House Commerce Democrats Eye Consumer Concerns of Pokemon App Data Usage

Senior House Commerce Committee Democrats are pressing the maker of the Pokemon Go app on whether the company realized the game's data usage and thought to consider consumers' data plans. “Are there best practices that Niantic follows to minimize the amount of data consumers use when playing Pokemon Go,” they asked in a letter dated Tuesday, signed by committee ranking member Frank Pallone, D-N.J., Trade Subcommittee ranking member Jan Schakowsky, D-Ill., and Oversight Subcommittee ranking member Diana DeGette, D-Colo. “Has Niantic worked with wireless carriers to ensure that consumers are not unexpectedly hit with large overage charges? Does Niantic have any mechanisms in place to make sure consumers are made whole in the event they are hit with an unexpected overage charge resulting from the use of your app?” They requested answers by Aug. 9. Other legislators and groups have complained about possible privacy issues from the app (see 1607190066), on which Niantic hasn't commented.