The Washington Examiner
What Elon Musk gets wrong about Apple App Store fees
Elon Musk’s purchase of Twitter has some in the throes of ecstasy and others fearing a social media apocalypse. But, whatever happens, it’s good news that the…
Blog
Elon vs. the Regulators
A $43 billion sale of Twitter to Elon Musk looks more and more like a done deal. Depending on who you ask, Musk will…
Letters
CEI Joins Coalition Opposing Weaponizing Antitrust Law
Dear Senator, Despite full control of Congress and President Joe Biden in the Oval Office, the Democratic Party finds many of its top legislative priorities…
Comment
Comments to the Federal Trade Commission Regarding Forthcoming Merger Guideline Revisions
Comment Period Closes: April 21, 2022 Comment Submitted: April 3, 2022 Docket No. FTC-2022-0003-0001 On behalf of the Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI), we respectfully submit…
Blog
“Letter” Rip: The Justice Department Would Like More Power, Please
In its first backing of specific antirust legislation, the Justice Department (DOJ) sent a letter in support of the American Innovation and Choice…
Real Clear Policy
Conservatives Will Rue the Day They ‘Common Carrier’ Social Media
Real Clear Policy cites Senior Attorney Dan Greenburg and Director of the Center for Technology & Innovation Jessica Melugin’s paper arguing against regulating social media…
The Washington Examiner
Biden’s Executive Order Marks the Government’s Initial Foray into Cryptocurrency
The regulatory future of cryptocurrency looks uncertain in Washington, but there is growing acceptance that blockchain finance is here to stay. President Joe Biden issued…
News Release
Regulating Social Media Companies as Common Carriers Would Undermine User Experience Online
The Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI) published a new paper today making the case against regulating social media platforms as common carriers. In…
Study
Don’t Confuse the Platform with the Train
Executive Summary Should social media companies be regulated like common carriers? To answer that question, this paper describes the functions and origins of social media…
Blog
All Social Media Will Need to Moderate Content
Roughly a year after being booted off the most popular social media networks, former President Trump launched his own digital platform last weekend, Truth…
National Review
With Inflation Rising, Why Punish Companies Seeking to Lower Prices?
In a recent Wall Street Journal op-ed, a venture capital investor in the e-commerce firms Deliverr and Wish calls for breaking up Amazon because…
Blog
Staying the Course for Liberty
At the Competitive Enterprise Institute, we focus on policy issues ranging from tech and telecommunications to energy and the environment to financial regulation and monetary…
Blog
Don’t EARN IT
Bad policy made with good intentions still delivers poor results. That is the case with the Eliminating Abusive and Rampant Neglect of Interactive Technologies…
Blog
Protect Consumers, Not Competitors
The Open App Markets Act (S. 2710) is the latest in a parade of antitrust legislation aimed at reining in “big tech” companies that…
The Washington Examiner
Bill Targeting Big Tech Advanced Out of a Senate Committee on Bipartisan Vote
In what could be the most significant step toward regulating Big Tech, a bipartisan bill to change online shopping dramatically is moving ahead in the…
Real Clear Policy
It Should Be the End of the Line for the Senate Antitrust Bill
The American Innovation and Choice Online Act, which advanced out of the Senate Judiciary committee after a markup last Thursday, will hurt U.S. consumers and…
Blog
A Dangerous Antitrust Game for Microsoft and Consumers
Microsoft’s couldn’t have picked a more inauspicious day to announce its planned acquisition of gaming company, Activision Blizzard. The news came concurrently with antitrust regulators…
News Release
Senate Antitrust Bill Would Deny Consumers Popular Services from Large Tech Platforms
WASHINGTON – The Senate Judiciary Committee is scheduled to mark up The American Innovation and Choice Online Act (S. 2992) today, a bill…
Blog
The American Innovation and Choice Online Act Would Regulate Away Consumer Benefits
Perhaps Congress’ enthusiasm for ongoing government oversight of business decisions, embodied in tomorrow’s closed door markup of the American Innovation and Choice Online Act…
Blog
In Russia, Government Tells Internet What to Say
As a general rule, if you’re on the same regulatory page as Russia, you should probably turn the page—if not set fire to it. But…
News Release
Revived FTC Antitrust Suit Against Facebook Could Put Chill on Innovative Acquisitions in Tech Industry
WASHINGTON – A federal judge today reversed an earlier decision and permitted a case filed against Facebook by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to…
Blog
An Option Isn’t an Option When It’s Mandatory, Even Online
Later this year, Instagram users will have the option of a chronological feed of the accounts they follow. This option is already available to…
Blog
New York State of Mind Wrong on Social Media Regulation
Recent injunctions, in both Florida and Texas, against state-level social media laws championed by Republicans illustrate the difficulties of regulating content moderation online.
