Original comment:
I don't want this. The App Store on iOS has its flaws, but it's a curated system that has a lot of checks in place to prevent malware. I have never felt unsafe on iOS and it's the primary reason I've not joined Android and the Play Store's wild west.
This is about only allowing play verified apps. Play store will remain whatever you think of it regardless of this move.
Isn't iOS a pinnacle of UI/UX loaded with most innovative features in the world backed by the most genius CEOs of all times?
Locks down how? This is literally how it is from the start. Ignoring the fact that it is completely unrelated to the topic, this is just wrong regardless.
In the EU we can report this to: comp-market-information@ec.europa.eu
State that: Google is abusing its dominant position on the market for Android-app distribution by “denial of access to an essential facility”. Google is not complying with their "gatekeeper" DMA obligations (Article 5(4), Article 6(12), Article 11, Article 15)
Attach evidence.
Financial penalty is the only way to pressure this company to abide law.
> [...] the Digital Markets Act (‘DMA’) obliges gatekeepers like Google to effectively allow the distribution of apps on their operating system through third party app stores or the web. At the same time, the DMA also permits Google to introduce strictly necessary and proportionate measures to ensure that third-party software apps or app stores do not endanger the integrity of the hardware or operating system or to enable end users to effectively protect security. [...]
They seem to be on it, but no surprise: it's all about Google's claims for "security" and "ongoing dialogue gatekeepers".
Freedom to use own hardware or software, no.