Event Announcement: Panel Discussion on ‘App Store Regulations in India’ by Alliance of Digital India Foundation (ADIF) & Coalition for App Fairness (CAF)

The goal of this discussion is to deepen our understanding of the issue, assess the concerns of developers, and determine if there is a need for government intervention, and if so, how.

Mobile devices have today become an indispensable part of our lives and provide a range of services through many software applications. However, the mobile OS market (and consequently the app store market) is largely dominated by two players – Google and Apple. As a result, any policies they adopt and/or enforce, affect a wide swathe of users and developers. One policy that has received a lot of attention in the recent past has been the decision to enforce a 30% commission on in-app purchases (IAPs) and paid apps, by mandating the use of proprietary payment systems. Several developers – both within India and outside - have objected to the quantum of the commission, and the lack of choice in picking a payment system, terming the policy change unreasonable.

Taking cognizance of these issues, regulators around the world have also expressed concerns with such policies. It is in this context that the Alliance for Digital India Foundation (ADIF) is partnering with the Coalition for App Fairness (CAF) to organize a panel discussion on the issue of app store regulation. The goal of this discussion is to deepen our understanding of the issue, assess concerns of developers, and determine if there is a need for government intervention, and if so - how.

To drive the conversation, we will be joined by an esteemed panel of experts who have been at the forefront of these discussions:

• Dr. Vikas Kathuria (Associate Professor, BML Munjal University Law School | Affiliated Research Fellow, Max Planck Institute for Innovation & Competition)

• Hannah Rickets (Deputy Director, Coalition for App Fairness)

• Jai Vipra (Senior Resident Fellow, Vidhi Centre for Legal Policy)

• Mark Buse (SVP, Head of Global Government Relations & Policy at Match Group)

• Sijo Kuruvilla George (Executive Director, ADIF)

The panel will be moderated by Rohit Kumar, Co-founder, The Quantum Hub

Date: 23rd February, 2022; 6 PM (IST)

Registration link: bit.ly/ADIFxPanel

Contact: amanat@adif.in

The joining link will be shared with all registered participants via email, closer to the date of the panel discussion.