it's all about distribution of applications. they need your number NOT for verification, but for future distribution.
The mobile number is more immediate and more accessible to more people today than any other.
(170m mobile vs 120m web user in US)
Unlike an individual, the corporation may be something quite different as the years go by.
Schmidt, Page, Brin et al may have good intentions today, but once the architecture is in place, who is to say how benevolent the google of tomorrow would be.
Slashdot Mirror
it's all about distribution of applications. they need your number NOT for verification, but for future distribution. The mobile number is more immediate and more accessible to more people today than any other. (170m mobile vs 120m web user in US)
Unlike an individual, the corporation may be something quite different as the years go by. Schmidt, Page, Brin et al may have good intentions today, but once the architecture is in place, who is to say how benevolent the google of tomorrow would be.