,,ii #aaith ,,congress #b;d ,session ,s4 #dcdi ,,in ,,the ,,senate ,,of ,,the ,,united ,,states ,april #bj1 #bjbf,mr4 ,moran 7for himself and ,ms4 ,rosen7 introduced the following bill2 which was read twice and referred to the ,committee on ,commerce1 ,science1 and ,transportation ,a ,,bill ,to ensure responsible age assurance practices within the mobile ecosystem1 particularly concerning the protection of minors1 and for other purposes4 #a4 ,short title2 table of contents 7a7 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,parents ,over ,platforms ,act4 7b7 ,table of contents ,the table of contents for this ,act is as follows3 ,sec4 #a4 ,short title2 table of contents4,sec4 #b4 ,definitions4,,title ,i--,,application ,,distribution ,,provider ,,and ,,developer ,r,e,s,p,o,n,s,i,b,i,l,i,t,i,e,s,sec4 #aja4 ,age assurance4,sec4 #ajb4 ,application distributor and developer obligations4,,title ,,ii--,,liability ,,and ,e,n,f,o,r,c,e,m,e,n,t,sec4 #bja4 ,limitations on liability4,sec4 #bjb4 ,enforcement4,sec4 #bjc4 ,preemption4,sec4 #bjd4 ,severability4,sec4 #bje4 ,effective date4 #b4 ,definitions ,in this ,act3 7#a7 ,adult ,the term adult means an account holder who is or is estimated to be #ah years of age or older4 7#b7 ,age category ,the term age category means categorization of an individual based on age or estimated age1 including a description of the user as a minor1 an adult1 or as being within a given age range4 7#c7 ,age signal ,the term age signal means a signal that indicates an account holder's age category1 which the account holder or the account holder's parent has agreed to share4 7#d7 ,application 7,a7 ,in general ,the term application means a software program that is-- 7i7 designed to be run on a connected device1 and to perform1 or to help the user perform1 a specific task on the connected device2 and 7ii7 distributed through an application distribution provider4 7,b7 ,exclusions ,the term application does not include-- 7i7 websites or internet browser extensions2 or 7ii7 software with a primary purpose of extending the functionality of an internet browser4 7#e7 ,application distributor ,the term application distributor-- 7,a7 means a software application that distributes applications from developers to users of a connected device2 and 7,b7 does not include an internet browser4 7#f7 ,application distribution provider ,the term application distribution provider means an entity1 company1 or organization that owns1 operates1 or controls an application distributor4 7#g7 ,commission ,the term ,commission means the ,federal ,trade ,commission4 7#h7 ,connected device ,the term connected device means a smartphone1 tablet1 gaming console1 or virtual reality device that enables users to connect to the internet and download applications4 7#i7 ,covered application 7,a7 ,in general ,the term covered application-- 7i7 means an application-- 7,i7 that is not an application distributor2 and 7,,ii7 for which a developer provides1 whether legally required or not-- 7aa7 a different experience for adults than for minors2 or 7bb7 an experience that is intended only for adults2 and 7ii7 includes an application for which a developer provides different account types1 content1 or features1 or engages in different advertising or data practices1 depending on a user's age4 7,b7 ,exclusion ,the term covered application does not include an internet browser or online search engine4 7#aj7 ,covered website 7,a7 ,in general ,the term covered website means a website that provides a ,,url-accessible or web version of a covered application4 7,b7 ,exclusion ,the term covered website does not include an internet browser or online search engine4 7#aa7 ,developer ,the term developer means any person1 entity1 company1 or organization that creates1 owns1 or controls an application4 7#ab7 ,minor ,the term minor means an account holder who is or is estimated to be under the age of #ah4 7#ac7 ,personalized advertising 7,a7 ,in general ,the term personalized advertising means the displaying of an advertisement to an account holder that is selected based on personal data obtained from the account holder's activities over time and across non-affiliated websites or online applications to predict such account holder's preferences or interests4 7,b7 ,exclusion ,the term personalized advertising does not include-- 7i7 advertising based on an account holder's activities within a developer's own application or applications2 7ii7 advertising based on the context of an account holder's current interaction with an application2 7iii7 advertising directed to an account holder in response to the account holder's direct request for information or feedback2 or 7iv7 the processing of personal data solely for measuring or reporting advertising performance1 reach1 or frequency4 ,i ,,application ,,distribution ,,provider ,,and ,,developer ,,responsibilities #aja4 ,age assurance 7a7 ,responsibilities of application distribution providers ,an application distribution provider-- 7#a7 shall ask account holders to declare their age when creating an account with the application distribution