Senate heads into tech and telecom sprint – Politico

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Mad dash: As senators head back to Washington for a year-end sprint, their to-do list includes key FCC nominations and more funding for broadband and antitrust efforts.

Theyre running: Prominent anti-monopoly advocates are running for various levels of elected office as progressive antitrust policies thrive under the Biden administration.

App store diplomacy: South Korea was the first country to pass a bill promoting competition in app stores. Now it wants other countries to do the same.

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SENATE KICKS INTO HIGH GEAR The Senate is back in session today with roughly three weeks left on the legislative calendar this year. Meanwhile, lawmakers still have a slate of tech and telecom bills and nominations to get through.

Heres where we stand right now on the timing:

All eyes are on the Democrats social spending package, which includes money for broadband and antitrust enforcement, and give the FTC a long-sought fining authority. White House National Economic Council Director Brian Deese projected confidence Sunday on ABCs This Week that the House would pass the package this week. Even if that happens, it will still need Senate approval, which will likely be pushed to December. (Congress is out again next week for Thanksgiving recess.)

In the meantime, the Senate is likely to consider the National Defense Authorization Act, Majority Leader Chuck Schumer told his colleagues in a Sunday letter. (MT ran down on Friday the dozens of tech-related amendments that have been introduced to the must-pass defense bill.)

One noteworthy mention: Schumer said the Senate-passed bill to boost American competitiveness against China could be added to the NDAA. There seems to be fairly broad support for doing so from both parties, he said. Schumer is a main sponsor of the bill, which would boost domestic semiconductor manufacturing.

This weeks big hearing: The Senate Commerce Committee is holding a confirmation hearing Wednesday for FCC Chair Jessica Rosenworcel and FTC nominee Alvaro Bedoya. Their nominations are key to securing Democratic majorities on the commissions, which would enable the agencies to pursue progressive priorities like net neutrality and tougher antitrust enforcement. (Both the FCC and FTC are holding monthly meetings on Thursday.) The committee is also scheduled to vote on Laurie Locascios nomination to be director of the National Institute of Standards and Technology.

Still TBA: The committee ended up splitting consideration of Rosenworcels nomination for another term as commissioner from that of Gigi Sohn, Bidens other FCC pick. It also needs to consider Alan Davidsons nomination to lead the National Telecommunications and Information Administration.

BIDENS BIF MOMENT President Joe Biden today will sign the bipartisan infrastructure bill that Congress passed before leaving for last weeks recess a major win for his domestic policy agenda that will provide a $65 billion boost to expand broadband access. The FCC and NTIA nominees, once confirmed, would play crucial roles in implementing the broadband investments.

ANTI-MONOPOLY CHAMPIONS ON THE BALLOT Bidens picks for top antitrust positions in Washington have buoyed progressive antitrust advocates eager to take on the giant tech companies. Now, some of them are running for elected office at the state and federal levels.

Welcome to the party: Zephyr Teachout, who has been exploring a run for New York attorney general, is expected to make an official announcement today about her candidacy, per The New York Times. She would replace Tish James, who is running for governor after her investigation into sexual harassment claims against then-Gov. Andrew Cuomo forced him to resign. (James, a prominent tech critic, has urged Congress to pass antitrust legislation.)

Teachout, an associate law professor at Fordham University who advocates for tougher antitrust enforcement, is not new to New York politics. She ran unsuccessfully for governor in 2014, for the House in 2016 and state attorney general in 2018. She won 33 percent of the vote in the Democratic gubernatorial primary, where her running mate was now-White House competition adviser Tim Wu.

Teachout joins progressive attorney Morgan Harper, who is running for a Senate seat in Ohio. Harper was director of policy and advocacy at the American Economic Liberties Project, an anti-monopoly group, and testified before the House Judiciary Committee in February following its report on competition in digital markets. In June, the duo shared a byline on an op-ed piece in The Nation, titled Appointing Lina Khan May Be the Best Thing Joe Biden Has Done, in reference to the FTC chair.

Backed by progressive activist groups, Harper challenged Rep. Joyce Beatty (D-Ohio) last year for her solidly blue district that encompasses much of Columbus, but she lost the primary with less than a third of the vote. This time, shes running for the open seat vacated by outgoing Republican Sen. Rob Portman, who has been vocal on emerging tech policy issues like artificial intelligence and deepfakes.