Blog
The Platform Competition and Opportunity Act Will Harm Innovation and Competition
Blog
Social Media in Parallel Universes
The chasm between the political discourse at yesterday’s House Committee on Energy and Commerce hearing on social media platforms and the legal decision…
Inside Sources
Biden Administration Threatens Consumers with Net Neutrality, Again
A big priority for progressives and, hence, the Biden administration is reinstatement of Obama-era net neutrality regulations. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) will once again regulate internet service providers under Title II of the Telecommunications…
Blog
Facebook Leaks Are Hardly Newsworthy
The frenzied media coverage of Facebook document leaks seems to confuse hosting disagreeable content with the platform being the cause of humanity’s ills. Worries…
News Release
Biden’s FCC Nominees Mean Trouble on Net Neutrality, Broadband Policies
President Biden’s nominees for key FCC posts will have a significant impact on consumer policy, says CEI’s Jessica Melugin: “The policy implications of installing current…
National Review
Can I Speak to a Manager?
Earlier this month, U.S. senators Amy Klobuchar (D., Minn.) and Chuck Grassley (R., Iowa) unveiled plans for their American…
Letters
CEI Joins Coalition Urging Senate Republicans to Reject Democrat Antitrust Trap
Dear Senator, Recent media reports have indicated that Senate Democrats are crafting a package of European-style antitrust regulation. Some left-wing politicians are attempting…
Blog
Let the Market Make Corrections and Leave the Red Tape out of It
YouTube banned anti-vaccine content on its platform, Instagram is accused of being “toxic” for its teen users, and Facebook’s Oversight Board is routinely…
Blog
Texas May Still Be the Wild West, But Its Social Media Shouldn’t Be
The Texas legislature passed and Governor Greg Abbott recently signed into law H.B. 20, which he described as “safeguarding the freedom of speech by…
News Release
Court Rules Apple App Store Rules Do Not Violate Antitrust Laws
A federal district court today ruled that Apple’s rules regarding payments on its App Store do not violate antitrust laws. The case, brought by video…
News Release
Former FTC Policymakers Find FTC Complaint Against Illumina-GRAIL Merger Lacking in New CEI Paper
The Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI) published a new paper today by former Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chairman Timothy J. Muris and former director…
News Release
FTC’s Latest Antitrust Case Against Facebook a Conflict-of-Interest in Search of a Crime
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) voted to re-file an antitrust case against Facebook, accusing the social media company of being a monopoly and seeking to…
National Review
Property Rights and Infinite Cyberspace
What is the one force that can prevent the purported Big Tech villains such as Facebook and Google from being displaced as the dominant platforms? Republicans.
News Release
House GOP Tech Bills Would Harm Innovation and Set Terrible Precedent
House Republicans introduced several bills today aimed at increasing regulation of social media companies. One of the bills, sponsored by Reps. Jim Jordan (R-OH) and…
News Release
Congress Should Reject Infrastructure Package That Imposes Costs, Burdens on Broadband Providers
As Congress struggles to reach a deal on its infrastructure spending package, the latest possible iteration reportedly contains quite problematic provisions for broadband infrastructure. CEI…
The Orange County Register
Conservative Social Media Platforms Can’t Succeed Without Content Moderation
The latest social media platform from the Trump team, Gettr, went from an intended safe space for conservative beliefs to a hellscape of imposter accounts, offensive memes and…
News Release
CEI Experts React to President Biden’s Wide-Ranging Executive Order on Competition
