ICLE Files Ex Parte Notice With FCC on Restoring Internet Freedom NPRM
This week, the International Center for Law & Economics filed an ex parte notice in the FCC’s Restoring Internet Freedom docket. In it, we reviewed two of the major items that were contained in our formal comments. First, we noted that the process by which [the Commission] enacted the 2015 [Open Internet Order]… demonstrated scant ... ICLE Files Ex Parte Notice With FCC on Restoring Internet Freedom NPRM
The FTC should address how (and whether) it assesses causation as it looks to define “informational injury”
The FTC will hold an “Informational Injury Workshop” in December “to examine consumer injury in the context of privacy and data security.” Defining the scope of cognizable harm that may result from the unauthorized use or third-party hacking of consumer information is, to be sure, a crucial inquiry, particularly as ever-more information is stored digitally. ... The FTC should address how (and whether) it assesses causation as it looks to define “informational injury”
Don’t let the perfect be the enemy of the good on Copyright Office reform
R Street’s Sasha Moss recently posted a piece on TechDirt describing the alleged shortcomings of the Register of Copyrights Selection and Accountability Act of 2017 (RCSAA) — proposed legislative adjustments to the Copyright Office, recently passed in the House and introduced in the Senate last month (with identical language). Many of the article’s points are ... Don’t let the perfect be the enemy of the good on Copyright Office reform
An FCC ban on arbitration of privacy claims would be the anti-consumer-protection approach
Over the weekend, Senator Al Franken and FCC Commissioner Mignon Clyburn issued an impassioned statement calling for the FCC to thwart the use of mandatory arbitration clauses in ISPs’ consumer service agreements — starting with a ban on mandatory arbitration of privacy claims in the Chairman’s proposed privacy rules. Unfortunately, their call to arms rests ... An FCC ban on arbitration of privacy claims would be the anti-consumer-protection approach
A Set-top Box Set-Back and an Opportunity for Good Government
There must have been a great gnashing of teeth in Chairman Wheeler’s office this morning as the FCC announced that it was pulling the Chairman’s latest modifications to the set-top box proposal from its voting agenda. This is surely but a bump in the road for the Chairman; he will undoubtedly press ever onward in ... A Set-top Box Set-Back and an Opportunity for Good Government
The DOJ-FTC IP Guidelines: Suggestions for Promoting Innovation
This week, the International Center for Law & Economics filed comments on the proposed revision to the joint U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) – U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) Antitrust-IP Licensing Guidelines. Overall, the guidelines present a commendable framework for the IP-Antitrust intersection, in particular as they broadly recognize the value of IP and licensing ... The DOJ-FTC IP Guidelines: Suggestions for Promoting Innovation
MVPDs “Unlock” the Box (again), but the FCC Doesn’t Seem to Care
The FCC’s blind, headlong drive to “unlock” the set-top box market is disconnected from both legal and market realities. Legally speaking, and as we’ve noted on this blog many times over the past few months (see here, here and here), the set-top box proposal is nothing short of an assault on contracts, property rights, and ... MVPDs “Unlock” the Box (again), but the FCC Doesn’t Seem to Care
A Flag On the Play: Gigi Sohn Commits a Copyright Foul
As Commissioner Wheeler moves forward with his revised set-top box proposal, and on the eve of tomorrow’s senate FCC oversight hearing, we would do well to reflect on some insightful testimony regarding another of the Commission’s rulemakings from ten years ago: We are living in a digital gold age and consumers… are the beneficiaries. Consumers ... A Flag On the Play: Gigi Sohn Commits a Copyright Foul
Chairman Wheeler’s new set-top box proposal: from unmitigated disaster to plain old disaster
Imagine if you will… that a federal regulatory agency were to decide that the iPhone ecosystem was too constraining and too expensive; that consumers — who had otherwise voted for iPhones with their dollars — were being harmed by the fact that the platform was not “open” enough. Such an agency might resolve (on the ... Chairman Wheeler’s new set-top box proposal: from unmitigated disaster to plain old disaster
The Latest Front in the Patent Wars: Attacking Innovation in Universities
It’s not quite so simple to spur innovation. Just ask the EU as it resorts to levying punitive retroactive taxes on productive American companies in order to ostensibly level the playing field (among other things) for struggling European startups. Thus it’s truly confusing when groups go on a wholesale offensive against patent rights — one ... The Latest Front in the Patent Wars: Attacking Innovation in Universities
No, The FCC Should Not Have the Power to Cancel Contracts
Copyright law, ever a sore point in some quarters, has found a new field of battle in the FCC’s recent set-top box proposal. At the request of members of Congress, the Copyright Office recently wrote a rather thorough letter outlining its view of the FCC’s proposal on rightsholders. In sum, the CR’s letter was an ... No, The FCC Should Not Have the Power to Cancel Contracts
Trimming the Sails of the Administrative State
In the wake of the recent OIO decision, separation of powers issues should be at the forefront of everyone’s mind. In reaching its decision, the DC Circuit relied upon Chevron to justify its extreme deference to the FCC. The court held, for instance, that Our job is to ensure that an agency has acted “within ... Trimming the Sails of the Administrative State
