NTIA Administrator Larry Strickling urged Internet Governance Forum participants Wednesday to “build” on the experience of advancing the multistakeholder governance model exhibited in the recently completed Internet Assigned Numbers Authority transition “and find opportunities to apply the model to those issues where it has the best chance to succeed.” The IGF is meeting in Guadalajara, Mexico, through Friday. There's “work to do to demonstrate to stakeholders everywhere, but especially in developing countries, how they can utilize this tool to solve technical policy challenges better than top-down regulatory approaches offered by governmental organizations like the ITU,” Strickling said in prepared remarks. The multistakeholder process “does not guarantee that everyone will be satisfied with the outcome,” Strickling said. “But it is critical to preserving this model of Internet governance that all parties respect and work through the process and accept the outcome once a decision is reached. It is clear that we have more work to do on this front.” Even ICANN during the planning for the IANA oversight spinoff was “not immune to detractors who attempt to undermine the process after an outcome has been achieved,” Strickling said. “After the community completed the IANA transition plan, there were those who tried unsuccessfully to delay or block the transition at the eleventh hour. Of course, there will always be those who are not happy with the outcome. But if you believe in the process, you must respect the process by bringing your concerns or ideas forward before stakeholders come to a consensus decision -- not after.”

ICANN officials and community members will participate in the Internet Governance Forum meeting in Guadalajara, Mexico, the organization said Tuesday. The IGF meeting, to run Dec. 6-9, is one of several future internet governance meetings seen as potential flash points on internet governance issues (see 1610030042). The Guadalajara meeting will include discussions about “the significant enhancements needed in information and communications technologies (e.g., new devices, systems, online information) for countries to meet the targets for the Sustainable Development Goals that the U.N. agreed to last year,” said ICANN Vice President-Stakeholder Engagement for Latin America and the Caribbean Rodrigo de la Parra and Vice President-Intergovernmental Organizations Engagement Nigel Hickson in a blog post. “These discussions will guide actions by national governments, regional and global agencies, and stakeholder groups. The IGF will also discuss pertinent Internet public policy issues such as cybersecurity and data privacy.” ICANN views the IGF meeting as a “venue introducing participants to [the organization’s] role in the Internet landscape,” the officials said. “We'll be able to reach members of the global community who don't attend our meetings. We're particularly looking to attract new stakeholders from civil society, academia and business.” ICANN members will host panels on the new generic top-level domain application process and on how the organization will operate after the now-completed Internet Assigned Numbers Authority transition, ICANN officials said.

The European Commission's proposal to implement cross-border levies on VOD services could lead to fragmentation of the digital single market, the Computer & Communications Industry Association said in a report. The VOD cross-border levies provision is part of the EC's larger proposal to revamp European audiovisual rules. CCIA raised concerns earlier this year about the prospect that the EC would propose VOD levies (see 1605240018). The Commission has framed the VOD rules as necessary to create a “level playing field,” but instead tilts the field against VOD services and would have other unintended consequences, CCIA said. “This proposal abandons key principles which have underpinned the success of the Digital Single Market,” said Perspective Associates Managing Director Tim Suter, one of the report's co-authors, in a news release. “A deeply flawed process has led to a deeply flawed conclusion.” The EC “is applying cross-border levies only to VOD services, while leaving broadcasters with the advantages of free spectrum, prominence, must-carry and so on,” said Communications Chambers co-founder Rob Kenny. “This isn’t level -- it’s the North Face of the Eiger.”

The stance that President-elect Donald Trump’s administration takes on internet governance issues “at least internationally is going to be tied very closely” with Trump’s overall foreign policy agenda, said Internet Society Vice President-Global Policy Development Sally Wentworth during a Freedom House event Monday. Freedom House released its annual assessment of internet freedom, which examined the period between June 2015 and May. The report highlighted what the group viewed as governments’ increasing restrictions on the use of social media platforms during periods of civil unrest. Trump’s foreign policy agenda will converge with his stance on internet governance particularly when he approaches negotiations within the U.N., “where we’re seeing a significant rise is member state negotiations over things like cybersecurity and cyberterrorism,” Wentworth said. Trump’s tech agenda generally has been unclear, but on cybersecurity and other tech issues where his goals are at least somewhat clear, his agenda is “perhaps a bit concerning,” Wentworth said.

Google Thursday rebuffed European Commission concerns that the company's Android operating system is hurting competition by skirting antitrust rules and imposing restrictions on device makers and mobile network operators (see 1604200001). In response to the EC's April statement of objections, General Counsel Kent Walker said in a blog post that the free and open source Android expanded competition. He wrote that Android competes with Apple iOS, and Google and hardware makers established a "minimum level of compatibility" for Android devices to minimize fragmentation. "We give phone makers wide latitude to build devices that go above that baseline, which is why you see such a varied universe of Android devices," he wrote. He added that Google's apps account for less than one-third of preloaded apps, which consumers "can swipe away." Hardware makers and carriers can install rival apps. Walker said Google provides free distribution of some products like Google Search and Google Play rather than charge upfront licensing fees. Thomas Vinje, counsel to FairSearch, a group representing Google's competitors, said in a statement that the company is "abusing its dominance to prevent competition and innovation." He said the EC "must pursue its case to a conclusion, and require Google to change its behavior, so consumers can benefit from the resulting innovation emerging from a competitive marketplace for search, browsers, and everything else on a smart phone." Computer & Communications Industry Association Europe Director Jakob Kucharczyk said in a statement that Android has been "fundamentally important" to the development of Europe's mobile economy "spurring competition, innovation and consumer choice." He restated many of Walker's points and added that they are "elements of a highly competitive and balanced environment.”