President Joe Biden signed an Executive Order on Promoting Competition in the American Economy today, which the White House claims is aimed at enhancing…
The Arkansas Democrat Gazette
Lawsuits by Trump Aimed at Sites’ Bans
The Arkansas Democrat Gazette cites Director of the Center for Technology and Innovation on Trump’s legal actions against social media platforms: Jessica Melugin, director of…
News Release
States’ Antitrust Suit Against Google’s App Platform Fails to Show Consumer Harm
WASHINGTON – Thirty-six states and the District of Columbia today filed an antitrust lawsuit against Google over its control over the company’s app platform for…
The Washington Times
Trump Announces Lawsuits Against Twitter, Facebook and Google
The Washington Times cites Director for the Center for Technology and Innovation Jessica Melugin on Trump’s legal actions against social media platforms: The free-market…
The International Business Times
US States Accuse Google of App Store Monopoly
The International Business Times cites Director of the Center for Technology and Innovation Jessica Melugin on a recent lawsuit against the Google Play Store:…
KRWG
Donald Trump Sues Facebook, YouTube And Twitter For Alleged Censorship
KRWG cites Director for the Center for Technology and Innovation Jessica Melugin on Trump’s legal actions targeting social media platforms: “These social media platforms…
The Seattle Times
Trump Files Class Action Lawsuits Targeting Facebook, Google and Twitter over ‘Censorship’ of Conservatives
The Seattle Times cites Director for the Center for Technology and Innovation on Trump’s legal actions against social media platforms: Jessica Melugin, director of…
News Release
Trump Class Action Suit Against Social Media Platforms for Political Gain, Not a Serious Legal Argument
Former President Donald Trump filed a class action lawsuit against social media platform CEOs Mark Zuckerberg of Facebook, Sundar Pichai of Google, and Jack Dorsey…
The Orlando Sentinel
If Businesses are Liable for Internet Posts, Consumers Lose
Even amid Washington gridlock, one thing almost everyone seems to agree on is that the way companies moderate online content that makes people mad, and that…
Inside Sources
Consumers Lose if Congress Makes Businesses Liable For Everyone’s Internet Posts
Fox Business
Experts Warn Big Tech Antitrust Bills Could ‘Shackle Innovation and Hurt Consumers’
Fox Business cites Director of the Center for Technology and Innovation Jessica Melugin on proposed antitrust bills: Jessica Melugin, director of the Center for…
News Release
New CEI Study Argues Preserving Section 230 is Key to Maintaining a Free and Open Internet
The freewheeling nature of online speech is under threat because of hostility to an important provision of a telecommunications law from politicians on both the…
Study
Preserving Section 230 Is Key to Maintaining the Free and Open Internet
Passed as part of the Telecommunications Decency Act of 1996, Section 230 was intended to clarify liability rules online and to encourage sites to create…
News Release
New EU Antitrust Investigation into Google More Proof European Antitrust Policy is Untethered from Consumer Harm Standard
The European Union announced today it is launching a new antitrust investigation into Google, alleging the company is using anticompetitive practices in its advertising…
National Review
When Antitrust Is Anti-Consumer
Lina Khan, a noted proponent of expanding and altering U.S. antitrust law, was confirmed last week as a commissioner to the Federal…
Blog
ABA Antitrust Event with Jessica Melugin
On Monday, June 28, at 1 pm EDT, I’ll be joining the American Bar Association for an antitrust event entitled, “Big Tech in the Cross-Hairs:…
Bloomberg Law
Podcast: Would Reforming Section 230 Break the Internet?
Director of the Center for Technology and Innovation Jessica Melugin joins Unchecked to discuss Section 230: Click here to read more.
Blog
Why Increase the Cost and Scope of Antitrust?
