CRS Reviews Congressional Interest in Regulating "Big Tech"

The Congressional Research Service ("CRS") compiled and organized a list of its prior published reports on legal issues related to regulating major technology companies.

The CRS Legal Sidebar focused on legislative proposals to regulate Big Tech. Entities impacted include technology firms, social media platforms, and online service providers. The CRS said its effort was driven by a growing interest in Congress for "expanding regulation of the major technology companies" across a broad range of subject matters. CRS organized the material along the following categories:

• Antitrust: whether there is sufficient competition in the digital economy;
• Content moderation: whether Section 230 gives social media platforms significant immunity from legal claims relating to content produced by third parties;
• Intellectual property: where the use of AI is resulting in a diminution of IP rights;
• Data protection: whether the U.S. should adopt stricter privacy standards in line with the EU;
• Cross-border issues: to what extent export of U.S. technology should be allowed and whether non-U.S. content providers, such as TikTok, should be subject to greater control;
• Net neutrality: whether internet access providers should be regulated as common carriers.