US lawmakers have invited Apple, Facebook and Google to attend a hearing on mobile phones and privacy on Thursday — the second Capitol Hill appearance in a week for executives from Apple and Google. Senator Jay Rockefeller said the hearing of the Senate Consumer Protection, Product Safety and Insurance Subcommittee would focus on “industry practices with respect to online mobile data collection and usage.”
“The hearing will also explore the possible role of the federal government in protecting consumers in the mobile marketplace and promoting their privacy,” he noted. Among those listed as witnesses are Catherine Novelli, Apple’s vice president for worldwide government affairs, Bret Taylor, Facebook’s chief technology officer, and Alan Davidson, Google’s director of public policy for the Americas.Davidson appeared before the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Privacy, Technology and the Law on May 10 along with an Apple executive, Bud Tribble, vice president for software technology at the California gadget-maker.
