New Bill Aims To Give Big Tech Its Own Regulator

Google, Meta, Apple, Amazon and other tech companies may need to deal with a new digital platform regulator in the U.S. if Congress passes a bill that seeks to create a Commission to rein in Silicon Valley’s power. 

Senator Michael Bennet and Representative Peter Welch introduced the Digital Platform Commission Act of 2022 in the Senate and the House respectively in May. This bill, if approved, would establish a new five-person commission tasked with protecting consumers in the age of Big Tech. 

“We need an agency with expertise to have a thoughtful approach here,” said Senator Bennet. According to the Senator, the current institutions aren’t enough to oversight the tech industry. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the Department of Justice (DoJ) are currently focused on competition problems and they do not address many of the industry’s most pressing problems, Bennet argues, such as foreign disinformation or children’s safety.

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