We are living in the era of the internet platform. From Apple’s app store to Google’s search and Chrome browser to Facebook to Amazon to broadband internet access, internet users depend on platforms that both enable and restrict their freedom. As these platforms exercise more influence on culture, commerce, and democracy, there are increasing questions about what forms of governance will oversee decisions on when information should be taken down, when certain applications are disfavored or preferred, and when and how user’s private information is stored and used.
In light of the rise of internet platforms, different governance strategies have emerged, including the use of “soft law,” best practices, and government nudges. It is becoming increasingly clear, however, that with growing importance of these platforms, public policymakers will increase asking questions about their practices and what form of oversight is appropriate (as opposed to no oversight at all). The dominance and power of a few platforms, and their reliance on undisclosed algorithms, raises issues of fairness, transparency, and discrimination.
In this annual technology policy conference, we will explore emerging forms of governance of platforms, evaluating the appropriate strategies for overseeing internet platforms. Possible models of governance can include traditional legal oversight (say, the notice and takedown regime of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act), the application of antitrust law to internet companies (say, the European Union’s actions against Google), non-traditional forms of regulation (say, NIST’s Framework for cybersecurity or BITAG’s development of best practices), and company-specific governance policies (say, Twitter’s policies for when to take down tweets). In evaluating the range of models of governance and emerging principles for platform regulation, we will bring together leaders in academia, government, and private industry to ask what we have learned about the internet platform-based economy.
If you need any accommodations, such as an ASL interpreter, CART, or alternate format versions of printed materials, please contact Susanna Weller at Susanna.Weller@colorado.edu or (303) 492-5442, and we will gladly make any necessary arrangements.
Sessions
Welcome
Opening Keynote
- Neville R. Ray
Executive Vice President, Chief Technology Officer, T-Mobile USA, Inc.
The Changing Technology and the Dynamics of Platform Dominance
- Blake Reid — Moderator
Associate Clinical Professor, University of Colorado Law School; Technology Policy Initiative Director, Silicon Flatirons - kc claffy — Panelist
Founder and Director, Center for Applied Internet Data Analysis - David Clark — Panelist
Senior Research Scientist, MIT Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Lab - Jack Waters — Panelist
Chief Technology Officer and President, Fiber Solutions, Zayo Group, LLC
Break
Overview Panel: Putting Internet Platforms Into Perspective
- The Honorable Phil Weiser — Moderator
Attorney General, State of Colorado; Founder and Executive Fellow, Silicon Flatirons; Adjunct Professor, University of Colorado Law School - Commissioner Rohit Chopra, Federal Trade Commission — Panelist
- Grace Koh — Panelist
Former Partner, DLA Piper - Patty Limerick — Panelist
Professor of History, University of Colorado Boulder - Balan Nair — Panelist
President and Chief Executive Officer, Liberty Latin America
Lunch
The Information Economy and Transparency
- Michele C. Farquhar — Moderator
Partner, Hogan Lovells - Margot Kaminski — Presenter
Associate Professor, University of Colorado Law School; Privacy Initiative Director, Silicon Flatirons - Hal Varian — Presenter
Chief Economist, Google - C. Frederick Beckner III — Commenter
Partner, Sidley Austin LLP - David Young — Commenter
Vice President, Public Policy, Verizon
Break
Evolving Notions of Platform Responsibility
- Rebecca Arbogast — Moderator
Senior Vice President, Global Public Policy, Comcast Corporation - Jane Bambauer — Presenter
Professor of Law, University of Arizona - Danielle Citron — Presenter
Morton & Sophia Macht Professor of Law, University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law - Alex Rosenblat — Presenter
Researcher, Technical Writer, Data & Society Research Institute - Leonard Cali — Commenter
Senior Vice President - Global Public Policy, AT&T - Stephen F. Williams — Commenter
Senior United States Circuit Judge, United States Court of Appeals, D.C. Circuit
Break
Debate: Privacy Law should focus only on economic harm
- JP de Vries — Moderator
Director Emeritus and Distinguished Advisor, Silicon Flatirons - Danielle Citron
Morton & Sophia Macht Professor of Law, University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law - Justin (Gus) Hurwitz
Professor of Law | Menard Director of the Nebraska Governance & Technology Center, University of Nebraska - Geoffrey A. Manne
President, Founder, International Center for Law & Economics - Paul Ohm
Professor, Associate Dean for Academic Affairs, Georgetown University Law Center
Reception
Please note: Per university alcohol policy, only registered guests will be admitted to the reception.
User Control and Autonomy In the Platform Economy
- Paul J. Watford — Moderator
Judge, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit - Justin (Gus) Hurwitz — Presenter
Professor of Law | Menard Director of the Nebraska Governance & Technology Center, University of Nebraska - Kate Klonick — Presenter
Assistant Professor of Law, St. John's University, School of Law; Affiliated Fellow, Information Society Project, Yale Law School - John J. Heitmann — Commenter
Partner, Kelley Drye & Warren LLP - Gene Kimmelman — Commenter
President, Chief Executive Officer, Public Knowledge - Gideon Parchomovsky — Commenter
Robert G. Fuller, Jr. Professor of Law, University of Pennsylvania Law School
Break
Internet Platforms and Competition Policy
- Bryan Tramont — Moderator
Managing Partner, Wilkinson Barker Knauer, LLP - A. Douglas Melamed — Presenter
Professor of the Practice of Law, Stanford Law School - Carl Shapiro — Presenter
Transamerica Chair in Business Strategy, Professor, Haas School of Business, University of California at Berkeley - Jeff Blattner — Commenter
President, Legal Policy Solutions, PLLC - Babette E. Boliek — Commenter
Chief Economist, Federal Communications Commission
Keynote Address
- Makan Delrahim — Keynote
Assistant Attorney General, Antitrust Division, U.S. Department of Justice