Technology companies Meta, Spotify, Match Group and Garmin have founded a lobbying group that said it will “combat anti-competitive practices by smartphone platform owners.” The Coalition for a Competitive Mobile Experience (CCME) will advocate for hardware and software interoperability, a level playing field in the app marketplace and age verification at the app store level. Specifically, the group said that smartphone providers should ensure that competitors’ software, apps and hardware work seamlessly with their devices; app store providers should allow competing app stores to work on their operating systems without unreasonable interference; and app stores should be responsible for enforcing age-based content restrictions. “Smartphones have become one of the most important tools in our daily lives, but the mobile experience is controlled by gatekeepers that have used their control of the market to stifle competition and choice at the expense of consumers,” CCME Director Brandon Kressin said. The issues on which the group is focused “will give consumers the power they deserve, providing more freedom and access, all while lowering costs,” Kressin said.