But Harper is not the only candidate who wants to take on Big Tech. Shes running for the same seat as Republican J.D. Vance, the venture capitalist backed by tech billionaire, PayPal co-founder and Meta board member Peter Thiel. Vance has called for the breakup of big tech companies, but his credentials and financial supporters could complicate that messaging.

Tough odds: Harper will face Rep. Tim Ryan (D-Ohio) in the Democratic primary, where Ryan is viewed as an early favorite and has been endorsed by Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio). Party leaders have coalesced around his candidacy, and Ryan has declined repeated debate requests from Harper.

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HAPPENING IN SEOUL Top critics of Google and Apples app stores are gathering in South Korea today as lawmakers there convene a so-called Global Conference for Mobile Application Ecosystem Fairness. The gathering comes amid a global push from lawmakers who say the companies wield too much control over their app stores.

Why South Korea? In August, the countrys parliament passed an amendment that blocked app store operators from forcing local developers to use their in-app payment systems dealing a blow to their lucrative commissions. The event will be hosted by South Korean lawmaker Jo Seoung-lae; the Coalition for App Fairness, which counts Epic Games, Match Group and Spotify as members; and K-Internet, a trade group that represents Korean internet companies.

Jo said in a statement that he hopes the event will help build a robust global coalition and prompt the U.S. and EU member states to follow suit.

Among the attendees: Epic CEO Tim Sweeney will participate in the event, just days after a judge ruled against Apples motion to delay a decision that required the iPhone maker to allow developers to include in-app links to alternative payment options. Sweeneys company has waged an antitrust war against Apple and Google, saying requirements to use their in-app payment systems are monopolistic. (Both companies deny the allegations. The judge in the Apple trial found that the company did not violate antitrust laws, a decision that is under appeal.)

Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) will also participate. Blackburn, along with Sens. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) and Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), introduced the Open App Markets Act, S. 2710 (117), in August, which would require alternative payment methods and app stores to be made available on smartphones. It would also bar companies from unreasonably preferencing their own apps in search rankings. (That bill has since picked up four co-sponsors.)

It wont be easy, Blackburn will say in her speech today about promoting app store competition. But the good news is that this issue is uniting policymakers and advocates across political lines.

Other attendees include Coalition for App Fairness Executive Director Meghan DiMuzio; Frances digital minister, Cdric O; and Mark Buse, Match Groups head of global government relations and policy.

Marianela Lpez-Galdos is joining Meta, where she will work on competition policy issues. She was most recently global competition counsel at the Computer and Communications Industry Association. Ellen Satterwhite is now head of U.S. policy at Patreon. She was previously VP at Glen Echo Group. Josh Blumenfeld is joining Google as manager of government affairs and public policy for YouTube. He previously was managing director of global policy and advocacy and chief legal officer at Malaria No More.

Robert Califf has been nominated to lead the Food and Drug Administration. He is a senior adviser to Alphabet-owned Verily Life Sciences and Google Health.

First in MT: The General Services Administrations Technology Transformation Services has announced 14 projects for citizen-facing digital services that will receive funding from the $150 million provided in Bidens Covid relief package. Among the projects: investing in cloud adoption and reuse; creating a consistent search experience; streamlining identity verification; creating inclusive design patterns; reimaging USAGov as the front door to government; bridging the gap to Wi-Fi access; and building a talent pipeline for government technologists. See the full list

Challenges ahead: How will Facebook keep its metaverse safe for users? More from FT.

Virtual woes: In Facebooks VR Headset, Racism and Other Abuses Showed Up Like Clockwork, via The Information.

Making changes: The Aspen Institutes Commission on Information Disorder released its final report on recommendations to combat misinformation and disinformation, such as increased content moderation transparency to Section 230 adjustments.

Thinking ahead: Advancements in neurotechnology have the potential for immense benefits. But what can be done to make sure the tech is used responsibly? IBM and the Future of Privacy Forum explore the issue.

Tips, comments, suggestions? Send them along via email to our team: Bob King ([emailprotected]), Heidi Vogt ([emailprotected]), John Hendel ([emailprotected]), Alexandra S. Levine ([emailprotected]), Leah Nylen ([emailprotected]), Emily Birnbaum ([emailprotected]), and Benjamin Din ([emailprotected]). Got an event for our calendar? Send details to [emailprotected]. And don't forget: Add @MorningTech and @PoliticoPro on Twitter.

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Senate heads into tech and telecom sprint - Politico