% on desktops – a 12% increase over the previous year (Comscore 2019 App Usage Report)
  • The average user downloads two apps a month
  • App usage is heavier among younger users, but all age groups, including those over 65, spend the majority of their time in apps, rather than on websites

The App Market Provides Diverse Options to Meet Consumer Demand

  • More than 7,000 app development companies are in the United States (Software World Report)
  • App revenue is more than $71 billion and growing (Sensor Tower App Revenue)
  • More than 4 million apps are available to consumers representing a range of audiences (App Annie)
  • Consumers downloaded 194 billion apps worldwide in 2018 (App Annie)

About The App Coalition

The App Coalition is a member-led organization devoted to developing policies to promote the global app economy and protect consumers who increasingly rely upon their mobile apps, rather than websites, to manage their daily lives. The Coalition’s longer term mission is focused on:

  • A market free from control by artificial barriers, such as those created by gatekeepers;
  • Support for content moderation policies that reflect the customer relationship between an app and its customer, not third-party interference; and
  • A set of uniform privacy laws and data security practices reflective of consumer expectations.

For more information about the App Coalition and the upcoming App Economy Virtual Summit, visit www.appcoalition.org or follow @appcoalition on Twitter.

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