October 2024

Throughout the year, our policy team submits filings with government bodies worldwide to advocate for a regulatory environment that inspires and rewards innovation. From issues around regulating artificial intelligence to digital trade, our team is ACTive on a wide range of topics that could have a positive or negative impact on our small business members driving the app economy. Below is a roundup of our filings from around the globe this past month.

Title: CNIL survey re: application of GDPR to AI models

Entity: Commission nationale de l’informatique et des libertes (CNIL)

Jurisdiction: France

Summary: ACT | The App Association responded to CNIL’s survey regarding the application of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) to AI models that have the capability of “learning” personal information. The App Association urged CNIL to consider GDPR to apply to training data and model outputs, but not to the models themselves as there is no practical way for users to verify the presence of personal data.

Filed: October 1, 2024

Title: Public consultation on risk thresholds for advanced AI systems

Entity: Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD)

Jurisdiction: Intergovernmental

Summary: The App Association responded to OECD’s consultation on AI risk thresholds by submitting our AI Policy Principles and our AI Roles and Interdependencies Framework.

Filed: October 1, 2024

Title: 2024 Review of Notorious Markets for Counterfeiting and Piracy

Entity: United States Trade Representative (USTR)

Jurisdiction: United States

Summary: The App Association submitted views to USTR on the state of international counterfeiting and piracy, both in general and with a specific focus on new technologies such as web3/NFTs and AI.

Filed: October 2, 2024

Title: Health Data, Technology, and Interoperability: Patient Engagement, Information Sharing, and Public Health Interoperability

Entity: United States Department of Health and Human Services, Assistant Secretary for Technology Policy (ASTP)

Jurisdiction: United States

Summary: The Connected Health Initiative (CHI) submitted detailed comments to ASTP regarding its health IT certification program updates, supporting innovation in healthcare AI, proposed updates to the information blocking rules, and how Trusted Exchange Framework and Common Agreement Proposals may undermine interoperability.

Filed: October 4, 2024

Title: FDA Center for Devices and Radiological Health Discussion Paper: Health Equity for Medical Devices

Entity: Food and Drug Administration (FDA)

Jurisdiction: United States

Summary: CHI submitted comments to the FDA on their discussion paper on ways to improve health equity related to medical devices.

Filed: October 4, 2024

Title: Scams Prevention Framework exposure draft legislation

Entity: The Treasury

Jurisdiction: Australia

Summary: The App Association submitted comments to the Australian Treasury regarding the implementation of legislation for the Scams Prevention Framework, urging consideration of the potential impacts of certain provisions on privacy and encryption.

Filed: October 4, 2024

Title: Introducing mandatory guardrails for AI in high-risk settings: proposals paper

Entity: Department of Industry Science and Resources (DISR)

Jurisdiction: Australia

Summary: The App Association submitted responses to the DISR survey regarding its paper proposing mandatory guardrails for AI in high-risk settings, including comments on specific proposals and links to our Roles and Interdependencies Framework.

Filed: October 4, 2024

Title: Recommendations on Digital Platforms and Competition

Entity: Electronic Transactions Development Agency (ETDA)

Jurisdiction: Thailand

Summary: The App Association submitted a position paper on Digital Platforms and Competition to inform Thai policymakers about policies in other jurisdictions that have been shown to have negative impacts on competition and innovation.

Filed: October 8, 2024

Title: Establishment of Reporting Requirements for the Development of Advanced Artificial Intelligence Models and Computing Clusters

Entity: Department of Commerce Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS)

Jurisdiction: United States

Summary: The App Association filed comments on BIS’s proposed establishment of reporting requirements for those developing AI models greater than certain computing thresholds. The App Association urged BIS to ensure that its scope was narrow enough not to impact a broader range of companies than anticipated.

Filed: October 11, 2024

Title: Guidance: Patent Subject Matter Eligibility, Including Artificial Intelligence

Entity: United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO)

Jurisdiction: United States

Summary: The App Association filed comments on USPTO’s proposed changes to its patent eligibility guidance, praising USPTO’s efforts to increase certainty for small business innovators and its exploration of the implications of AI on patents.

Filed: October 16, 2024

Title: On the Need to Evaluate the Functioning of Over-the-Top Services in Peru and the Possibility of Regulatory Intervention

Entity: Organismo Supervisor de la Inversion Privada en Telecommunicaciones (OSIPTEL)

Jurisdiction: Peru

Summary: The App Association filed comments on OSIPTEL’s proposed changes to its telecom laws that would seek to equalize the fee and regulatory treatment of traditional communications providers and over-the-top entities.

Filed: October 16, 2024

Title:  Request for Comments: Significant Foreign Trade Barriers for the 2025 National Trade Estimate Report

Entity: United States Trade Representative (USTR)

Jurisdiction: United States

Summary: The App Association submitted comments on USTR’s annual National Trade Estimate Report, highlighting digital trade barriers faced by our members around the world and urging USTR to reverse its recent course of withdrawing support for key priorities.

Filed: October 17, 2024

Title: Request for Comments on the U.S.-EU Trade and Technology Council (TTC) Global Trade Challenges Working Group

Entity: United States Trade Representative (USTR)

Jurisdiction: United States

Summary: The App Association filed comments to USTR regarding its support for the TTC and its work to alleviate transatlantic trade barriers caused by policy misalignments between relevant countries, with a particular focus on the good work of the Global Trade Challenges Working Group.

Filed: October 21, 2024

Title: Request for Comments on Proposed Modifications: China’s Acts, Policies and Practices Related to Technology Transfer, Intellectual Property and Innovation

Entity: United States Trade Representative (USTR)

Jurisdiction: United States

Summary: The App Association filed comments to USTR highlighting China’s policies related to technology transfer and intellectual property that have had a negative impact on our members.

Filed: October 22, 2024

Title: Epic v. Google

Entity: 9th Circuit Court of Appeals

Jurisdiction: United States

Summary: The App Association filed an amicus brief in support of Google’s request to stay the district court’s injunction pending appeal, highlighting the potential ways the requirements in the injunction could produce negative consequences for app developers.

Filed: October 23, 2024

Title: Securing the Information and Communications Technology and Services Supply Chain: Connected Vehicles

Entity: Department of Commerce Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS)

Jurisdiction: United States

Summary: The App Association filed comments on BIS’s proposed rule to secure the supply chain of technology and services that enable connected vehicles, highlighting the need to ensure such rules do not introduce unintended trade barriers.

Filed: October 28, 2024

Title: Guidelines on exclusionary abuses of dominance

Entity: Directorate-General for Competition (DG COMP)

Jurisdiction: European Union

Summary: The App Association filed comments to DG COMP urging a return to a more evidence-based approach to analyzing abuses of dominance that focuses on real economic harms, to consider the positive results of network effects instead of just the negative, and to align with our priorities regarding standard-essential patents.

Filed: October 31, 2024