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
The CHIPS and Science Act: A potential regulatory issue
Industrial policy is back with a bang. The COVID-19 pandemic revealed vulnerabilities in global supply chains, prompting intense debates in Congress about government’s role in…
Blog
Free the Economy podcast: Technology and politics with Corbin Barthold
In this week’s episode we cover bringing your parents to a job interview, the case against a universal basic income, and why…
National Review
Net Neutrality Trusts Regulation over Markets
Despite years of investment, innovation, increasing competition, and declining prices under a light-touch regulatory framework, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has reinstated Obama–era net-neutrality rules and…
Search Posts
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…
Blog
State Antitrust Lawsuit Trivializes Security Threats in Mobile App Market
Last July, 36 state attorneys general filed an antitrust suit against Google focusing on app distribution for Android devices through the Google Play Store.
News Release
Senators Should Oppose Sohn Nomination to FCC
The Senate Commerce Committee is holding a hearing today on the nomination of Gigi Sohn to be a commissioner at the Federal Communications Commission. Research…
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
Good News for Facebook Competitors, Bad News for the FTC’s Antitrust Case
Thursday brought some interesting news, none of which were kind to the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) antitrust case against Facebook. First, Facebook’s number of…
Real Clear Policy
State Lawmakers Need a Better Strategy to Make Regulatory Sandbox Programs a Success
In the age of Web3 and the metaverse, the term “sandbox” has suddenly taken on a new meaning. No long just a fun place for…
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…
Letters
CEI and Other Organizations Oppose the Open App Markets Act
Dear Senator, On behalf of the undersigned organizations – representing millions of taxpayers, consumers, and free market advocates across the nation – we urge you…
News Release
A Government Central Bank Digital Currency Would Pose Big Risk to Financial Sector, Economy
The U.S. should not approve a central bank digital currency (CBDC), a new Competitive Enterprise Institute report argues. “CBDCs could hand the federal government…
Study
Central Bank Digital Currencies Threaten Global Stability and Financial Privacy
Executive Summary As digital currencies go mainstream around the world, governments and international financial bodies are seeking to develop ways to regulate them. Some countries…
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…
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.
The Hill
Congress and the Biden Administration Should be Wary of the FAA’s Opposition to 5G Spectrum Allocation
In early December, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issued a new rule restricting aircraft and helicopters from using certain automated flight…
National Review
Don’t Let Regulators Kill Crypto
Americans are excited about crypto. Who can blame them? Digital currencies promise to eliminate the middleman in all manner of value transfers, starting with financial markets.
Blog
Why Both Democrats and Republicans Should Oppose Gigi Sohn’s Nomination as FCC Commissioner
On Wednesday, the Senate Commerce Committee held a confirmation hearing on the nomination of Gigi Sohn to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). During the…
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…
Real Clear Policy
DOJ’s Antitrust Case Against Publishers is an Overreach
The U.S. Department of Justice’s (DOJ) antitrust suit to stop the merger of publishers Penguin Random House and Simon & Schuster has not gained as…
Blog
Review of Michael Munger, The Sharing Economy: Its Pitfalls and Promises (Institute of Economic Affairs, 2021)
Transaction costs are one of the most overlooked ideas in economics. They are also one of the most important. The lowering of transaction costs is…
Duluth News Tribune
Counterpoint: Urge Private Sector, Consumers to Fight Back, too, Against Unwanted, Irritating Robocalls
“We have been trying to reach you regarding your car’s extended warranty.” In an age of great political partisanship, robocalls vex American consumers of all…
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…
Blog
Markets Aren’t Perfect; Regulation Is Often Far Worse
A rhetorical tactic commonly employed by both my technocratic and progressive friends is a straw man argument. “If market processes are so great,” they charge,…
Blog
The United States Should Oppose the EU’s Proposed Common Charger Regulation
The European Union (EU) wants to require all cell phone manufacturers to use a common charging device. According to European policy makers, if everyone…
Op-Eds
Facebook keeps asking for regulation that would crush its competition
Repost: Tim Carney’s piece at the Washington Examiner, as part of their Restoring America Project Nick Clegg,…
Blog
Sen. Klobuchar’s Half-Baked Antitrust Bill
A famous scene in the 1990s comedy movie Half Baked has a young Jon Stewart musing about how different everyday activities can be while…