provider2 7#b7 may use commercially reasonable efforts to obtain the age category of an account holder with a reasonable level of certainty2 7#c7 may provide account holders with a mechanism to obtain their age category and the ability to request an update if they believe their age category is incorrect2 and 7#d7 shall provide developers of covered applications the technical ability to access an age signal where the account holder or the account holder's parent has agreed to share such age signal4 7b7 ,rules of construction ,nothing in this section shall be construed to-- 7#a7 preclude an application distribution provider from using multiple commercially reasonable methods to obtain1 estimate1 or provide the age category of an account holder2 or 7#b7 restrict an application distribution provider's ability to satisfy the requirements of this section by obtaining a minor account holder's age from the minor's parent4 #ajb4 ,application distributor and developer obligations 7a7 ,application distribution providers 7#a7 ,obligations ,an application distribution provider shall do the following3 7,a7 ,provide a minor account holder's parent with the ability to prevent the minor from acquiring or using a developer's covered application from the application distributor4 7,b7 ,provide developers with the ability to provide information regarding their relevant parental controls for a covered application through a centralized product page or user interface1 hosted by the application distribution provider1 that provides relevant information about a covered application4 7,c7 ,comply with the obligations described in subsection 7b7 with respect to any covered applications for which the application distribution provider is also the developer4 7,d7 ,not use data collected from third-party covered applications in the course of compliance with this section to give the application distribution provider's own applications preference relative to those of third parties1 or to otherwise use such data in an anti-competitive manner4 7#b7 ,rule of construction ,nothing in this section shall be construed to prevent an application distribution provider from creating a user interface or centralized page for minor account holders' parents to block categories by age rating of covered applications based on the content and features of the covered application4 7b7 ,developers of covered applications 7#a7 ,in general ,a developer of a covered application shall do the following3 7,a7 ,report to the application distribution provider whether the application of the developer provides a different experience for adult users than for minor users or is intended only for adults4 7,b7 ,with respect to any covered application that is authorized to be used by a minor1 provide information regarding privacy and online safety settings to help parents support minors using such application4 7,c7 ,use commercially reasonable efforts to determine whether a user is an adult or a minor with a reasonable level of certainty in accordance with paragraph 7#b74 7,d7 ,make a reasonable effort to ensure that users who are minors cannot engage in any activity that has been restricted by the developer for adults only4 7,e7 ,obtain consent prior to permitting minor account holders from accessing a covered application or portion thereof that the developer has designated as unsuitable for use by minors without parental guidance or supervision1 or from accessing content that is age-gated by law4 7,f7 ,not deliver personalized advertising to minors4 7,g7 ,with respect to an age signal requested by a developer from an application distribution provider regarding use of a covered application1 the developer-- 7i7 shall request the minimum amount of information needed for purposes of compliance with this ,act2 7ii7 may not willfully disregard any information regarding an individual's age or age category that is otherwise available to the developer2 7iii7 may not share the information obtained from the age signal with third parties1 except for a service provider1 but only if necessary for such service provider to implement safety measures or privacy protections for minors or otherwise required to do so by law2 and 7iv7 may not use the age signal for any purpose beyond that intended by this ,act1 including using the age signal to obtain or attempt to obtain a user's date of birth4 7,h7 ,in the event that a developer uses a method other than an age signal provided by an application distribution provider to satisfy the requirements of this section1 the developer-- 7i7 shall request the minimum amount of information needed for purposes of compliance with this ,act2 7ii7 may not willfully disregard any information regarding an individual's age or age category that is available to the developer2 7iii7 may not share the information obtained in the course of complying with this section with third parties1 except for a service provider1 but only if necessary for such service provider to implement safety measures or privacy protections for minors or otherwise required to do so by law2 and 7iv7 may not use age data for any