The EU-U.S. Privacy Shield may face a "rocky future" if the incoming Trump administration thinks it's "unable or unwilling" to maintain the Obama administration's promises in protecting Europeans' personal data in the trans-Atlantic data transfer framework, London-based Cordery attorney Jonathan Armstrong said in a Thursday post on what Trump's election means for compliance on various issues. Trump's views on the NSA are "hard to determine," wrote Armstrong, who presented several 2013 tweets from the president-elect that showed Trump either being against NSA's spying activities or extending the agency's authority. "On 27 July 2013 he had also seemingly supported Edward Snowden saying '#snowden not a traitor. Shared info with fellow Americans who have a right to know about NSA snooping [expletive deleted],'" Armstrong wrote. Regardless of Trump's views, "he is likely to need to act swiftly once he assumes office to give Privacy Shield any hope of a lasting future," the attorney added. He also cited remarks by FTC Chairwoman Edith Ramirez Wednesday in Brussels that the Trump administration probably wouldn't make any significant changes on privacy and data enforcement security (see 1611090016). Privacy Shield faces several legal challenges in the EU (see 1611040002).

Cuba's lag behind much of the world in internet access and connectivity “may be changing soon” amid state-run Empresa de Telecomunicaciones de Cuba's (ETECSA) deployment of Wi-Fi hot spots, said TechFreedom in an email Tuesday. ETECSA deployed 65 hot spots in 2015 and is projected to deploy an additional 80 by the end of 2016. The approximately $2-per-hour access to Wi-Fi via ETECSA is “highly expensive for most Cubans” but “offers a previously unknown level of access,” TechFreedom said. The thawing of U.S.-Cuba relations is opening up new opportunities with U.S. tech firms to upgrade Cuba's digital infrastructure, which in turn will increase demand for Wi-Fi, said Engage Cuba Coalition Chief of Staff Adelina Bryant during a TechFreedom podcast. ETECSA's deployment of Wi-Fi means Cubans have been “given an inch, and they want a mile,” Bryant said. “The policy needs to change. We should be supporting the Cubans’ right to keep demanding more.”

The European Commission's argument that Google favors its own comparison shopping service in search results "just doesn't fit the reality of how most people shop online," said company General Counsel Kent Walker in a Thursday blog post. Last year, the EC filed its case, saying it was concerned online users didn't see most relevant results because Google favored its own comparison shopping product first (see 1508270026). In July's supplementary statement of objections, the EC said it strengthened its case, and the company filed a response Thursday. "Consumers don’t just look for products on a search engine, then click on a price comparison site, and then click again to visit merchant sites," said Walker. "They reach merchant websites in many different ways: via general search engines, specialist search services, merchant platforms, social-media sites, and online ads served by various companies." He said recent German and U.S. studies show online shoppers first go to Amazon, then to search engines like Google's and then to price comparison sites or to retailers. "Ultimately, we can’t agree with a case that lacks evidence and would limit our ability to serve our users, just to satisfy the interests of a small number of websites," he said. Google also filed responses to EC's concerns about Google's AdSense service, which the commission said placed restrictions on third-party sites to show search ads from Google competitors. Walker also said Google plans to file a response to EC's concerns about its Android operating system. Computer & Communications Industry Association Europe Vice President James Waterworth said in a statement that regulators need to look at the market holistically rather than from the perspective of several struggling companies. "The complete picture shows consumers have an increasing choice of products and prices and that investment is booming,” he said. But Thomas Vinje, counsel to FairSearch, a group representing Google's competitors, in a statement that consumers "do not get the best, most relevant results" from Google but rather results from advertisers that pay the search company the most money. He said the EC, not Google, has consumer best interests in mind.

Fitness wristband makers Fitbit, Garmin, Jawbone and Mio might be collecting and sharing more personal data about users' health, activities and locations than needed, potentially violating privacy-related laws, said Norway's consumer protection agency in a Thursday news release. "We fear that this information can be exploited for direct marketing and price-discrimination purposes, and that basic privacy principles are being neglected," said the Norwegian Consumer Council, or Forbrukerrådet. An NCC report analyzed each product's terms and conditions. The council said it's submitting a formal complaint to the Norwegian Data Protection Authority and Consumer Ombudsman for breaking both European and Norwegian consumer, data protection and marketing laws. Besides collecting more data than needed, NCC said, the companies don't fully explain with whom they might share the data or how long it will be retained. They also don't give proper notice about changes to the terms of service, the agency said. Jawbone said in a statement it's reviewing the report but it gets permission from users to share their data, and they can ask the company to delete it. "We want to reassure our users and let them know that we only share their data if they ask us to -- for example to integrate with a 3rd party app," said Jawbone. Fitbit said in a statement it doesn't sell or share data without user permission and tries to use "clear, non-legalese language in our policies" so users understand data collection and use. Fitbit said it was self-certified under Privacy Shield, the trans-Atlantic data transfer arrangement to protect Europeans' personal information. Although Garmin said it disagrees with some unspecified statements in the NCC report, it's working to make some language clearer in its privacy policy, enhancements that will be released in the coming weeks. It said other NCC suggestions will be integrated into data protection practices and policies that will be made in preparation for the general data protection regulation. The company said it doesn't share or sell data to third parties without explicit consumer consent. Mio didn't comment.

The DOJ and FTC are seeking comment on proposed revisions to 1995 antitrust guidance to businesses engaged in international activities related to the agencies' enforcement policy. In a Tuesday news release, the agencies said the revisions add a chapter on international cooperation, including its legal basis, investigative tools, confidentiality protections, types of information exchanged, waivers of confidentiality, remedies and special considerations in criminal investigations. The revisions provide "illustrative examples" of common issues encountered, and address application of U.S. antitrust law to conduct involving foreign commerce, sovereign immunity and other related matters. FTC members voted 3-0 to issue the proposed revisions for comment, due Dec. 1.