Barrons
A Key FTC Case Goes Down the Regulatory Rabbit Hole
As imagined in Lewis Carroll’s classic, having gone down the rabbit hole, a bewildered Alice learns from the Cheshire Cat that, if you don’t know…
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…
National Interest
American Lawmakers Should Not Repeat Beijing’s Big Tech Mistake
As the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) cracks down on private Chinese technology companies, American regulators should take note but avoid a similarly punitive stance toward…
National Interest
American Lawmakers Should Not Repeat Beijing’s Big Tech Mistake
s the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) cracks down on private Chinese technology companies, American regulators should take note but avoid a similarly punitive stance toward…
Blog
Web 3.0 Requires New Regulatory Thinking
“[A] digital economy isn’t simply an industrial economy on the internet.” The Blockchain Innovation Hub at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology in Australia…
Blog
UK’s Attempt to Block a Merger Between American Firms Could Cripple Innovation
As I explain in both an op-ed and regulatory comments submitted yesterday, the United Kingdom’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), the UK’s version…
Comment
Comments to the CMA in re: Facebook/GIPHY merger
Submitted to the Inquiry via [email protected], 1 September 2021 Thank you for the opportunity to submit comments in the matter of the Competition and…
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…
Study
Screening Out Innovation
Executive Summary This report addresses the appropriate antitrust standards for vertical mergers. It first provides an overview, and then analyzes a specific application to the Federal Trade Commission’s…
The Miami Herald
Consumers and the Private Sector Can Fight Robocalls Better than Government Can
“We have been trying to reach you regarding your car’s extended warranty.” In an age of great political partisanship, robocalls vex American consumers of all…
Blog
FTC Re-Files Facebook Antitrust Complaint
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) submitted a revised antitrust complaint against Facebook today. In June, a judge threw out the initial complaint for…
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…
The National Interest
The EU’s Recently Proposed Artificial Intelligence Act Goes Too Far
The European Union is now considering what could become the world’s first comprehensive legislation on artificial intelligence (AI). The aim is to promote European leadership…
Real Clear Markets
How Regulatory ‘Sandboxes’ Can Boost U.S. Technological Innovation
States like Louisiana and North Carolina are eager to attract technology companies and promote innovation by temporarily lifting government red tape…
Blog
Not A Policy Paper, Just A Thought
Years ago, pastor Lon Solomon of the D.C.-based McLean Bible Church popularized a series of radio ads entitled, “Not a Sermon, Just a Thought,”…
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.
Blog
Big Tech Critic Jonathan Kanter Nominated to Lead Justice Department Antitrust Division
President Biden’s announcement to nominate long-time Big Tech adversary Jonathan Kanter to lead the Department of Justice Antitrust Division follows on the heels of…
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…
S&P Global
Targeting Amazon Brands, House Bill Could Spur Competition — or Raise Prices
S&P Global cites Vice President for Strategy Iain Murray on proposed regulations targeting Amazon brands: Iain Murray — a vice president with the Competitive…
Blog
An Unprecedented FTC Appointment
In June, President Biden broke precedent when he appointed Lina Khan as the new chair of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). It has been…
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…
Blog
Relevant Markets, A Dozen Keystrokes, and the Google Play Store Antitrust Lawsuit
Yesterday, after markets closed, 36 state attorneys general announced another antitrust lawsuit against Google. This complaint centers around Google’s Play Store, in which it…
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 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 Economic Standard
Why the EU’s Latest Industrial Strategy Falls Short
Can the European Union become a world leader in innovation? Yes, but Brussels needs to create a more business-friendly environment for businesses and start-ups. The…
News Release
CEI Joins Taxpayers Protection Alliance Letter Opposing the BRIDGE Act
The Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI) joined the Taxpayers Protection Alliance and 21 other groups in signing a letter opposing the BRIDGE Act, which…
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…
Letters
CEI Joins Coalition Letter Opposing BRIDGE Act
Dear Senators, We, the undersigned organizations representing millions of taxpayers and consumers across the nation, ask you to oppose the BRIDGE Act as introduced by…
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…
The Teller Report
American Elected Officials Attacking Tech Giants: Overhaul or Demolition?
