“Facebook is a proudly American company,” said Mark Zuckerberg (File)
San Francisco:
Facebook chief Mark Zuckerberg will tell a major antitrust hearing on Wednesday that the internet giant would not have been successful without US laws promoting competition, but internet rules must now be put in place. up to date.
“Facebook is a proudly American business,” Zuckerberg said in prepared remarks ahead of what will be a very closely watched House Judiciary Committee hearing.
“Our story would not have been possible without US laws that encourage competition and innovation.”
But Zuckerberg also acknowledged “concerns about the size and perceived power of tech companies.”
“This is why I called for a more active role for governments and regulators and for updated rules for the Internet.”
Wednesday’s unprecedented audience will also feature CEOs Tim Cook of Apple, Jeff Bezos of Amazon, and Sundar Pichai of Google and its parent company Alphabet.
CEOs of four of the world‘s most powerful companies will testify remotely at the hearing, which comes less than 100 days before the U.S. election.
The showdown in the House of Representatives comes amid growing concerns about the dominance of Big Tech, which has become even more pronounced during the coronavirus pandemic.
“At the end of the day, I think companies shouldn’t be so judgmental on important issues such as harmful content, confidentiality and electoral integrity by themselves,” reads Zuckerberg’s prepared remarks. .
Big vs bad
The questions posed to the audience are expected to turn into questions beyond whether the tech titans are abusing their power in the markets.
Current US antitrust laws make it difficult for law enforcement authorities to target companies simply because they are large or dominant without showing harm to consumers or abuse of market power.
“We believe in the values - democracy, competition, inclusion and free expression – on which the American economy was built,” says Zuckerberg.
“Many other tech companies share these values, but there is no guarantee that our values will prevail.”
He should cite the example of China, which builds and exports a version of the Internet centered on “very different ideas” of the American model.
“I think it’s important to maintain the core values of openness and fairness that have made America’s digital economy a force for empowerment and opportunity here and around the world,” Zuckerberg says.
Tech CEOs are expected to emphasize how they benefit consumers, especially during the pandemic, and face competition – particularly from China.
The antitrust debate is clouded by a growing “techlash” on a range of issues from privacy to economic inequality to political bias.
“Facebook is a thriving business now, but we got there the American way – we started with nothing and we delivered better products that people find valuable,” Zuckerberg says.
“If I understand our laws correctly, companies are not bad just because they are big. Many big companies that fail to be competitive cease to exist.
Social media giants face attacks for allegedly using their dominance to stifle conservative views – a claim by President Donald Trump.
Facebook has been accused of failing to curb hate content promoting violence, including from Trump.
(This story was not edited by GalacticGaming staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