purpose beyond that intended by this ,act1 including using age data to obtain or attempt to obtain a user's date of birth4 7#b7 ,commercially reasonable effort 7,a7 ,in general ,subject to subparagraph 7,b71 for the purposes paragraph 7#a77;,c71 an age signal provided to a developer by an application distribution provider shall be considered a commercially reasonable effort4 7,b7 ,exception ,with respect to an application that is intended only for adults and is required by law to restrict access to adults1 an age signal provided to a developer by an application distribution provider that indicates a user is-- 7i7 a minor shall be a sufficient basis to block access to such application2 or 7ii7 an adult shall not1 by itself1 satisfy the requirement to determine whether a user is an adult with a reasonable level of certainty1 including for purposes of other laws that require access restrictions based on age4 7c7 ,special rules 7#a7 ,common control ,if a developer and an application distribution provider are controlled by the same entity1 the developer may rely on age determinations made by that entity4 7#b7 ,applicability to covered websites ,a developer of a covered website shall have the same requirements as a developer of a covered application under this ,act and may carry over or repurpose an age signal received from an application distribution provider under section #aja7;a77#d7 to fulfill such requirements with respect to the developer's covered website4 ,,ii ,,liability ,,and ,,enforcement #bja4 ,limitations on liability 7a7 ,application distribution providers ,an application distribution provider that makes a good faith effort to comply with the obligations of this ,act 7as determined by the ,commission or a court taking into consideration available technology7 shall not be liable under any provision of this ,act1 or otherwise liable for its actions taken in attempt to comply with this ,act1 including1 but not limited to1 the following with regard to facilitation of the provision of an age signal3 7#a7 ,any erroneous age signal4 7#b7 ,any conduct by a developer of a covered application that receives any age signal4 7#c7 ,failing to provide an age signal due to any reasonable technical limitations or outages that prevent the provision of the age signal upon request4 7#d7 ,not providing the age signal to developers that do not adhere to reasonable safety standards and application distribution provider policies4 7b7 ,developers 7#a7 ,sole liability for determining whether an application is a covered application ,a developer shall be solely responsible for correctly identifying whether an application of the developer is a covered application under this ,act4 ,no application distribution provider is required to proactively identify a covered application1 and an application distribution provider shall not be held liable in cases where a developer provides inaccurate information about its applications4 7#b7 ,erroneous age signal ,a developer of a covered application shall not be liable for an erroneous age signal provided by an application distribution provider if the developer makes a reasonable effort1 taking into consideration available technology1 to properly use the age signal and carry out commercially reasonable methods to obtain or estimate the age of an account holder4 #bjb4 ,enforcement 7a7 ,unfair or deceptive acts or practices ,a violation of this ,act or a regulation promulgated thereunder shall be treated as a violation of a rule defining an unfair or deceptive act or practice under section #ah7;a77#a77;,b7 of the ,federal ,trade ,commission ,act 7#ae ,u4,s4,c4 #eg;a7a77#a77;,b774 7b7 ,powers of the ,commission 7#a7 ,in general ,the ,commission shall enforce this ,act in the same manner1 by the same means1 and with the same jurisdiction1 powers1 and duties as though all applicable terms and provisions of the ,federal ,trade ,commission ,act 7#ae ,u4,s4,c4 #da et seq47 were incorporated into and made a part of this ,act4 7#b7 ,privileges and immunities ,any person who violates this ,act or a regulation promulgated thereunder shall be subject to the penalties and entitled to the privileges and immunities provided in the ,federal ,trade ,commission ,act 7#ae ,u4,s4,c4 #da et seq474 7#c7 ,authority preserved ,nothing in this ,act shall be construed to limit the authority of the ,commission under any other provision of law4 #bjc4 ,preemption ,no ,state or political subdivision of a ,state may maintain1 enforce1 prescribe1 or continue in effect any law1 rule1 regulation1 requirement1 standard1 or other provision having the force and effect of law of any ,state1 or political subdivision of a ,state1 related to the provisions of this ,act4 #bjd4 ,severability ,if any provision of this ,act or the application of any provision to any person or circumstance is held invalid by a final decision of a court of competent jurisdiction1 the remainder of this ,act shall be given effect without the invalid provision or application4 #bje4 ,effective date ,this ,act shall take effect on the date that is #b years after the date of its enactment4