September 2018

Executives from major technology companies including Apple and Google expressed broad support for a national consumer privacy law in a hearing Sept 26, but offered few concrete specifics for how such a law might be best crafted. Lawmakers are no longer questioning whether technology companies should be regulated -- the conversation on Capitol Hill has shifted to how they can design a consumer privacy law that would span a broad swath of US tech and telecommunications companies with divergent data-collection practices.

The White House has scheduled a meeting Sept 28 between members of the Trump administration and wireless industry executives to discuss 5G network technology. However, details of the meeting—including whether it’s simply an educational event or if the administration is planning to discuss new policy initiatives—remain unclear. Nonetheless, the event is noteworthy considering that, at least so far, the Trump administration hasn’t engaged directly very often with the wireless industry on issues related to wireless networks or 5G.