Chrome Central: Apple CEO Tim Cook: 'We Want to Get Every App We Can on the Store, Not Keep Them Off'

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As Apple CEO Tim Cook prepares to testify in front of the U.S. House Judiciary Antitrust Subcommittee tomorrow, Bloomberg has shared details on Cook's opening statement.

Cook will say that Apple does "not have a dominant market share" in any market where it does not do business, and that consumers have many other choices when it comes to smartphones. "As much as we believe the iPhone provides the best user experience, we know it is far from the only choice available to consumers," reads Cook's testimony.

Cook will "make no concession on the facts" and plans to dispute claims that Apple is anti-competitive. Apple's App Store, Cook says has opened the "gate wider" for developers.

"After beginning with 500 apps, today the ‌App Store‌ hosts more than 1.7 million - only 60 of which are Apple software," Cook says. "Clearly, if Apple is a gatekeeper, what we have done is open the gate wider. We want to get every app we can on the store, not keep them off."

As for high ‌App Store‌ commissions, Cook will argue that Apple's 15 to 30 percent cut is competitive with alternatives, and that Apple offers a better option than what was available for software developers prior to when the ‌App Store‌ launched in 2008.

Cook plans to explain that Apple has not raised commissions or added fees since the ‌App Store‌ debuted, and has, in fact, reduced fees for subscriptions and added exemptions for certain app categories. "The ‌App Store‌ evolves with the times and every change we have made has been in the direction of providing a better experience for our users and a compelling business opportunity for developers," reads Cook's statement.

The antitrust hearing will kick off tomorrow at 12:00 p.m. Eastern Time, with a live stream to be provided. It will also feature testimony from Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, and Google/Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai. Bloomberg's full article has additional details on Cook's planned talking points.

Tags: App Store, Tim Cook, antitrust

This article, "Apple CEO Tim Cook: 'We Want to Get Every App We Can on the Store, Not Keep Them Off'" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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