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[moz_blog_header_sustainability_2020-11-11-1000x563]
Mozilla
Calling for Antitrust Reform
calendar June 14, 2022
author Urmika Devi Shah
Mozilla supports the American Innovation and Choice Online Act
(AICOA). The time for change is now.
It's time for governments to address the reality that five tech
companies--not everyday consumers--control our online experiences
today. Updated competition laws are essential for the internet to be
private, secure, interoperable, open, accessible, transparent, and a
balance between commercial profit and public benefit. This is
Mozilla's vision for the internet. For a number of years, we have
shared our views supporting government competition efforts globally
to achieve it.
One such proposal now under discussion in the US Congress is the
American Innovation and Choice Online Act (AICOA). This bill is an
important step in correcting two decades of digital centralization by
creating a level playing field for smaller, independent software
companies to compete. We support this bipartisan effort led by
Senators Amy Klobuchar and Chuck Grassley and Representatives David
Cicilline and Ken Buck.
We believe that AICOA will facilitate innovation and consumer choice
by ensuring that big tech companies cannot give preference to their
own products and services over the rich diversity of competitive
options offered by others. Mozilla--and many other independent
companies--cannot effectively compete without this antitrust law. We
are disadvantaged by the fact that current and future Firefox users,
many of whom are privacy and security focused, cannot easily install
and keep Firefox as their preferred browser because of confusing
operating system messages and settings. We are further challenged by
app store rules designed to keep out Gecko, our independent browser
engine that powers Firefox, Tor and other browsers. We are stuck when
big tech companies do not offer us and other developers open APIs and
other functionality needed for true interoperability.
A fair playing field is vital to ensure that Mozilla and other
independent companies can continue to act as a counterweight to big
tech and shape the future of the internet to be more private and more
secure. We understand that the bill sponsors intend AICOA to regulate
only gatekeeper companies and their controlled products. It is not
intended to regulate or impact the agreements or product offerings of
non-regulated independent companies like Mozilla that partner with
gatekeepers for critical services. Nor does it require trading off
privacy and security in order to enhance competition.
We disagree with the position taken by opponents to AICOA that
competition legislation will undermine privacy and security. It is
true that companies like Apple and Google offer key privacy features
and security services that protect millions; for example, Apple's App
Tracking Transparency (ATT) approach and Google's Safebrowsing
service. Mozilla advocated for Apple to implement ATT, and Firefox
(and all major browsers) use Safebrowsing. We do not believe these
technologies would be impacted by AICOA because they can be provided
without engaging in problematic self-preferencing behavior and
because the bill includes clear protections for privacy and security.
Our view is that self-preferencing is preventing internet development
from being more private and secure than it is today. For example,
Mozilla was at the forefront of developing technology against
cross-site tracking. Yet we have never released this technology to
Firefox users on iOS because of App Store rules preferring Apple's
own browser engine over alternatives. As another example, Android's
affiliated browser Chrome does not offer anti-tracking technology.
This leaves the majority of people on the planet without effective
privacy protections. Real browser competition would empower millions
to choose freely.
This year marks the 15th anniversary of the Mozilla Manifesto and two
decades of our advocacy for a better internet. There has been
progress in many areas, but the time has come for government action.
15 years of every major platform deciding for you that you should use
their software is far too long. Enabling a level playing field for
independent options is good for people's online experiences, good for
innovation and the economy, and ultimately good for a healthy, open
internet. We applaud those leading the charge on antitrust reform in
the US and across the globe. The time for change is now.
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