John Swarts
Is Technology Legislation A Pattern On Hold?
Based on what US Congressmen had to say at CES this week, it doesn’t seem so. Despite great debate over the antitrust bill during Congress’ final session, representatives of the Senate and House of Representatives, as well as officials of the Biden administration, have pushed for an ambitious slate, not one based on anticompetitive business practices. planning.
What regulatory pressure is on the table comes from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), which on Thursday introduced a rule banning companies from restricting employee transfers to competitors. Did.
See also: FTC’s proposed non-compete agreement ban could have biggest impact on tech industry
For now, lawmakers are shifting their legislative focus based on Friday and Saturday’s CES panels. But the bill must pass — not a sure bet on the last two decades — keeping pace with the murky shifts in technology.
Affordable broadband, cybersecurity in the development of healthcare systems and tech competition with China top the to-do list for 2023, said Senator Mark R. Warner, chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee. -Va.) said at the press conference. Later Friday he will be at CES at a panel on Congress’ technology priorities.
“This was the glory days of fundraising, including federal infrastructure bills that included funding for electric vehicles, chip bills, inflation reduction laws, and impacts on the energy industry,” Warner added.
Mr. Warner is a former technology entrepreneur, venture capitalist, and author of bipartisan legislation to invest billions in domestic semiconductor manufacturing to make the United States more competitive with China. He also helped secure his $65 billion to expand broadband access and affordability as part of a bipartisan infrastructure bill.
However, he admitted what didn’t happen in 2022.
“We didn’t do anything about privacy or ad surveillance. It was a goose egg,” he added. [more aggressive] Europe and California [regulators] Is doing. Privacy Needs to Be Addressed, Section 230 [of the Communications Decency Act, which provides website platforms immunity from third-party content]self-preference [of app stores]The country hopes so. Social media has many benefits, but there is a dark side to it. ”
Former computer programmer Sen. Jackie Rosen (D.Nevada), who moderated the panel, emphasized the importance of broadband cybersecurity and its impact on telemedicine and remote work. She promotes legislation requiring the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to review and update medical device cybersecurity guidelines to protect medical devices from hacking and cyberattacks.
A congressional panel on technology and innovation policy scheduled for early Saturday morning was canceled as the House elected Republican Kevin McCarthy of California as House Speaker late Saturday morning.
Artificial intelligence and immersive technologies such as the Metaverse, which are in the spotlight at CES this week, underscore our dependence on personal data in an era where the United States has not had substantive technology privacy rights legislation for more than 20 years.
Warner said AI, quantum computing and other technologies could require levels of federal investment comparable to the chip bill. “The failure to pass a national privacy law and failing to meet the obligations of our European and state friends is a real challenge and a real mistake. My hope is that bipartisan efforts will continue in this area. am.”
In fact, an increasingly data-dependent economy is emphasizing the interdependence of AI, cloud computing and cybersecurity, Efram Slen, vice president and head of index research at Nasdaq, told MarketWatch.
“Given how much data is exposed, ensuring its control and security is imperative,” said Slen. Any gaps in the process can increase the risk of data breaches and hacks, he warned.
Additionally, according to Meridith Rojas, chief brand officer of online marketing platform Captiv8, the creation of an unregulated metaverse, where people enter the digital world to share experiences and potentially shop, is a new poses legal challenges.
“In this wild, wild west, the metaverse needs some kind of oversight,” Rojas told MarketWatch.
The FTC is suing Facebook parent company Meta Platforms Inc. (META) in federal court to block its acquisition of fitness app maker Within.
Late Thursday, the FTC proposed a rule banning so-called non-compete agreements, which bar workers from joining competitors or starting competing businesses for months or years after being hired. .
– John Swartz
(Closed) Dow Jones Newswire
01-09-23 0758ET
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