Widely regarded as the least controversial of the five antitrust bills introduced in the House last week, the Merger Filing Fee Modernization Act would…
News Release
Billions in Taxpayer Funded Subsidies for Broadband Unnecessary to Expand Internet Connectivity
A bipartisan group of United States Senators introduced the Broadband Reform and Investment to Drive Growth in the Economy Act (BRIDGE Act), which would…
Blog
Platform Competition and Opportunity Act Is An Innovation Killer That Won’t Serve Consumers
One of five antitrust bills introduced last week, The Platform Competition and Opportunity Act, would prohibit leading tech platforms from acquiring companies that are…
Blog
ACCESS Bill Would Increase Consumer Privacy Risks and Stifle Innovation
One of five antitrust bills introduced last week, the Augmenting Compatibility and Competition by Enabling Service Switching Act (they did a lot of heavy…
National Review
Why Ohio’s Attempt to Regulate Google as a ‘Common Carrier’ Is a Terrible Idea
A decade ago, when Google search was first accused of self-preferencing its own results, a colleague of mine created a meme with text over…
Blog
PRO-SPEECH Act Seeks to Reintroduce Problem Solved 25 Years Ago
For those generally skeptical of Congress’ ability to make good policy, the existence of Section 230 in the 1996 Communications Decency Act evokes a…
News Release
House Judiciary Committee Antitrust Bills Would Compromise U.S. as Global Leader on Tech and Harm Consumers
Several antitrust bills were introduced today by members of the House Judiciary Committee, including the “American Innovation and Choice Online Act,” the “Platform Competition and…
Real Clear Policy
Government Regulation of App Stores Could Wind Up Costing Consumers
App stores are in the crosshairs of regulators around the world, threatening the privacy and security of consumers in jurisdictions throwing the red tape at…
News Release
DC Antitrust Suit Against Amazon Could Actually Harm Consumers by Making Online Goods More Expensive
The District of Columbia’s Attorney General filed a lawsuit today against Amazon, alleging the tech company is engaged in anti-competitive behavior by controlling retail…
National Review
It’s Time to Exempt News Organizations from Antitrust Restrictions
Congress is currently considering a bill that would allow news organizations to collectively negotiate with online-content distributors, such as Google and Facebook. If passed,…
Blog
Overboard over the Oversight Board
Yesterday’s decision by Facebook’s Oversight Board that the company was correct in restricting then-President Trump’s ability to post on January 7, 2021 and that…
News Release
EU Antitrust Action Against Apple – Bad for Trade, Bad for Consumers
The EU Commission declared today that “Apple has a monopoly” in the distribution of music streaming apps to owners of Apple devices, the upshot of…
Fox News
Hawley To Introduce Bill To ‘Bust Up’ Big Tech, Targeting Companies Like Google And Amazon
Fox News cites Director for the Center for Technology and Innovation Jessica Melugin and Senior Fellow Ryan Young on Hawley’s efforts to regulate the tech…
News Release
Hawley Antitrust Plan Would Limit Innovation and Harm Consumers
Senator Josh Hawley (R-MO) today touted a new proposal he calls a “trust busting plan” that calls for a new standard for antitrust intervention to…
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Biden’s $100 Billion Rural Broadband Plan Bets on Success of FCC Initiatives
The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette cites Director of the Center for Technology and Innovation Jessica Melugin on Biden’s broadband plan: “Good intentions aside, it often doesn’t…
National Review
Should Social-Media Companies Be Considered ‘Common Carriers’?
Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas’s concurrence in Joseph Biden v. Knight First Amendment at Columbia University recommends regulating social-media platforms as if they were…
News Release
Supreme Court Decision Upholding Relaxed Media Ownership Rules a Win for Local News and Consumers
The United States Supreme Court today upheld a decision by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to relax media ownership rules, freeing up the industry…
The Wall Street Journal
Can Little Tech Save Us From Big Tech?
The Wall Street Journal cites Director of the Center for Technology and Innovation Jessica Melugin on social media platform regulations: Was there a hopeful note…
Blog
Decentralization Offers a Way out of the Social Media Content Wars
Thursday brought another politically charged installment of “a tale of two hearings” about online content moderation in the House of Representatives. Republicans scolded big…
Fortune
Don’t Put Big Tech or Big Government in Charge of the Truth
The divide among Americans on a wide range of issues is being amplified by social media. Charges of misinformation and censorship online are raising the…
News Release
FTC Nominee Khan’s Antitrust Views Will Have Negative Consequences for Consumers if Made Official Policy
Competitive Enterprise Institute experts reacted to today’s announcement the White House intends to nominate Lina Khan to be a Commissioner at the Federal Trade Commission,…
Blog
As California Goes on Regulation, so (Unfortunately) Goes the Nation
Last month, a federal judge upheld California’s net neutrality regulations. That led to AT&T’s announcement this week that they will no longer exempt…
Letters
CEI and Other Organizations Urge Governor Cox to Veto Amendments Limiting Online Free Speech
