The Computer & Communications Industry Association, European Digital Media Association, Mozilla and more than 60 others urged the European Council and European Parliament Monday to put work on copyright law revamp legislation “back on the right track” while “there is still time.” Both EU bodies have drawn criticism from CCIA and other U.S.-based entities over the direction of work in EC’s digital single market strategy. Consideration of a possible pan-EU ancillary copyright, seen as a tax on use of news snippets, has been a lightning rod (see 1703080067). The ancillary copyright proposal and language that would require service providers to monitor content uploaded by subscribers to ensure it's not copyright-protected are “backward-looking,” the entities wrote EU officials: The proposal should be rejected in favor of “a more ambitious agenda for positive reform.”

Developing countries could boost their economies by billions of dollars if they signed on to the 1996 Information Technology Agreement, reported the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation Monday. The ITA eliminates tariffs on hundreds of information and communication technology products for its current 82 signatory countries, but some developing countries haven’t signed because they don’t want to give up income generated by targeted tariffs, ITIF said. Economic growth and associated increase in tax revenue that would accompany ITA “would bolster Argentina’s economic growth by an estimated 1.52 percent, or $12.7 billion in additional output, in the 10th year; Cambodia’s by 0.98 percent or $320 million; Chile’s by 0.23 percent or $920 million; Kenya’s by 1.29 percent or $1.4 billion; Pakistan’s by 1.30 percent or $4.6 billion; and South Africa’s by 0.17 percent or $770 million.” ITIF said Chile and South Africa would see a smaller economic impact from signing on because “these countries already have relatively low tariff rates on ITA-covered ICT products.”

The European Commission fined Facebook about $122.2 million after deciding the company gave "incorrect or misleading information" about its acquisition of WhatsApp during a 2014 merger review, said a Thursday EC news release. The decision focused on Facebook's comments during the EC review that it wouldn't be able to establish automated matching between user accounts of both companies -- statements the company made in the notification form and in response to the commission's request for information. In August, WhatsApp announced it would share some user account information with Facebook, which privacy advocates said violated privacy promises (see 1608250027 and 1609220031). Those groups filed a complaint with the FTC and said the agency would investigate (see 1609070022). The EC "decision sends a clear signal to companies that they must comply with all aspects of EU merger rules, including the obligation to provide correct information," said Commissioner Margrethe Vestager, who oversees competition policy. "It imposes a proportionate and deterrent fine on Facebook. The Commission must be able to take decisions about mergers' effects on competition in full knowledge of accurate facts." Facebook blogged it "acted in good faith" with the EC from the beginning and always sought to provide accurate information. "The errors we made in our 2014 filings were not intentional and the Commission has confirmed that they did not impact the outcome of the merger review [and] brings this matter to a close," it said. The EC said the decision "is unrelated to either ongoing national antitrust procedures or privacy, data protection or consumer protection issues, which may arise following the August 2016 update of WhatsApp terms of service and privacy policy."

The U.S. Council for International Business, Computer and Communications Industry Association and more than 50 other entities jointly urged the Chinese government Monday to delay its planned June 1 implementation of a cybersecurity law that includes data localization rules. Opponents claim the law has the potential to bar foreign-based tech firms from industries that China deems “critical,” and could increase China’s online censorship (see 1612080077 and 1703080067). “China’s current course risks compromising its legitimate security objectives (and may even weaken security) while burdening industry and undermining the foundation of China’s relations with its commercial partners,” the groups said in a letter to the Chinese Communist Party Central Leading Group for Cyberspace Affairs and other Chinese government entities, “Our organizations remain concerned that China’s current approach is leading to greater separation rather than integration among our economies.” The law also may “exacerbate troubling trends in markets around the world that move China away from cooperative trade and the benefits of global trade,” the groups said: Information and communication technology measures “should be narrowly tailored, reflect international norms, be non-discriminatory and consistent with WTO [World Trade Organization] agreements to which China is a party. In order to ensure compliance with international standards and best security practices, we further recommend that Chinese agencies consult and work closely with industry experts and other stakeholders throughout the regulatory and implementation process.”

The International Competition Network adopted four new recommended practices on the types of transactions subject to merger review, plus merger notification thresholds, remedies and efficiencies, said the FTC in a Friday news release. ICN, a global network of 135 member agencies from 122 jurisdictions that strives to build consensus on sound competition policy principles, also adopted a framework for analyzing unilateral conduct, guiding principles for market studies and a report on establishing cartel fines, the agency said. Acting FTC Chairman Maureen Ohlhausen and acting Assistant Attorney General Andrew Finch of the DOJ's Antitrust Division led the U.S. delegation at ICN's annual conference in Portugal. “The world’s competition agencies demonstrate a shared commitment to strive toward convergence on sound competition analysis and fair process in antitrust investigations,” said Ohlhausen. The release said DOJ co-chairs the Unilateral Conduct Working Group, which completed a two-year project on issues faced by agencies when creating unilateral conduct enforcement policies, namely "what is dominance and what makes conduct exclusionary." The Agency Effectiveness Working Group produced a report on competition agencies' social media usage, strategies and lessons learned and another on staff training, said the FTC. It said the Advocacy Working Group produced a Market Studies Guiding Principles, "a compilation of effective practices for agencies to consider when undertaking studies to understand the state of competition in specific sectors."

