I'll be testifying remotely today before the North Dakota State Senate in support of an amazing bill ensuring that software developers cannot be coerced into using app store payment processing or face retaliation if they refuse. This is what we need https://www.legis.nd.gov/assembly/67-2021/documents/21-1044-01000.pdf

It's truly an incredible bill. Plainly written, providing immediate relief, and expertly carved out to apply to large, general computing platforms. And you don't even need to be a lawyer to parse it. North Dakota would do so very, very well to pass this bill

Apple and Google will surely throw everything they have at it to prevent this bill from passing. When you have an extortion racket as profitable as the duopoly of app stores, you don't give up the rents without a fight. But doubt North Dakota will be swayed.

Part of the problem with these tech monopolies is that they end up being very extractive. How is it good for North Dakota that big tech companies based in California or Washington state are able to shake down companies in the other 48? It's not. Not at all.

Anyway, I'll publish my testimony after it's been delivered later today. But make no mistake. This is the holy grail of legislative relief we've been waiting for. Did not expect to have a real shot at real change this soon. Please @vestager, take notes, and deliver in the EU

This is not an unreasonable concern! Google threatened to cut off all of Australia, if they didn't back off on legislation they didn't like. But I doubt the North Dakota Senate is going to let itself be intimidated like that. https://twitter.com/ZaneSelvans/status/1359159304138469384?s=20

You can watch this hearing live directly from the North Dakota Senate hearing on SB 2333. https://video.legis.nd.gov/en/PowerBrowser/PowerBrowserV2/20210209/-1/19180

We were running low on time, so instead of focusing on my written testimony, I spent some time refuting the nonsense and scare tactics propelled by Google's and Apple's paid spokespeople. So here's my written testimony: https://m.signalvnoise.com/testimony-before-the-north-dakota-senate-industry-business-and-labor-committee/

Boy do Apple and Google love to conflate security and payments, though! On the one hand, Apple is super proud that they're only extorting 15% of developers the fee, while also claiming ITS ESSENTIAL unless hackers start stalking you (WAT?). Does not compute!

Also, love the argument, again, that they'd be running these stores at a loss, unless they can coerce the 15% of apps they're making pay for the show forever more. Wat? App developers already pay Apple hundreds of millions per year in fixed developer fees.

And "OMG THE WORLD IS GOING TO FALL IF YOU SIDELOAD" argument from Apple is truly peach, when you consider they've had a computing platform for FOURTY YEARS that "allows" that. It's the Mac! The Mac is GREAT BECAUSE OF IT. (M1 Macs extra great )

Apple's representative literally said it would "destroy iPhone as you know it". Lol. I know the Mac has been declared dead many times, but come on, to have Apple be the one chanting that nonsense is beyond over the top.

North Dakota's SB 2333 is the first real, concrete legislative proposal I've seen that actually gives me hope that tech monopolies aren't going to rule the world forever. Fargo or Bismarck sound like wonderful places to set up shop under a shield against abuse

Finally, one of the Google reps kept chanting "it's just billion dollar companies in contract disputes". First, Google and Apple are both TRILLION dollar companies. Second, I ain't no billionaire, yo! They need to paint this fight as one amongst equals, because the reality isn't.