New Analysis Highlights How EU’s Failed Tech Regulations Could Harm U.S. Consumers and Businesses

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Kara Zupkus (224) 456-0257

WASHINGTON, D.C. ― As Congress considers proposals modeled after the European Union’s (EU) Digital Markets Act (DMA), the Taxpayers Protection Alliance Foundation (TPAF), through the App Security Project, today released a new analysis warning that EU-style technology regulation could leave American consumers paying more for inferior digital experiences, while undermining the innovation that has made American technology companies global leaders.

The analysis, “The DMA Tech Effect: A Future of Broken Features,” illustrates how the DMA’s interoperability mandates and onerous restrictions on integrated technology ecosystems are creating unintended consequences for everyday consumers, ranging from weaker cybersecurity protections to degraded device functionality.

Ross Marchand, Executive Director of TPAF, offered the following comment:

“For decades, American consumers have benefited enormously from competitive tech markets that reward companies for building better products. Taxpayers should be deeply skeptical of Washington importing failed European regulatory experiments that ultimately make technology less secure, less convenient, and less innovative. Heavy-handed government mandates threaten to replace consumer choice with bureaucratic micromanagement.”

Policies modeled on the DMA could produce several unintended consequences, including:

• Weakening app security by encouraging alternative app stores and sideloading that may expose consumers to greater risks of scams, malware, and cyberattacks
• Reducing compatibility and convenience for connected devices, such as wireless accessories and accessibility tools
• Undermining navigation tools and mobile experiences as operating system integration is restricted
• Degrading messaging services through interoperability requirements that could diminish features, reliability, and overall user experience

Read the analysis below.

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The Taxpayers Protection Alliance Foundation (TPAF) is a non-profit, non-partisan organization dedicated to educating the public through the research, analysis, and dissemination of information on the government’s impact on the economy.