Whether it is lifting net neutrality regulations, allowing AI to reach its full potential to benefit mankind, educating policy makers about content moderation, clearing legacy regulations at the Federal Communications Commission, advocating for greater spectrum efficiency, or defending business practices that benefit consumers but are disliked by antitrust enforcers, CEI punches above its weight. Coalition activity, relationships with tech and telecom journalists, media appearances, policy events, Capitol Hill outreach, op-eds, and in-depth studies combine to make CEI influential in the tech and telecom policy area.
Tech and Telecom Issue Areas
Featured Posts
Blog
Lawmakers continue to embrace incoherent tech policy
As Congress continues its march to “rein in Big Tech,” some lawmakers seem unaware of how their stated goals conflict with each other. Members want…
News Release
Market-based Reforms Needed to Correct Failures of Universal Service Subsidies, Congress Urged to Act
A new report from the Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI) highlights the pervasive failures of the Universal Service Fund (USF) subsidies and calls on Congress…
Blog
Good things happen when spectrum is allocated to the marketplace
There has been recent legislative activity on spectrum allocation, so it is a good time to remind ourselves why moving as much spectrum as…
Search Posts
Blog
Shuttlyndra and the Smoking Rocket
Over at Pajamas Media today, I have some interesting news on the Shuttlyndra situation, which would be a huge scandal if…
Citation
Digital Data Privacy Rules Turn 25
Blog
SEC Jumps into Cybersecurity Debate
Much of the cybersecurity focus this year has been on Congress’s efforts to mandate data breach notifications and security standards. Now the Securities and…
PC World
US Lawmakers Push to Limit Gov’t Mobile Tracking
PC World
Groups Say Bipartisan Backing Will Boost Location Privacy Bill
PC World
Bipartisan Coalition Opposes Warrantless Electronic Tracking by Government
News Release
CEI President to Join U.S. Senators in Press Conference on Privacy Reforms
Washington, D.C., October 17, 2011 – Tomorrow at 11:00 a.m., CEI President Fred L. Smith will join U.S. Senators Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) and Mark…
Blog
Continuing Irrational Risk Aversion by NASA
About a month ago, I discussed the potential consequences of NASA's extreme aversion to loss of crew. Over at NASA Space…
Blog
The Future of Air Travel?
First-generational suborbital crafts would reach 2,200 miles per hour, with an eventual goal of hitting 13,750 miles per hour. A trip from London to Sydney…
Blog
Shuttlyndra and Bipartisan Crony Capitalism
Over at Pajamas Media today, I tell a tale of crony capitalism that makes Solyndra look like a model of government…
Reason
Warrantless GPS Tracking, Union Dues, and Fleeting Expletives: The Supreme Court Suits Up for Another Term
Blog
Google’s Rick Santorum Problem
Rick Santorum has a Google problem, and everybody knows about it -- mostly because Rick Santorum won't stop talking about it. Last week,…
Reason
Not Without A Warrant
Blog
Blame Congress and Pork, Not NASA
Over at National Review today, I have a lengthy but necessary rebuttal of a misbegotten post at…
Blog
The Fable of the Shoes
Jonah Goldberg praises Ron Paul's stance on health care, and takes to task the status-quo bias of even many Republicans, recalling…
News Release
E-Verify Bill Proposes Massive New Regulatory Mandate
Washington, D.C., September 21, 2011 — Today, the House Judiciary Committee passed the Legal Workforce Act (H.R. 2885) which mandates use of the electronic employment…
Blog
Some Commercial Crew Questions For NASA
One of the great controversies of the new space policy announced last year was the intent of NASA to turn over the transportation of cargo…
Blog
House Hearing on Effects of EU Privacy Directive
Yesterday the House Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing, and Trade held a hearing addressing the economic consequences of the European Union’s internet privacy regulations. The…
Legal Brief
Brief of Amici Curiae Cato Institute, Reason Foundation, and Competitive Enterprise Institute in Support Of Petitioners in Mayo v. Prometheus Labs
Full Document Available in PDF Summary of Argument Prometheus’s patents are…
Blog
Infrastructure Si, Infrastructure Bank No
In his Forbes column, James Glassman provides a counterpoint to the Obama proposal to create a national infrastructure bank. Rather than direct funds through…
News Release
Think Tanks Urge Supreme Court to Reject Abstract Process Patents
Washington, D.C., September 15, 2011 – The Competitive Enterprise Institute, Cato Institute, and Reason Foundation have submitted an amicus curiae brief…
Blog
California Wins as Amazon Deals
Friday, I wrote for The Daily Caller about the negative impact a tax deal between Amazon.com and the state of California would have the debate…
Blog
Belt Tightening At FAA’s Office of Commercial Space Transportation
Last week the House Appropriations Committee released its draft bill for funding of Transportation, Housing and Urban Development. Of particular note is the appropriation…
Reason
A Plan Better than Obama’s to Create Jobs
Blog
Time To End Apollo Redux
Over at Cosmic Log, the blog of MSNBC science correspondent Alan Boyle, there is an interview with me based on a…
Blog
The “Overhead Smash” Of ITAR
Over at Beltway Confidential today, Tim Carney asks if one of the unintended (or perhaps not-so-unintended) consequences of Dodd-Frank will be to…
Blog
NASA’s Costly Risk Aversion
Over at Pajamas Media this past weekend, I describe the current travails of the International Space Station in the wake of…
Reason
Is Apollo’s Past Spoiling Our Future in Outer Space?
