Monthly Archives: January 2017

Washington, DC – Internet Association President & CEO Michael Beckerman issued the following statement on President Trump’s executive order on immigration:

“The internet industry is deeply concerned with the implications of President Trump’s executive order limiting immigration and movement into the United States. While this order impacts many companies outside of the tech industry, internet companies in particular thrive in the U.S. because the best and the brightest are able to create innovative products and services right here in America.

“While we support President Trump’s efforts to grow our economy and allow ‘people of great talent’ to come into the U.S., the executive order signed yesterday has troubling consequences. Internet Association member companies – along with companies in many other industries – include legal immigrant employees who are covered by these recent executive orders and will not be able to return back to their jobs and families in the U.S. Their work benefits our economy and creates jobs here in the United States. We maintain our support for immigration reform and will work with Congress and the Trump Administration on this important issue for families and our economy.”

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Washington, DC– Internet Association President and CEO Michael Beckerman issued the following statement on the announcement of Ajit Pai to serve as Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman:

“I have enjoyed working with Chairman Pai over the years and while he doesn’t always agree with our industry on every issue, he is both thoughtful and willing to listen. The internet industry is a significant stakeholder before the FCC and we look forward to a productive working relationship with Chairman Pai. The FCC is charged with preserving a free and open internet and fostering innovation online, and we will continue our work in pursuit of these goals.”

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Americans flooded our nation’s capital this weekend for events surrounding President Donald Trump’s inauguration. One thing was clear: internet-enabled home sharing platforms are an increasingly important option for travelers looking to find accommodations in DC and around the country.

New stats from HomeAway and Airbnb show that use of home sharing platforms skyrocketed this inauguration weekend, putting more than $10 million in the pockets of local residents and businesses. Below, you can find additional stats on the major impact of home sharing platforms this weekend:

E.B. Boyd from Fast Company sits down with Secretary of State John Kerry to talk about Russian election hacking, cyber security, importance of diplomat fluency in tech, and how the US supports tech around the world.

0:28 – Russia DNC Hacking and Election Integrity
7:15 – US response to cyber hacking
12:00 – Role of Silicon Valley in empowering and protecting the internet
16:25 – Global Engagement Center – what it is and how it connects with Silicon Valley
25:15 – How does the government support tech around the world
27:34 – Government fluency in tech
29:33 – Encryption and privacy
33:36 – The cyberspace battleground
39:28 – The tools of the internet are ‘hugely’ net positive

Albany, New York— With the announcement of Governor Cuomo’s inclusion of ridesharing in New York State’s annual budget, Dustin Brighton, Vice President of State Government Affairs at the Internet Association and founding organization of New Yorkers for Ridesharing offered the following comment:

“New Yorkers for Ridesharing thanks Governor Cuomo for leading the charge to bring ridesharing services to all of New York State. Governor Cuomo’s decision to include ridesharing in the annual budget demonstrates that New York listens to its citizens, supports small businesses in its cities and towns, and continues to be on the forefront of innovation and growth nationwide. It is time for New York to welcome ridesharing platforms so that communities from Long Island to Buffalo can benefit.”

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The internet has come a long way in the last five years. We’ve seen incredible innovation, unprecedented growth, and some pretty great content. The internet sector contributed 6 percent of GDP and 3 million jobs in 2014, by the most recent estimates.

But all of this was not a sure thing. Five years ago today the internet community joined together to stop SOPA/PIPA, legislation that would have radically harmed the future of the free and open internet and hindered economic growth for creators and users alike by allowing indiscriminate website blocking.

The United States has already enacted effective laws to prevent address illegal activity online- new laws that indiscriminately deny access to websites would undermine the success of these laws and the public’s right to access legal content while stunting the scale and diversity of platforms fueling creative growth.

The Internet Association today is again blacking out its website to underscore the importance of the internet remaining free of censorship and open to all.

Indiscriminate website blocking laws would have led to:

• A weaker economy: It’s likely that the internet sector would not have grown to become 6 percent of GDP, employing 3 million Americans. Aggressive censorship of large swathes of the internet would have stymied growth for the internet and the creators that depend on it. That means fewer jobs.
• More censorship and less freedom, both at home and abroad: China, Russia, and other less democratic regimes would have taken their cue from the US and installed similar censorship regimes.
• Fewer consumer choices online: The prospect of starting a new business or creating new content online looks far less promising when you face the threat of having your entire website blocked for a single piece of infringing content.

