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 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…
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,…
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…
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…
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…
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.
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…
News Release
Chairman Ajit Pai’s FCC Advanced the Cause of a Freer, Fairer, More Industrious Nation
Economic and social resilience relies upon modern, evolving communications systems. Since beginning service as a Commissioner in 2012, the actions of Ajit Pai demonstrate confidence in…
Blog
On Online Speech, Sasse Stands Alone
There was an almost total lack of skepticism of expanding government regulation of online content moderation at yesterday’s Senate hearing with the CEOs of…
Blog
Biden Tech Policy Preview
Joe Biden has been declared the president-elect (I’m pretty sure). Here’s what a Biden administration and a (presumably) divided Congress might mean for tech issues.
News Release
EU’s Inconsistent and Protectionist Approach to Antitrust in the Digital Age Stifles Innovation and Harms Consumers
The Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI) released a new paper today examining the European Union’s approach to enforcing antitrust policy against large and innovative technology companies.
Reason
The Republican Antitrust Suit Against Google Is a Progressive Dream
Reason cites CEI Senior Fellow Jessica Melugin on antitrust suit. “It will be a heavy lift for the DOJ to show real consumer harm,” said Jessica…
Financial Times
Google Antitrust Case Shows the Flaws in Competition Regulation
The US Department of Justice’s filing of an antitrust lawsuit against Google on Tuesday reflects growing concern in Washington about the power wielded by big technology…
News Release
DOJ Suit Against Google Seeks to Expand Antitrust Standard Beyond Consumer Harm
The Department of Justice filed a lawsuit today alleging Google has broken antitrust laws with its search function and digital advertising practices. Associate Director of CEI’s…
National Review
Don’t Change Antitrust Law to Undermine Tech Companies and Consumers
A new House Judiciary Committee report on competition in the technology industry starts from the premise that everything Amazon, Apple, Facebook, and Google…
News Release
House Report on Tech and Antitrust Ignores the Consumer Harm Standard
Today the House Judiciary Committee’s Subcommittee on Antitrust, Commercial and Administrative Law released a report advocating changing antitrust laws and using them to break up…
News Release
Laws to Limit Section 230 Protections Would Lead to More Government Oversight of Speech
Large technology companies were the focus of multiple proceedings in Congress today, including a markup of a bill to change Section 230 of the Communications…
Study
Repeal #NeverNeeded Antitrust Laws that Hinder COVID-19 Response
Big technology firms have been invaluable in easing the burden of quarantine for millions of consumers[1] and businesses.[2] Unfortunately, the Department of Justice, the Federal…
News Release
Antitrust Investigations against Tech Threaten to Hamper Pandemic Response and Recovery
The Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI) released a new report today arguing that large technology companies are making invaluable contributions to our quality of life…
Products
Repeal #NeverNeeded Antitrust Laws that Hinder COVID-19 Response
View Full Document as PDF Big technology firms have been invaluable in easing the burden of quarantine for millions of consumers…
Blog
SAFE DATA Act a Risk for Consumers
Republican members of the Senate Commerce Committee recently introduced the SAFE DATA Act. While the bill includes much needed federal preemption of state privacy laws,…
Bloomberg Law
Fortnite Creator Epic’s Battle With Tech Giants Could Harm Consumers
If you have middle school-aged children or older, chances are you’ve heard of Fortnite, an online multi-player game, created by Epic Games Inc., that allows users…
News Release
Antitrust Claims Against Google Ad Platform Fail to Meet Consumer Harm Standard
The Senate Judiciary Committee will hold a hearing later today claiming to look into antitrust concerns related to Google’s online advertising platform. Associate…
Blog
Don’t Panic Over Ad Tech
The Senate Judiciary Committee will hold an antitrust hearing on September 15 to examine Google’s 90 percent market share in online advertising. Senators who would…
News Release
New CEI Report Finds Bipartisan Embrace of Harmful, Interventionist Tech Policies
Neither major political party holds a monopoly on bad ideas when it comes to federal policy towards the technology sector, according to a…
Study
Terrible Tech 2.0
View Full Document as PDF Executive Summary If you are looking for bipartisanship in Washington, D.C., the technology policy sector may be your…
Blog
No Market Failure, No New Regulations
The U.S. Senate is about to consider federally regulating transportation network companies (TNCs) for the first time. But proof of market failure should always be…
Blog
INFORM Me When It’s Over
Among other depressing developments, 2020 saw the introduction of the Integrity, Notification, and Fairness in Online Retail Marketplaces for Consumers Act (INFORM) in both houses…
National Review
House Antitrust Hearing Discusses Everything but Antitrust Law
In Wednesday’s antitrust hearing with the CEOs of Amazon, Apple, Facebook, and Google, questions from liberal members of Congress laid the groundwork for expanding the…
Blog
Tech Antitrust Hearing as Political Theater
Large, innovative tech companies have been invaluable during the COVID-19 crisis, helping to ease the burden of millions of Americans and businesses under quarantine. But…
News Release
House Hearing with Big Tech Companies Unwarranted on Antitrust Grounds
The Subcommittee on Antitrust, Administrative and Commercial Law of the House Judiciary Committee is holding a hearing Wednesday noon on ““Online Platforms and Market Power,…
Blog
Antitrust Tech Hearing Unlikely to Prove Useful
Monday’s upcoming House Antitrust Subcommittee hearing featuring CEOs from Facebook, Amazon, Google, and Apple may turn out to have very little to do with antitrust.
The Washington Examiner
Congress is Dragging Jeff Bezos to the Hill to Explain a Routine Business Strategy
Alongside his fellow Big Tech CEOs, Jeff Bezos will appear before the House Judiciary Committee next Monday to testify about Amazon Marketplace’s business practices with…
News Release
Repeal #NeverNeeded Regulations Hindering Use of Tech at Home During Deadly Pandemic
The COVID-19 crisis has severely tested individuals and businesses, making access to technologies and services that enabled large swaths of the American economy to move…
Study
Repeal of #NeverNeeded Regulations Can Help People Stay Home and Safe During the COVID-19 Crisis
As individuals and businesses continue to address the COVID-19 health crisis, access to technologies and services that have enabled large swaths of the economy to…
News Release
Congress Should Take Net Neutrality Regulations Off the Table Permanently to Aid Economic Recovery
Proponents of net neutrality regulations promised dire consequences for Internet user experience if the Obama-era rules were repealed, but time has shown their predictions to…
Study
Take Net Neutrality Regulations off the Table for Good
Congress should eliminate the looming threat of net neutrality regulations to Internet service providers (ISPs). Regulation deters investment and the coronavirus health crisis has revealed…