Orange County Register
Cellphone Merger a Good Call
Yahoo! News
Challenge To T-Mobile Deal Brings Out Fans and Critics
Blog
CEI Podcast for September 1, 2011: The Blocked AT&T-T-Mobile Merger
The Department of Justice sued this week to stop the proposed AT&T-T-Mobile merger. Associate Director of Technology Studies Ryan Radia thinks this is a mistake.
Blog
New Texas Satellite TV Taxes Dodged, But Cable Franchise Fee Abuse Persists
In April of this year, my colleague Ryan Radia and I wrote about a proposal making its way through the Texas State House to increase…
Los Angeles Times
U.S. Fears Lost Jobs If AT&T Merger is Approved
Los Angeles Times
The Day After: More Reaction To DoJ’s AT&T/T-Mobile Civil Suit
RBR
AT&T Vows to Pursue T-Mobile Merger Despite DOJ block
E Week
U.S. Suit to Block ATandT, T-Mobile Deal Draws Sharp Interest Group Reaction
Blog
The DOJ’s Antitrust Seers
The philosopher Yogi Berra once said that “It’s tough to make predictions, especially about the future.” Let’s apply his lesson to the proposed $39 billion…
News Release
DOJ Antitrust Lawsuit Subverts Free Enterprise, Job Creation
Washington, D.C., August 31, 2011 – This morning, the U.S. Department of Justice filed an antitrust lawsuit seeking to block the proposed acquisition of…
Blog
AT&T-T-Mobile Merger Delayed
A few months ago, the FCC said it would hand down a decision on whether to allow AT&T and T-Mobile to merge within 180 days.
Blog
The Texas Empire Strikes Back
Well, I made a prediction here yesterday: It will be interesting to see how those in Congress who have been demanding…
E Week
Privacy Mandates are Bad News for Web Users
When Congress returns from its summer recess, Internet privacy will be high on its agenda. Half a dozen bills introduced this session aim to address…
Blog
CEI Podcast for August 25, 2011: Mr. Fuddlesticks
Mr. Fuddlesticks is an anonymous YouTube user who posted embarrassing videos about the Renton, Washington police department. They convinced a judge to let them request…
Blog
Our Space Policy Chickens Have Come Home To Roost
With the retirement of the Space Shuttle last month, the U.S. and its international partners are now entirely reliant on non-U.S. providers for transportation to…
Blog
FCC Repeals 83 Regulations
The repeals will become official upon publication in the Federal Register.
E Week
MrFuddlesticks, the Renton Police Department and Online Civil Liberties
In the last two decades, the Internet has revolutionized the way people communicate and socialize. Unfortunately, our legal system has yet to adapt to the…
Human Events
Big Brother Goes Green
Human Events
Medical Magellans
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) rules are supposedly intended to ensure the safety and efficacy of new drugs and medical devices. It is FDA’s technology…
Pittsburgh Live
Request for Social Media Curbs in Britain Spark Debate
Letters
Coalition Letter to US Senate on REAL ID Act
We, the undersigned organizations, representing millions of Americans urge you not to support the so-called “REAL ID Act”, whether attached to the emergency supplemental spending…
Legal Brief
Amicus Brief in Granholm vs Heald
Full Document Available in PDF As interstate commerce has grown, businesses have used a variety of…
Staff & Scholars
Jessica Melugin
Director of the Center for Technology & Innovation
- Antitrust
- Innovation
- Media, Speech and Internet Freedoms
Clyde Wayne Crews
Fred L. Smith Fellow in Regulatory Studies
- Business and Government
- Consumer Freedom
- Deregulation
Fred L. Smith, Jr.
Founder; Chairman Emeritus
- Automobiles and Roads
- Aviation
- Business and Government