In an era of deep political divisions, no issue unifies Republicans and Democrats quite like punishing big tech. In the last twelve months, Senate Democrats and Republicans have released their own punitive proposals to reform America’s antitrust law. Additionally, Democrats in the House of Representatives just published a 450-page report on competition in digital markets that proposed reforms to “address anticompetitive […]
Technology
Real Clear Policy: Washington Shouldn’t Follow Europe’s Crackdown on Big Tech
When it comes to antitrust reforms, it should be abundantly clear that following Europe’s punitive, heavy-handed approach to antitrust will leave consumers with limited access to cheaper products, limited consumer access for small businesses, and a stagnant economy. For these reasons alone, lawmakers in Washington should not be looking to Brussels for guidance on future […]
DC Should Prioritize Consumers, Not Big is Bad
On May 25, Washington D.C.’s Attorney General, Karl A. Racine, announced he filed a lawsuit against the tech giant Amazon for allegedly violating the district’s antitrust laws. In the press release following the filing, Racine claimed Amazon’s practices were “harming competition, stifling innovation, and illegally tilting the playing field in its favor.” Unfortunately for consumers […]
Antitrust Explainer
A package of five bills is set to be introduced by Democrats in the House Judiciary Committee. These bills seek to fundamentally change how the federal government approaches big tech and are being released at a time when Republicans and Democrats seek to reign in big tech and its influence. Rather than employing the consumer […]
Town Hall: Cyberattacks Aren’t Going Anywhere – We Need a National Strategy to Fight Them
US lawmakers have recently begun discussing the need for a federal plan to find out what types of cash payments are made after ransomware attacks. Cyberattacks have been ramping up in recent months, with each one underscoring the nation’s under-preparedness. The digital infrastructure of private companies and government organizations have plenty of vulnerabilities, and their responses […]
AI Can Provide a Solution to the Problem of Credit Invisibility
Today, around 26 million American consumers are considered credit invisible, meaning they do not have a credit record needed to obtain credit cards, a loan, or a mortgage even though they may be financially responsible. For Americans who are credit invisible, the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in determining credit worthiness would remove a substantial […]
Consumer Impact Must Remain the Focus for Mergers and Acquisitions
It seems that each week, self-proclaimed trustbusters on Capitol Hill line up to attack big tech for alleged antitrust violations. Back in the firing line this week is Amazon after the company announced it was purchasing Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) Studios for $8.45 billion. If the deal goes ahead, it would be the “second-largest acquisition in Amazon’s […]
Podcast: Short-and Long-Term Implications of Waiving IP Protections for COVID-19 Related Drugs and Technologies – with Andrei Iancu
India, South Africa, and other developing countries are leading the push for a waiver of the Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS Agreement) under the rationale that it’s the only way to ensure equitable and affordable access to COVID vaccines. In this podcast episode, Andrei Iancu, former undersecretary of Commerce for intellectual property (IP) […]
AI Offers Substantial Benefits for Patients
On April 21, the European Commission released its much-anticipated proposal for a regulation laying down harmonized rules on artificial intelligence. If implemented, Brussels’ proposal would govern artificial intelligence (AI) across 27 member countries and for over 445 million people. In outlining the need for the Commission’s proposed AI regulations, Margrethe Vestager, Executive Vice-President for a Europe fit for […]
A “Future Proof” Approach to Broadband Infrastructure: An Analysis – A Podcast with Doug Brake
While there has been progress to close the digital divide, it is clear that more needs to be done. To address this, some members of Congress and the current administration are advocating for building “future proof” broadband infrastructure in unserved and underserved areas so that we reach 100 percent high-speed broadband coverage, which could suggest […]