FTC Chair Lina Khan and DOJ Antitrust Division Chief Jonathan Kanter met in Brussels Thursday with European Commission Executive Vice President-Competition Policy Margrethe Vestager to discuss the upcoming U.S. merger guidelines update (see 2206210071) and other antitrust topics, the FTC announced. They met while participating in the second meeting of the U.S.-EU Joint Technology Competition Policy Dialogue. The FTC described it as a “high-level” discussion on topics including “the importance of horizon scanning to identify key technologies and issues that may raise competition concerns in the future” and the “adoption of effective remedies in digital cases.” Khan said in a statement: “Deepening our partnership and exchanging insights with our European colleagues can help ensure that our enforcement practices and policies reflect modern market realities.” Kanter and Vestager said they anticipate continued collaboration, particularly on the tech sector.

The Labor Department proposed a rule Tuesday to establish more stringent requirements for employers classifying workers as independent contractors, which could have implications for the gig economy and companies like Lyft and Uber. Worker misclassification is becoming more common, particularly with the “most vulnerable workers,” Labor Secretary Marty Walsh said. “Misclassification deprives workers of their federal labor protections, including their right to be paid their full, legally earned wages.” The proposal would rescind the 2021 independent contractor rule, and restore a “multifactor, totality-of-the-circumstances analysis to determine whether a worker is an employee or an independent contractor” under the Fair Labor Standards Act, the department said. The new rule would “stifle the growth of the gig economy and potentially force many employees who set their own schedules as independent contractors to become employees,” Sen. Mike Braun, R-Ind., said in a statement. The FTC issued a party-line policy statement in September outlining enforcement priorities against unfair, deceptive and anticompetitive practices involving the gig economy (see 2209150071).

Affordability remains "a driving factor" behind why some households are not online, NTIA said Thursday in a new analysis. A 2021 internet use study found the average price an offline household wanted to pay was $10, with three in four households saying $0. The study found that a lack of digital skills and accessibility are also factors driving households' decisions not to buy broadband. The data shows "multiple strategies are needed to fully address longstanding disparities in internet use," the agency said.

The White House’s AI Bill of Rights document doesn’t properly protect against discrimination for non-U.S. citizens, migrants and people seeking asylum who often face algorithmic exclusion, Access Now said Thursday. The White House issued its blueprint Tuesday (see 2210040071). The document could have “monumental” impacts on minorities in the U.S., but the administration must address “discriminatory impacts that AI systems have on non-U.S. citizens,” Access Now said.

A foreign cyberattack targeting multiple state government websites and services took down the Colorado.gov homepage, Colorado’s Office of Information Technology (OIT) said Wednesday. The office and State Emergency Operations Center are working with state and federal partners to restore access, but there was no estimated timeline, OIT said.

Tighter rules for online platforms got final approval Tuesday from EU government ministers. The Digital Services Act (DSA) governs providers of intermediary services such as social media, online marketplaces, "very large online platforms and very large search engines," the EU Council noted. Very large platforms are those that reach 45 million or more users in the EU. Bigger services with more societal impact will be subject to tougher rules than smaller enterprises. The act places special obligations on online marketplaces to combat the sale of illegal products and services; introduces measures mandating that platforms react quickly to illegal content; and bars platforms from using targeted advertising based on the use of minors' personal data. Very large platforms and search engines will have to offer users a system for recommending content that's not based on profiling, and analyze the systemic risks they create for dissemination of illegal content or adverse effects on fundamental rights. The DSA also includes a crisis response mechanism to fight manipulation of online information in the context of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, making it possible to gauge the impact of the activities of very large search engines and platforms on the crisis. The European Parliament approved the DSA in July (see 2207050003). "If the EU is serious about protecting consumers and leading the world when it comes to regulating the online environment, it is crucial that the Digital Services Act is effectively applied and enforced," said European Consumer Organisation Deputy Director General Ursula Pachl.

FTC Chair Lina Khan named her chief technology officer and a new public affairs director, the agency announced Tuesday. Stephanie Nguyen will be chief technology officer and Douglas Farrar will be public affairs director. Nguyen worked in an acting capacity in the same role since October 2021 and previously worked at the White House and as a research scientist at MIT. Farrar previously worked as vice president-communications and strategy at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and worked for the House Appropriations Committee.

A cross-border data access agreement for law enforcement agencies in the U.S., U.K. and Northern Ireland took effect Monday, DOJ said. Data transfers in criminal investigations are authorized under the Clarifying Lawful Overseas Use of Data (Cloud) Act, which Congress passed in 2018. The transfers will help the government “prevent, detect, investigate, and prosecute serious crime, including terrorism, transnational organized crime, and child exploitation,” DOJ said.

The White House urged House passage of the Merger Filing Fee Modernization Act (HR-3843) (see 2209260060). Merger fees to the FTC and DOJ haven’t kept pace with the number, size and complexity of deals, the Office of Management and Budget said Tuesday in a statement of administration policy.

Internet users in North America are facing significant connectivity issues despite increases in connection speeds, reported network diagnostics company RouteThis Monday. Though upstream and downstream speeds have risen dramatically, “pandemic-related behavioral shifts and device upgrades have increased demand on home Wi-Fi environments,” it said. “Every new device added to a home network comes with new requirements and increases the opportunity for a poor subscriber experience,” said RouteThis. North America’s home networks host the world’s highest median number of devices, with nine in the average household, and it’s likely “at least one will suffer from a bad connection,” it said. Up to half an ISP’s “support engagements” can be traced back to problems with the home Wi-Fi setup, rather than with the lines or equipment itself, said the company. Its data shows about 25% of diagnostic scans “reveal a less congested Wi-Fi channel available, while 30% indicate an underlying problem of signal strength, even with no issues with the home internet connection,” it said.