NTIA’s Singling out Mobile Apps Will Not Result in Consensus or a Comprehensive Solution in Privacy Bill of Rights

NTIA Administrator Larry Strickland gave a speech today before the U.S. Chamber of Commerce in which he declared mobile apps to be the primary target for the administration’s privacy bill of rights multistakeholder process.

We are disappointed that the administration has singled out mobile apps in what it has announced to be a comprehensive consideration of online privacy. Despite the administration’s repeated assurances that its process would reflect the reality that consumer data travels across a wide range of interconnected devices, the NTIA has instead announced it will start the process focusing exclusively on mobile apps.

Administrator Strickland’s comments that solutions will be simple in the “discrete” mobile app industry fail to grasp the complexity of devices, networks, and platforms in this nascent marketplace. Business model trends change twice a year in our industry which is only four years old. The vast majority of developers are small businesses that rely on partners for services that handle the bulk of consumer information. Restricting its focus to apps on mobile devices will not help the administration reach consensus or find a comprehensive solution.