Articles, Op-Eds, & Blogs
CCPA critics warn innovation could lose under the law. What’s at stake?
Companies built empires on user data — information volunteered in exchange for services. But with heightened privacy scrutiny, could those companies survive today? The California Consumer Privacy Act is challenging how companies use data and testing their viability....
Big Government Won’t Improve Broadband in Rural California
Pick nearly any state in the union and likely it has a large swath of rural area and population. Even California, which is rarely thought of as a “rural state,” is still physically more than half rural, with about four million residents living in those areas. Many...
Instead of Fining Businesses Government Should Get Its Own House in Order
Last month the state of California began enforcing its expensive and heavy-handed new business privacy laws despite the economic burdens already borne by business because of COVID-19 and the government’s shut down of the economy. At $55 billion in compliance costs...
California Doubles Down on Unworkable Data Privacy Law During Second COVID Shutdown
Businesses were ordered to close. Schools were shuttered. People were told to stay home. Many believed that in a week or two life for the most part would return to normal and that COVID would be a bad memory. Now, four months later, California has not just halted...
Social Media Listened to Congress But it Still Wasn’t Enough
Congress loudly criticized social media for “allowing” itself to be manipulated by foreign powers to influence America’s 2016 presidential election. This alleged lack of content moderation during the last election cycle earned many sites a reputation as irresponsible...
California Doubles Down on Unworkable Data Privacy Law During Second COVID Shutdown
Businesses were ordered to close. Schools were shuttered. People were told to stay home. Many believed that in a week or two life for the most part would return to normal and that COVID would be a bad memory. Now, four months later, California has not just halted...
Time for Congress to Step Up on Broadband
Challenging times can often define a person, revealing a person's true nature. Industries can similarly show their mettle in challenging times. Broadband providers stepped up and provided what the country needed during the U.S. coronavirus outbreak, but now it is time...
Innovation Champion No More
Much is always written about “innovation.” How to manage it. How to inspire it. How to benefit from it. How to create an environment where it blooms. So much lip service is paid to innovation that unfortunately many people tune it out. Certainly, ignoring the value of...
Building In Accountability for Algorithmic Bias
Co-Authored with Anne Hobson “Algorithms’ are only as good as the data that gets packed into them,” said Democratic Presidential hopeful Elizabeth Warren. “And if a lot of discriminatory data gets packed in, if that’s how the world works, and the algorithm is doing...
Cheering the FCC plan for 6GHz
Today the FCC announced its plan for spectrum in the 6 GHz band, a plan that would allow unlicensed devices to share the entire 6 GHz band with incumbent licensees. The bottom line is that, if adopted, the plan would increase the amount of spectrum available for wi-fi...