The Teller Report cites Vice President for Strategy Iain Murray on antitrust laws and Apple: “In general, the experience of the average consumer would…
The Foundation for Economic Education
Breaking Down the Latest Bipartisan Assault on Big Tech—And How It Could Blow Up in Consumers’ Faces
The Foundation for Economic Education cites Vice President for Strategy Iain Murray on a series of proposed antitrust bills targeting “Big Tech”: The Competitive…
Blog
New CEI Video: Section 230, Explained
The Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI) released a new policy video today, aiming to clarify the debate around Section 230 and to debunk some of…
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…
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:…
The World News
Huge Changes Coming Soon for Internet and Big Tech Under US Antitrust Proposal
The World News cites Vice President for Strategy Iain Murray on antitrust laws and Apple: Iain Murray, a senior fellow at the Competitive Enterprise…
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.
Letters
CEI Joins HJC Letter Opposing Cicilline Jayapal Bills
Dear Members of the House Judiciary Committee: At a time when voters are looking to Congress to address the country’s most pressing challenges, it seems…
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
What Do We Want from Our Platforms?
Two recently introduced House bills seek to restructure antitrust law, supposedly to tackle purported abuses by “big tech” firms. They aim to change how the…
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
Facebook’s Content Moderation Decisions Preferable to One-Size-Fits-All Government Regulation
Facebook announced today it suspended former President Donald Trump from the platform for two years retroactive to January 7, 2021. Responding to a ruling against…
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…
Blog
Microsoft to Retire Internet Explorer: Lessons for Today’s Antitrust Cases
Microsoft just announced it will retire its Internet Explorer browser next year. This is the same program that was at the heart of an…
Blog
The Endless Frontier Act to Boost Science and Tech Can Mean Endless Regulation
Related to regulatory effects of mass spending on national plans and the deadweight costs of spending, are the distortions, diversion of resources, and…
Letters
CEI Joins Coalition Letter Regarding Wasteful RDOF Subsidies, Hamilton Place Strategies
Dear Ms. Dortch: The Commission adopted its Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (“RDOF”) order last year despite concerns that it would subsidize the construction and operation…
Blog
One of Google’s Antitrust Cases Dismissed, for Now
A District judge on Thursday dismissed a private antitrust case against Google brought by a group of advertisers. It does not affect separate cases…
Real Clear Policy
FCC Must Promote Competition Between 5G & Satellite-based Internet Providers
As the United States government seeks to expand broadband access for Americans, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) should allow competition between terrestrial 5G broadband and…
The American Conservative
Why Small Firms Sell Out
Among some conservatives’ main complaints about Big Tech is the way it acquires smaller competitors, stopping them from displacing them like Facebook displaced MySpace. The…
Blog
Why Policy Makers Should Consider Expanding Financing and Exit Options for Startups
Last month, the online chat startup Discord halted accepting bids for a potential acquisition. Suitors included Microsoft, which had offered to acquire the company…
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
Despite Recent Increase in Private Broadband Investment, President Biden Seeks Wasteful Taxpayer-Funded Subsidies
The U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Energy and Commerce will hold a hearing today at 11:30am on broadband access. The hearing is titled “Broadband…
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…
Letters
CEI Joins Coalition Letter Regarding App Store Regulation
View Full Document as PDF Dear Senator/Representative: We, the undersigned, oppose state regulations on online application distribution platforms, more commonly known as app…
News Release
Regulators Should Let Cryptocurrency Firms Follow in Coinbase Footsteps
The successful cryptocurrency exchange platform Coinbase is poised to go public on April 14 amid high anticipation. CEI Senior Fellow John Berlau urges federal…
Real Clear Policy
How to Expand Broadband Access Without Spending $100 Billion
The Biden administration thrust the issue of rural broadband into the spotlight when it released the $2 trillion “American Jobs Plan,” which …
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