U.S. Senators Urge Apple to Reconsider Decision Not to Testify in Upcoming App Store Hearing

Apple has decided not to testify in a U.S. Senate subcommittee hearing on antitrust issues related to mobile App Stores, and U.S. senators have called Apple's refusal "unacceptable," reports Reuters.

app store blue banner
In a letter addressed to Apple CEO Tim Cook, senators Amy Klobuchar and Mike Lee urged Apple to reconsider the decision because a "full and fair examination" of competition issues requires Apple's participation.

The senators say that Apple has been aware of the upcoming April hearing for weeks and even held discussions with Senate staff members on who would testify on Apple's behalf, but then Apple "abruptly declared" that it would provide no witness to testify at all.

Apple is citing its upcoming trial against Epic Games as the reason for not providing a witness for the App Store hearing, but the Senate Judiciary Committee's Subcommittee on Competition Policy, Antitrust, and Consumer Rights is not happy with that excuse.

There is no specific date set for the hearing as of yet, but Google plans to participate. It will look at the power that Apple and Google have over the cost, distribution, and availability of mobile apps on iPhone and Android devices.

Note: Due to the political or social nature of the discussion regarding this topic, the discussion thread is located in our Political News forum. All forum members and site visitors are welcome to read and follow the thread, but posting is limited to forum members with at least 100 posts.

Popular Stories

iphone 17 models

No iPhone 18 Launch This Year, Reports Suggest

Thursday January 1, 2026 8:43 am PST by
Apple is not expected to release a standard iPhone 18 model this year, according to a growing number of reports that suggest the company is planning a significant change to its long-standing annual iPhone launch cycle. Despite the immense success of the iPhone 17 in 2025, the iPhone 18 is not expected to arrive until the spring of 2027, leaving the iPhone 17 in the lineup as the latest...
apple intelligence black

Report: Apple's AI Strategy Could Finally Pay Off in 2026

Tuesday December 30, 2025 9:01 am PST by
Apple's restrained artificial intelligence strategy may pay off in 2026 amid the arrival of a revamped Siri and concerns around the AI market "bubble" bursting, The Information argues. The speculative report notes that Apple has taken a restrained approach with AI innovations compared with peers such as OpenAI, Google, and Meta, which are investing hundreds of billions of dollars in data...
apple fitness 2026 1

Apple Teases 'Something Big' Coming Soon to Apple Fitness+

Tuesday December 30, 2025 2:11 pm PST by
The Apple Fitness+ Instagram account today teased that the service has "big plans" for 2026. In a video, several Apple Fitness+ trainers are shown holding up newspapers with headlines related to Apple Fitness+. What's Apple Fitness+ Planning for the New Year? Something Big is Coming to Apple Fitness+ The Countdown Begins. Apple Fitness+ 2026 is Almost Here 2026 Plans Still Under ...
iphone 17 pro dark blue 1

iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max Users Report Static Speaker Noise While Charging

Tuesday December 30, 2025 10:39 am PST by
iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max owners are having trouble with the speakers of their devices, and have complained about a static or hissing noise that occurs when the iPhone is charging. There are multiple discussions about the issue on Reddit, the MacRumors forums, and Apple's Support Community, where affected users say there is a noticeable static noise "like an old radio." Some people report...
maxresdefault

Hands-On With a Rough iPhone Fold Mockup

Monday December 29, 2025 10:55 am PST by
Apple is rumored to be introducing a foldable iPhone in September 2026, and since it will bring the biggest form factor change since the iPhone was introduced in 2007, curiosity about the design is high. A 3D designer created an iPhone Fold design based on rumors, and we printed it out to see how it compares to Apple's current iPhones. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more ...
maxresdefault

Where's the New Apple TV?

Monday December 22, 2025 11:30 am PST by
Apple hasn't updated the Apple TV 4K since 2022, and 2025 was supposed to be the year that we got a refresh. There were rumors suggesting Apple would release the new Apple TV before the end of 2025, but it looks like that's not going to happen now. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said several times across 2024 and 2025 that Apple would...
Mac Pro Feature Blue

What's Happening With the Mac Pro?

Wednesday December 31, 2025 9:59 am PST by
Apple hasn't updated the Mac Pro since 2023, and according to recent rumors, there's no update coming in the near future. In fact, Apple might be finished with the Mac Pro. Bloomberg recently said that the Mac Pro is "on the back burner" and has been "largely written off" by Apple. Apple apparently views the more compact Mac Studio as the ideal high-end pro-level desktop, and it has almost...
macbook air march 2020

Apple Says Final Intel MacBook Air and Apple Watch Series 5 Now 'Vintage'

Wednesday December 31, 2025 8:39 am PST by
Apple today added the final 13-inch MacBook Air powered by Intel processors, the Apple Watch Series 5, and additional products to its vintage products list. The iPhone 11 Pro was also added to the list after the iPhone 11 Pro Max was added back in September. The full list of products added to Apple's vintage and obsolete list today: MacBook Air (Retina, 13-inch, 2020) iPhone 8 Plus 128GB ...

Top Rated Comments

WiseAJ Avatar
62 months ago
Just set the hearing after the Epic Games trial and maybe Apple will participate. They kinda busy right now taking out the trash.
Score: 24 Votes (Like | Disagree)
I7guy Avatar
62 months ago
I would assume this stance was made on the advice of Apples' attorneys.
Score: 24 Votes (Like | Disagree)
jz0309 Avatar
62 months ago
I think I can appreciate Apples response as there might be implications forthcoming that would influence the Epic trial... but I’m not a legal expert and I would assume that Tim Cook will respond to the letter with clarification
Score: 15 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Cosmosent Avatar
62 months ago
There is NO benefit to Apple participating.

And, there is NO real need for a Hearing.

ALL of the facts are known !

Congress just needs to move forward with the proposed New Laws !

BTW, "Public" Hearings with Congress participating are a known Waste of Time !

ALL most member of Congress want out of such Public Hearings is Ammo for their RE-election campaign TV commercials !

ONLY "Private" Hearings have ANY real chance of being productive !
Score: 15 Votes (Like | Disagree)
jav6454 Avatar
62 months ago
Waste of time, why not spend this time on something else? Like looking into why ISPs charge an arm and a leg for a half assed internet connection.

AT&T, Verizon, Comcrap and the likes have been milking the American people with their regional monopolies over network for years and I haven't seen on private hearing with tangible laws released. Yes, the FCC and its Net Neutrality helps, to an extent.
Score: 13 Votes (Like | Disagree)
IG88 Avatar
62 months ago

What do you have to hide Apple?
Hearings like this are often full of political grandstanding, and can end up being mainly self serving for the politicians. There's no upside for Apple to participate.
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)