The FTC's decision not to seek Supreme Court review of its antitrust case against Qualcomm (see 2103300003) leaves standard-essential patent (SEP) and competition issues on the table, tech officials said in interviews after last week's decision. A Qualcomm proponent argued the FTC knew it had a weak case and wanted to avoid setting bad precedent before the high court.
Karl Herchenroeder
Karl Herchenroeder, Associate Editor, is a technology policy journalist for publications including Communications Daily. Born in Rockville, Maryland, he joined the Warren Communications News staff in 2018. He began his journalism career in 2012 at the Aspen Times in Aspen, Colorado, where he covered city government. After that, he covered the nuclear industry for ExchangeMonitor in Washington. You can follow Herchenroeder on Twitter: @karlherk
Google copying Oracle’s Java code for Android was fair use, the Supreme Court ruled 6-2 Monday, with Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito dissenting (see 2010290055). Justice Amy Coney Barrett didn’t participate.
Legislators advancing a data broker privacy bill should amend it to exempt entities covered by federal laws and data in the public domain, industry groups told Nevada’s Senate Commerce Committee Wednesday. AT&T, which supported a Nevada privacy bill in 2019, testified that it remains neutral on the latest bill until amendments are presented and supports continued collaboration on “meaningful, common-sense privacy reform.”
FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr asked whether state laws on online content moderation could open the door to weakening Communications Decency Act Section 230 immunity. Moderating a New Civil Liberties Alliance discussion Tuesday, Carr noted laws in Florida and potentially in Texas provide speech protections that might override 230.
The Senate Commerce Committee plans a confirmation hearing in April for FTC nominee Lina Khan (see 2103220056), Chair Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., told us, calling Khan a “strong nomination.” Meanwhile, Commissioner Christine Wilson and former FTC officials credited acting Chair Rebecca Kelly Slaughter for forming a new rulemaking group within the General Counsel’s Office (see 2103250056).
The FTC created a rulemaking group within the General Counsel’s Office with the goal of strengthening existing rules and creating “new rulemakings to prohibit unfair or deceptive practices and unfair methods of competition,” acting Chair Rebecca Kelly Slaughter announced Thursday. Rulemaking is “a critical part of the FTC’s toolbox to stop widespread consumer harm and to promote robust competition,” especially given threats to the agency’s FTC Act section 13(b) authority (see 2102040049), the agency said. The FTC’s “rulemaking power under section 18 has gotten a bad reputation for being too hard to use, but longstanding FTC rules, such as the Funeral Rule and the Eyeglass Rule, have provided significant benefits to consumers,” Slaughter said. The agency should “activate its unfair methods of competition rulemaking authority” due to the concentrated economy, she added. The commission wouldn't disclose now the names of those who comprise this group. The panel “will streamline rulemaking at the FTC, resulting in rules that are faster, more efficient, and more effectively address anticompetitive conduct than antitrust litigation alone,” said Public Knowledge Competition Policy Director Charlotte Slaiman, saying it's "a much-needed change.” Consumer Reports thinks this “sends a clear message that the FTC is going to prioritize rulemaking going forward, which we hope will lead to stronger consumer protections and greater corporate accountability,” said Senior Researcher-Technology Competition Sumit Sharma.
Facebook, Google and Twitter support Communications Decency Act Section 230 proposals to increase content moderation transparency, their respective CEOs, Mark Zuckerberg, Sundar Pichai and Jack Dorsey, told House Commerce Committee members Thursday during a virtual hearing. Noting Zuckerberg’s support for “thoughtful changes” to 230 (see 2103240076), Communications Subcommittee ranking member Bob Latta, R-Ohio, asked the Facebook chief for specific proposals. Zuckerberg supported two specific changes, saying Congress should be careful about removing protections for smaller companies.
Communications Decency Act Section 230 “would benefit from thoughtful changes,” Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg plans to tell House Commerce Committee members during Thursday’s virtual hearing (see 2103190054). Google CEO Sundar Pichai defends the statute in prepared testimony, saying recent proposals could have unintended consequences. Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey instead focuses on transparency, procedural fairness, algorithmic choice and privacy.
Rep. Jan Schakowsky, D-Ill., will introduce legislation, potentially this week, to amend Communications Decency Act Section 230 liability protections, giving consumers the ability to sue when harmed by illegal online content, she said Monday (see 2009240062). Her Online Consumer Protection Act will be part of the discussion when Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Google CEO Sundar Pichai and Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey testify Thursday before House Commerce Committee members (see 2103190054), said Schakowsky during an event hosted by Common Sense Media and the Real Facebook Oversight Board.
The FTC shouldn’t police speech, but it can enforce whether platforms are honoring terms of service through content moderation and Communications Decency Act Section 230 activity, FTC Commissioner Christine Wilson said Friday. Speaking on a Free State Foundation webcast, she said Section 230 blanket immunity is an intrusion into the market with a significant impact on competition.