Kai Ryssdal talks with Secretary of the Department of Commerce Penny Pritzker about Global trade, the digital economy, and the challenges the Government faces in the digital world.

0:33 – Global trade
3:44 – Trade agreements / TPP
7:49 – The digital economy and the Commerce Department
9:36 – The Department of Commerce Digital Economy Agenda:
9:42 – 1 – Promoting a free and open Internet worldwide
10:21 – 2 – Promoting trust online
11:45 – 3 – Ensuring access for workers, families, and companies
12:00 – 4 – Promoting innovation
12:24 – Should the voice of policy come from the Government or a subject matter expert?
13:20 – Encryption vs. Law Enforcement
14:19 – Problems hiring cyber security workforce to work for the Government
16:01 – Government helping companies in the digital economy
18:18 – Survey about Americans becoming numb to constant hacking
19:19 – Rejecting the notion that security and innovation are opposing forces
21:09 – Open data
23:00 – Digital Economy and displaced workers
26:38 – Life after being the Secretary of the Department of Commerce and accomplishments

BECKERMAN: “We now have a clearer picture of the internet economy than ever before.”

Washington, DC – Internet Association today released its first economic policy white paper authored by IA Chief Economist, Dr. Christopher Hooton. The paper, entitled “Measuring The Internet Economy,” provides a meta-analysis of the size of the US and global internet economies and provides new estimates for the mobile and app economy.

“We now have a clearer picture of the internet economy than ever before,” said Internet Association President and CEO Michael Beckerman. “Dr. Hooton’s work lays the groundwork for a broader, more robust conversation about the internet and its critical role in our economy and daily lives.”

“We’re just beginning to scratch the surface when it comes to research on the internet economy,” said Internet Association Chief Economist Dr. Christopher Hooton. “This paper demonstrates the internet’s profound role in the national and global economy and I’m confident that it will spark a deeper level of policy conversation.”

Internet Association conducted a comprehensive review of prior studies estimating the size of the global and US internet economy and also provides an estimate for the size of the US mobile and app economy. Key findings include:

• The Internet sector is an economic powerhouse. A range of studies and methodologies show that it is a major economic sector, rivaling the auto industry in size, and that its contributions to GDP are growing rapidly.
• Traditional economic classification systems are outdated and need to be updated. We need to start thinking of the internet as an economic sector and develop metrics that better reflect its unique characteristics.
• When we start to apply more innovative thinking to the sector we can gain more insights. Some simple ‘connecting of the dots’ from other analysis demonstrates that mobile internet and app services likely contribute between approximately three percent of US GDP.

To read a two-page summary of the report, click here.

To read the full report, click here.

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Washington, DC – Internet Association President and CEO Michael Beckerman issued the following statement on the reintroduction of the Email Privacy Act by Reps. Kevin Yoder (KS-03) and Jared Polis (CO-02):

“The internet industry applauds Reps. Yoder and Polis for introducing a critical piece of legislation that provides the same protections for Americans’ inboxes that they have for their mailboxes. The Email Privacy Act rightfully extends constitutional privacy protections to stored digital content, requiring law enforcement to acquire a warrant before compelling a service provider to turn over information. The bill is a step towards bringing privacy rights into the digital age.”

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Amazon Worldwide Consumer CEO Jeff Wilke sits down with Internet Association President & CEO Michael Beckerman to talk about running Amazon’s consumer business.

0:34 – Parental Leave
1:20 – The Virtuous Cycle
3:50 – Transition from desktop to mobile for purchases
7:40 – Disrupting the middleman
8:54 – Embracing failure
11:24 – An example of a success that Amazon thought would be a failure
12:53 – A brief history of Amazon as told through Wilke’s experience
15:36 – The growth of the fashion business for Amazon
18:04 – Small seller access to a global market
19:09 – Amazon’s jobs footprint
20:40 – Recruiting at Amazon
22:55 – Leadership principles
23:48 – City Campus in Seattle
25:18 – Shipping partnerships
28:50 – Drones!
29:55 – Driverless cars and trucks
30:34 – Thinking about the environment as it relates to packaging
35:10 – Differences between city and rural purchasing habits
36:06 – AI thoughts and how it relates to Amazon
37:34 – Alexa
39:54 – Internet of Things integration into Amazon purchases