App Store Antitrust Bill: What AICOA Means for You
A reintroduced App Store antitrust bill, AICOA, could bring sideloading and alternative payments to your iPhone. Here is what it means for you, minus the jargon.
Key Takeaways
- Senators Grassley and Klobuchar reintroduced AICOA, a bipartisan App Store antitrust bill that would bar the largest platforms from favoring their own products.
- If enacted, AICOA could allow third-party app marketplaces and alternative payment methods on the iPhone, similar to the EU's Digital Markets Act.
- Apple strongly opposes the bill, arguing it imports failed European policy and undermines privacy, security, and child safety, and it remains unpassed since 2021.
On this page
Could a single bill in the Senate change how you download apps and pay for them on your iPhone?
A bipartisan group of senators has reintroduced the American Innovation and Choice Online Act, known as AICOA, and Apple has already pushed back hard against it.
What is the AICOA App Store antitrust bill?
AICOA is a bill that would stop the largest digital platforms from favoring their own products and abusing their market power.
Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley and Senator Amy Klobuchar reintroduced it this week, reviving an effort first introduced in 2021 that has never reached the president's desk.
According to 9to5Mac, the bill aims to restore online competition and affordability by preventing dominant platforms from stifling competition, undercutting online businesses, and raising prices for American consumers.
It would apply to platforms with at least $175 billion in average annual gross revenue that reach at least 34% of U.S. subscriber households or 34% of U.S. monthly active users over the age of 12.
Apple, Google, Amazon, and Meta would all be subject to the restrictions if it passes.
It is a reworked version of the same bill that did not reach a floor vote in 2022, and it has co-sponsors including Josh Hawley, Dick Durbin, Sheldon Whitehouse, and Cory Booker.
What AICOA would actually ban
The bill targets specific platform behaviors rather than vague principles.
If enacted, covered platforms would be prohibited from the following:
- Unfairly favoring their own products or services.
- Misusing nonpublic business-user data to copy and compete against small businesses.
- Unfairly limiting competitors' access to key platform features.
- Blocking business users from accessing or moving their own data to another platform.
- Retaliating against users or business users who raise legal concerns.
- Unfairly enforcing terms of service in ways that harm competition.
- Conditioning platform access or product placement on buying unrelated services.
- Locking users into default settings.
- Skewing ranking or presentation against similar business users.
The bill would also let the Department of Justice, the Federal Trade Commission, and state attorneys general challenge platforms for conduct that harms competition.
Bill sponsors say AICOA was written to preserve safety, privacy, intellectual property, national security, and constitutional protections, with language to let platforms prevent fraud and protect security.
What it could change on your iPhone
The most direct effect for you is how you get and pay for apps.
Like the European Union's Digital Markets Act, AICOA would allow third-party app marketplaces and alternative payment methods.
That means you could potentially install apps from outside the App Store and pay developers through systems other than Apple's.
The provisions against locking users into default settings could also make it easier to change the default apps your iPhone uses.
What is easy to miss here is that the bill is endorsed by companies that compete with Apple's defaults, including Mozilla, Proton, DuckDuckGo, Yelp, and Y Combinator.
Why Apple is fighting AICOA
Apple strongly disagrees with the bill and frames it as imported European-style regulation.
In a statement, Apple said the proposal would hamper innovation and force changes consumers never asked for while undermining the privacy, security, and child safety protections they rely on every day.
The company argued that importing Europe's failed policies will not increase competition and will make it harder to do business at home.
Apple drew parallels between AICOA and the DMA, saying surveys have shown Europeans perceive their online experiences as worse than before the DMA was enacted.
Apple also warned that AICOA could negatively affect children by undermining parental controls and trust and safety APIs it has added over the years.
The company pointed to a study it commissioned that found developers kept prices the same or raised them on 91% of products despite an average commission rate decrease of 10 percentage points under the DMA.
How the two sides compare
The debate comes down to a tradeoff between competition and Apple's control over its platform.
| Issue | Bill sponsors say | Apple says |
|---|---|---|
| Goal | Restore competition and affordability | Hampers innovation, copies failed EU policy |
| App distribution | Allow third-party marketplaces and payments | Undermines App Store user protections |
| Privacy and safety | Includes carve-outs for privacy and security | Weakens privacy, security, and child safety |
| Prices | Lower prices for consumers | Developers kept 91% of prices flat or higher under DMA |
As of this push, AICOA has repeatedly advanced with bipartisan support but has never become law, so nothing changes on your iPhone yet.
The practical reality is that this is a reintroduction, not an enacted law, so any sideloading or payment changes depend on whether Congress finally passes it.
Frequently asked questions
What is the AICOA bill?
AICOA, the American Innovation and Choice Online Act, is a reintroduced bipartisan bill that would stop the largest digital platforms like Apple, Google, Amazon, and Meta from abusing their market power to favor their own products.
Would AICOA allow sideloading on iPhone?
Potentially. Like the EU's Digital Markets Act, AICOA would allow third-party app marketplaces and alternative payment methods, though Apple says this undermines App Store protections.
Why does Apple oppose AICOA?
Apple says AICOA imports failed European-style regulation that hampers innovation, weakens privacy, security, and child safety protections, and makes it harder to do business in the U.S.
About the author
The Mixstackrr Team is a group of writers and editors with more than 10 years of combined experience in SEO and consumer tech. We test devices, dig through settings, and turn everyday tech problems into clear, step-by-step guides anyone can follow.
