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According to a new report in the New York Times, Apple CEO Tim Cook personally called Congressional Speaker Nancy Pelosi and other members of Congress, expressing his concerns about impending antitrust legislation.
The New York Times report According to the report, Cook personally called Speaker of the House Pelosi after antitrust legislation targeting Big Tech was introduced in the U.S. earlier this month. In his conversation with Pelosi, Cook expressed concerns that the antitrust laws were "rushed" and would "limit innovation," according to the report. It states:
The antitrust laws are rushed. They will slow innovation. And they will hurt consumers by disrupting the services that power Apple's lucrative iPhone, Cook warned at various points, according to five people with knowledge of the talks.
Apple should “identify specific policy objections to the measures”
Pelosi reportedly pushed back against Cook's concerns about the legislation and rejected his request that the House Judiciary Committee delay the process of considering the bills. She also pressed Cook to "identify specific policy objections to the measures." In addition to his phone calls with Pelosi, Cook reportedly also spoke with "other members of Congress to deliver a warning" about the impact of such harsh antitrust laws. Details about who he spoke with, however, are unclear. Apple is also working with lobbying groups to push back against the impending antitrust legislation. The report states:
New regulation could significantly impact App Store
Morgan Reed, president of the App Association, a trade group sponsored by Apple and other tech and telecom companies, said in a letter to lawmakers on Tuesday that breaking up platforms and “limiting the services they can provide to our member companies would harm your constituents.
US lawmakers introduced five bills last week targeting Amazon, Apple, Facebook, and Google. In their current form, the legislation would significantly impede the App Store and impact Apple's ability to pre-install applications on iPhones. The goal, according to Democratic Rep. David Cicilline, is to ensure that companies like Apple "do not use their market dominance to favor their own products and services." (Image: Apple)
