Qualcomm’s victory before the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals strengthens the hand of patent holders like Huawei, which could create national security risks, tech industry officials and antitrust attorneys said in interviews. A Qualcomm proponent said the FTC shouldn’t seek an appeal in a case that would put “more bad law on the books against” the agency (see 2008110065).
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
The FTC should investigate TikTok’s “consumer data collection and processing practices,” Senate Majority Whip John Thune, R-S.D., and Senate Consumer Protection Subcommittee Chairman Jerry Moran, R-Kan., wrote FTC Chairman Joe Simons Thursday.
The FCC lacks authority to act on NTIA’s petition for a rulemaking on Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act (see 2008030025), Vimeo said in comments to the agency in RM-11862. The FCC received 177 comments by Wednesday afternoon, almost all from individuals. The Computer & Communications Industry Association, NetChoice and Engine told us they plan to comment in opposition to NTIA’s petition.
The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals sided with Qualcomm Tuesday in an FTC antitrust lawsuit against the company. In the minutes after the ruling, Qualcomm's stock rose, closing 2.3% higher at $108.83. The FTC is reviewing its options.
Adam Candeub will become acting NTIA administrator, the agency announced internally Monday. Candeub joined the agency as deputy assistant secretary of commerce in April (see 2005010060). Leadership has been fluid since David Redl left in May 2019. Doug Kinkoph had most recently been acting head and now returns to run the Office of Telecommunications and Information Applications. Having someone take charge at NTIA is “sorely needed,” said R Street Institute Resident Fellow-Technology and Innovation Jeffrey Westling. He noted Candeub’s strong background with Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, though the agency hasn’t dealt extensively with the tech liability shield. Candeub previously sought a Section 230 update, suggesting Big Tech should follow the same rules as other regulated industries. NTIA’s role in President Donald Trump’s social media executive order is largely complete (see 2007280053), as it filed its petition for rulemaking with the FCC, Westling said. Candeub is on a leave of absence from Michigan State University, where he's a professor of law and director of the Intellectual Property, Information and Communications Law Program.
The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Tuesday sided with Qualcomm in an FTC antitrust lawsuit against the company. In the minutes after the ruling, the company's stock rose.
The U.S. government shouldn’t force a TikTok sale to any particular company, but the Chinese app’s data practices are an unacceptable security threat, Senate Republicans told us last week. The company is defending itself through lobbying, interviews and other public actions.
Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., was expected to place a hold on the Earn It Act (see 2007020050 and 2007080061), Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., told us Wednesday. Wyden announced in Monday’s Congressional Record he plans to object to unanimous consent. S-3398 threatens free speech, privacy and security by magnifying the failures of anti-sex trafficking legislation passed in 2018, Wyden said: “By allowing any individual State to set laws for internet content, this bill would create massive uncertainty, both for strong encryption and constitutionally protected speech online.” He voiced support for providing more resources to law enforcement. This means the bill won’t pass by unanimous consent, Blumenthal said: “It will have to be scheduled for the floor and probably not before we go on recess. I know Sen. [Lindsey Graham, R-S.C.] is very interested in pushing it, as am I, and there’s a lot of support for it, as reflected in the” unanimous Senate Judiciary Committee vote. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., shouldn’t schedule a vote, eight free market groups wrote Tuesday, NetChoice, the Competitive Enterprise Institute and FreedomWorks among them. “Cross-ideological agreement is rare in the modern age, yet conservatives, progressives, and moderates are united by concerns about the EARN IT Act,” said NetChoice Vice President Carl Szabo.
Policing political content curation by platforms like Facebook and Twitter isn’t within FTC jurisdiction, Chairman Joe Simons said Wednesday at a Senate Commerce Committee hearing. Chairman Roger Wicker, R-Miss., asked the commission about President Donald Trump’s social media executive order (see 2008040059).
Expect the Senate Commerce Committee to question the FTC on how it's responding to President Donald Trump’s social media executive order (see 2007280053) when commissioners testify Wednesday, senators said in interviews. Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii, said he’s more concerned about political influence at the FCC. A day earlier, Trump withdrew the renomination of Commissioner Michael O’Rielly (see 2008030072).