Innovation Policy Post

Geneva -- All around the world, a debate rages over the protection of users’ actions and information online. In the developed world, this is seen primarily through the lens of personal privacy protections: how and when users’ data on popular services like Google and Facebook may be used commercially. Elsewhere in the world, the issues are often more stark, as what users say and do online can literally be a matter of life and death for them.

The House Committee on Ways and Means and the Senate Committee on Finance held hearings this week on granting Permanent Normal Trade Relations (PNTR) to Russia.

CCIA sent letter to both House and Senate committee members urging them to consider the issue of Internet freedom in Russia as part of their discussion of the U.S.-Russia relationship.

Brussels -- Last week the European Commission initiated a public consultation titled: “A clean and open Internet: Public consultation on procedures for notifying and acting on illegal content hosted by online intermediaries”. As the name suggests, the consultation addresses rules and procedures for notifying and acting (N&A) on illegal content hosted by online intermediaries.

[Author’s Note:  This post was adapted from the author’s post on the DisCo (Disruptive Competition) blog — If you haven’t checked out http://project-disco.org, please do!]

The PROTECT IP Act (PIPA) was introduced in the Senate on May 12, 2011.  It is remarkable that that was now more than a year ago, and to think about how much has changed.

As Europe debates the balance of intellectual property rights in the wake of ACTA, Ireland is taking comments through the end of this month on a paper it published on copyright and innovation

On March 4, Russia held a Presidential election in which Prime Minister Vladimir Putin was returned to the Presidency for a third non-consecutive term.  However, the opposition and protestors allege widespread vote fraud, and thousands rallied in Moscow the day after the election.  These mass demonstrations, and those in December around Russia’s parliamentary elections, were informed and organized by utilizing social networks and the Internet.  Once again, we see the Internet contributing to the peaceful stirrings of democracy against an authoritarian regime, and the United States Congress should do what it can to safeguard Internet freedom in Russia.