Google, Apple Executives to Testify in App Store Antitrust Hearing on April 21

Senior executives with Alphabet's Google and Apple will testify on Wednesday about antitrust concerns related to their app stores along with executives of three companies which rely on those online stores, the leaders of the Senate Judiciary Committee's antitrust panel said on Monday.

The hearing will include Google Government Affairs Senior Director Wilson White and Apple's Chief Compliance Officer Kyle Andeer as well as Spotify's Chief Legal Officer Horacio Gutierrez, Match's Chief Legal Officer Jared Sine and Kirsten Daru, general counsel for Tile.

The witness list was announced by Senators Amy Klobuchar, chair of the antitrust panel, and Mike Lee, its top Republican.

Music streaming service Spotify and dating app Match have been critical of both tech giants' app stores, while Tile, whose app helps people find objects, has focused on Apple.

App makers have long complained that mandatory revenue sharing payments and strict inclusion rules set by Apple's App Store for iPhone models and iPad devices, along with Google's Play store for Android devices, amount to anticompetitive behaviour.

The four tech giant - Apple, Amazon, Facebook, and Google - have come under tough scrutiny for more than a year because of such varied concerns as privacy breaches, allegations of hate speech, and stifling conservative voices and violations of antitrust law.

© Thomson Reuters 2021

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