Fiber surpassed DSL as the world's largest fixed-broadband platform in 2016, said Kagan research Thursday. The researcher surveyed 80 fixed-broadband markets. Fiber subscriptions grew 56 percent year-over-year, driven mainly by rapid deployment in Asia, Kagan said. The global fixed-broadband market could reach 1 billion subscribers by 2022, a 5.2 percent compound annual growth rate over five years, said Kagan. China and the U.S. are the largest fixed-broadband markets, combining for 46.9 percent of the total in 2016, it said. The U.S. has 12.2 percent of the global total; China is first with 34.7 percent. In 2016, China expanded its fixed-broadband market by 46 percent as it deployed fiber through a national broadband project, the firm said.

Restrictions on pricing, on selling in online marketplaces, and geographic restrictions on selling and advertising online were some of the top concerns in the final e-commerce report released Wednesday by the European Commission's Directorate-General for Competition. Two years ago, the commission began looking into e-commerce of consumer goods and digital content across the EU as part of its digital single market strategy. The EC published a preliminary report in September and then sought comment, which was incorporated into a final one. It said pricing restrictions and recommendations are "the most widespread restrictions" reported by retailers. It said both manufacturers and retailers frequently track online retail prices through pricing software, which could enable manufacturers to detect deviations from pricing recommendations and retaliate against retailers or it could facilitate collusion among retailers. The report said restrictions limiting retailers' ability to sell via online marketplaces has raised concerns under EU competition rules. The report said 90 percent of retailers use their own online shop when selling, with 31 percent selling via their online shops and marketplaces and 4 percent selling only via marketplaces. The study said market restrictions play a bigger role in some member states than in others, and might "range from absolute bans to restrictions on selling on marketplaces that do not fulfil certain quality criteria." The Computer & Communications Industry Association said in a news release it's concerned about the outright bans. "These restrictions are particularly detrimental for small and medium-sized sellers. They also harm competition and consumer choice,” said Jakob Kucharczyk, director-CCIA Europe. "Turning a blind eye on these restrictions will mean that thousands of sellers will not be able to benefit from the latest technological wave. This in itself merits rigorous enforcement action against blanket marketplace bans.” The EC report also said geo-blocking measures are used by some retailers, with some raising competition concerns.

The European Commission's digital single market strategy work won't be expanded to tackle online “fake news” disinformation despite its proliferation over the past year, said EC Vice President-DSM Andrus Ansip during the commission's Wednesday rollout of its DSM progress report. The EC instead plans to coordinate with top internet firms to update voluntary agreements to address fake news, including clarifying what protections the companies can claim when they actively work to flag disinformation, Ansip said. The EC renewed its call in the DSM review for EU institutions to finalize important related legislation by the end of 2017, saying delays “would leave people less protected; unable to use better, faster and cheaper connections; and blocked from access to more online content.” The EC noted its successes in ending pan-EU retail roaming charges and ensuring pan-EU portability of online subscription services. Roaming charges are to end in the EU June 15, and the cross-border services portability mandate is to take effect in early 2018. The EC said it plans to propose legislation in the fall on cross-border flows of non-personal data and legislation in 2018 on access and reuse of public data. The commission also plans to review the 2013 EU cybersecurity strategy and is preparing legislation to address unfair contractual clauses and other trading practices by online platforms. The Computer & Communications Industry Association criticized the progress on the DSM strategy. The EC “came up with the right strategy, but several of its proposals would actually make the situation worse by fragmenting the single market or making digital innovation harder in the EU,” said Vice President-Europe James Waterworth in a statement. CCIA has been critical of EC DSM-related proposals, including its ongoing work on copyright legislation (see 1702240067) and a proposal to implement cross-border levies on VOD services (see 1611180048). The EC “should spend the next two years working closely with industry to come up with the best solutions on new challenges including cybersecurity and removing illegal content from the Internet,” Waterworth said. “It should not hand down solutions but partner with those who make these solutions a reality.”

Emmanuel Macron's victory Sunday in the French presidential election marked “an endorsement of the country's confidence in the ability of French innovators and technology companies to power the national economy,” CTA President Gary Shapiro said in a statement. “France has long embraced the power of technology to change our lives for the better and deliver myriad economic benefits,” Shapiro said Sunday. In Macron, it now “will have a president who supports and enables that power and potential,” he said. Macron’s platform “to reduce government spending, lower corporate taxes and allow companies to negotiate work hours with their employees” will allow French tech companies “to innovate at a lightning-fast pace,” he said. Macron twice visited CES, and is a leader who’s “passionate about the tech sector and the jobs it creates,” Shapiro said. CTA expects France's presence at CES “to continue to climb under Macron's leadership,” he said. The U.S. tech sector “stands ready to support his vision for a forward-looking, innovative future of tech disruption," he said. BSA|The Software Alliance also reacted favorably.

AT&T offshored more than 12,000 in-house call center jobs since 2011, or about 30 percent of its U.S. call center employees, and closed about 30 call centers, Communications Workers of America reported Thursday. Over the past two years, AT&T used 38 call centers in eight other countries, it said. The report’s authors surveyed and interviewed call-center workers from the U.S. and abroad, CWA said in a news release. The union is bargaining with AT&T on contracts including for wireless workers (see 1704280048). "From Pittsburgh to Bakersfield, AT&T has shuttered dozens of call centers, stripping communities of thousands of jobs that are shipped over to vendors in the Dominican Republic, the Philippines and other countries,” District 1 Vice President Dennis Trainor said. AT&T provides "more good-paying full-time U.S. union jobs than any company in America," and CWA and members "have benefitted from that greatly,” a company spokesman emailed: AT&T has 200,000 U.S. employees.