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Biden will sign executive order today that goes right for Big Tech's throat
- The White House announced today that President Biden will sign an executive order that will directly attack Big Tech.
- The order will call for the reinstatement of Net Neutrality rules, demand the end of anti-competitive tactics, and more.
- It also calls for the establishment of so-called “right to repair” rules, but this is primarily directed towards the agriculture industry.
Earlier this week, we heard rumors that United States President Joe Biden would use his executive authority powers to push for some sweeping changes in the tech sphere. Today, the White House confirmed those rumors with an announcement of Biden’s intention to sign an executive order that centers almost exclusively on the tech industry.
In total, there are 72 initiatives in the order. They run the gamut from the transportation sector to agriculture, healthcare, internet services, and more. The initiatives send a strong signal to Big Tech that the Biden administration is ready to intervene.
Related: FCC officially repeals Net Neutrality rules: What now?
The biggest news related to the order is Biden’s call for the re-establishment of Net Neutrality rules. These rules originated during the Obama administration and called for broadband internet service to be treated similarly to public utilities, such as electricity, water, sewage, etc. The dissolution of these rules was a major goal of the Trump administration. Ajit Pai, then-chairman of the FCC, succeeded in dismantling most of Net Neutrality after Trump appointed him to the position. Pai resigned as the FCC chairman after Biden’s election.
The order also calls for a number of initiatives that directly target Big Tech.
Big Tech in Biden’s crosshairs
Since there are 72 initiatives in the order, we won’t cover them all here. However, here are some of the major attacks on Big Tech in the order:
- For internet service, the order will ban “excessive early termination fees” and end “landlord exclusivity arrangements that stick tenants with only a single internet option.”
- Insititute right-to-repair rules to “make it easier and cheaper to repair items you own by limiting manufacturers from barring self-repairs or third-party repairs of their products.” However, this order is specific to the agriculture industry in the order, but could have effects on other areas.
- Call for tougher enforcement of anti-trust laws and, most notably, allow anti-trust organizations to challenge orders that were previously approved.
- Establish a White House Competition Council to monitor progress on all the orders.
We highly recommend reading the full summary document since it touches on a lot of pain points people have with Big Tech.