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[SUMMARY - PLEASE REVIEW DETAILED CONTRIBUTION]
Please see attached for comments of ACT | The App Association (www.actonline.org) in response to the ITU CWG-Internet open consultation request for input regarding public policy considerations for “over-the-top” (OTT) services. The App Association represents more than 5,000 small business app makers and high tech companies throughout the global digital economy. Our members use mobile technologies to produce innovative solutions that drive the dynamic $143 billion app ecosystem.
While the global digital economy holds great promise for small app developers, our members face an array of challenges when entering new markets. These challenges may take the shape of laws, regulations, or policies that exclude goods and services from foreign markets and seek to artificially stimulate domestic industries. While these trade barriers use different means, they have the same end: impeding the availability of the global digital economy to internet end-users. We call on the ITU and CWG-Internet to seek consensus across stakeholder groups to reduce these barriers for the benefit of the billions of internet users around the globe. While larger corporations may be more equipped to absorb the costs associated with unnecessary regulations and trade barriers to market access, small businesses that cannot afford these expenses are effectively excluded from these markets.
As we discuss in our detailed filing (attached), the App Association believes the ITU’s expansion into OTT would represent an unprecedented overreach that does not align with its mandate or the expectations of its members. We strongly urge the ITU to continue focusing on its core issues, which have generated a robust and diverse body of work.
I urge ITU to contact the undersigned with any comments or questions if we may be of assistance.
Best regards,
Brian Scarpelli
Senior Policy Counsel
ACT | The App Association
1401 K St NW (Ste 501)
Washington, DC 20005
+1 517-507-1446 | bscarpelli@actonline.org
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