Governor Cox: We write to urge you to veto Senate Bill 228, Electronic Free Speech Amendments. If enacted, this bill faces serious constitutional challenges, threatens…
Blog
Lawmakers Should Tread Carefully When Trying to Balance Privacy with Security
It’s been said that a compromise is the art of dividing a cake in such a way that everyone believes he has the biggest…
Inside Sources
Government Antitrust Lawsuit Against Facebook Should be Dismissed
Facebook’s filing to dismiss antitrust lawsuits by the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) and state attorneys general is a chance to pause unwarranted political punishment of…
Blog
Those Who Forget the Antitrust Mistakes of the Past Are Bound to Repeat Them
Yesterday’s Senate antitrust hearing was broad in its discussion of reforms, but one point deserves clarification. A witness from Open Markets centered much of…
News Release
CEI Experts: Courts Should Dismiss Antitrust Lawsuits against Facebook
Facebook today asked courts to dismiss antitrust lawsuits brought by the Federal Trade Commission and state attorneys general, an outcome supported by the Competitive Enterprise…
Blog
Virginia, Famed for Its Ham, Delivers a Turkey on Privacy
The Virginia House of Delegates and Senate recently passed consumer privacy legislation, the Virginia Consumer Protection Act. The bill has elements similar to its…
USA Today
Protecting Publius: Online Anonymity is Critical for Protecting Freedom to Dissent
The bipartisan loathing of Section 230, the liability shield that protects online platforms from being legally responsible for what their users post, has…
National Review
Antitrust Litigation Usually Causes More Harm Than Good. Big Tech Is No Different
Advocates of expanded antitrust regulation often cite past cases to demonstrate the benefits of pursuing litigation against today’s Big Tech firms. But when the details of…
The Foundation for Economic Education
Economic Nationalists and Anti-Corporate Progressives Both Want More Government Power
Last month President Biden designated Rebecca Slaughter as acting chair of the Federal Trade Commission, where she has served as a commissioner since 2018. During a…
Blog
New Legislation Aims to Give More Power to Antitrust Enforcers
Today, incoming head of the Senate antitrust subcommittee, Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) introduced the Competition and Antitrust Law Enforcement Reform Act. The contents of…
News Release
CEI Paper Shows Antitrust Enthusiasts Misconstrue the Lessons from Past Cases
WASHINGTON, DC – Today’s advocates for a more expansive enforcement of antitrust laws – frequently referred to as devotees of “Hipster Antitrust” – often misleadingly…
Study
U.S. Antitrust’s Greatest Misses
Today’s advocates for expanding antitrust regulation often cite famous antitrust cases of the past to suggest that stricter antitrust enforcement can enhance consumer welfare,…
The Washington Times
Push To Break Up Big Tech Picks Up Bipartisan Steam Amid Conservative Crackdown
The Washington Times cites Director of the Center for Technology & Innovation Jessica Melugin on Parler’s antitrust case against Amazon: “If the big smoking…
Blog
The Danger in Blurring the Private and Public Boundaries with Government Regulation
The recent decisions of many technology companies to remove users and customers from their platforms have deeply divided Americans. Many Americans feel censored and discriminated…
Reason
Congress Targets Amazon, Apple, Facebook, and Google for Being Popular
Reason cites CEI’s Director of the Center for Technology & Innovation Jessica Melugin on the Department of Justice’s civil suit against Google. The bar…
Blog
Amazon’s Private Labels Don’t Threaten Competition
A recent Wall Street Journal article raises concerns about Amazon’s generics offerings and the online retailer’s business practices surrounding diaper sales. In evaluating…
Real Clear Policy
Why Critics Should Leave Section 230’s Liability Protections Alone
Attacks on Section 230, the liability limiting shield for online platforms, are coming from President Trump, Republicans and Democrats on Capitol Hill. But the debate around curtailing or…
News Release
Texas Antitrust Case Against Google would Harm Consumers and Small Businesses
The State of Texas announced today it is filing an antitrust lawsuit against Google, alleging the company’s online advertising platform harms competition and allows…
National Review
Facebook Acquisitions Benefitted Its Employees, Sellers, and Consumers. Where Is the Harm?
The claim by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and 48 state attorneys general that Facebook’s acquisition of Instagram and WhatsApp qualifies as anticompetitive behavior foolishly focuses…
Blog
Facebook Antitrust Suits Disregard Consumer Welfare
Today the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and 48 state attorneys general announced antitrust suits against Facebook, asserting the social media company’s acquisitions of…
News Release
State AG and FTC Antitrust Actions against Facebook Fail to Prove Consumer Harm or Anticompetitive Behavior
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and 48 State Attorneys General today announced antitrust lawsuits against Facebook, asserting the social media company’s acquisitions of Instagram and…
News Release
Repealing Section 230 Would Be Devastating to Free Expression Online
The Trump administration is pressing for a repeal of the tech industry’s liability-limiting statute, Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, as a part of…