The Importance of Digital Trade for Small Businesses
The U.S. government’s long-standing support for policies that reduce artificial barriers to digital trade has provided an important foundation for even the smallest American companies’ competitiveness abroad. As virtually all industries continue their transition to digital, and regulators abroad have increasingly sought policies that would exclude American small businesses and startup innovators from their markets, this federal backing has never been more important. Unlike larger companies, smaller businesses with few product or service lines usually cannot shoulder the extra costs [...]
ACT | The App Association Statement on Extension of WTO Ecommerce Moratorium
"During the 13th WTO Ministerial Conference (MC13) in Abu Dhabi, WTO members agreed to extend the Moratorium on Customs Duties on Electronic Transmissions into 2026. The moratorium protects against tariffs and customs formalities on electronic transmissions and has underpinned our growth and job creation across consumer and enterprise markets. ACT | The App Association’s small business digital economy innovator community supports the decision by WTO members to extend the moratorium for two years, and we renew our call for the [...]
Repair with Caution: How the FTC’s Decisions Could Impact Security, Privacy, and IP
We have said it once, and we’ll say it again: the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) must be careful not to adopt broad rulemaking that would invite serious security, privacy, and intellectual property (IP) risks for U.S. businesses. This broad rulemaking includes the heavily debated consumers’ right to repair as recently petitioned to the FTC. ACT | The App Association responded in the interest of our software developer community, which would be directly harmed by rules allowing extensive access to their [...]
The Future of Work: Deciphering DOL’s Latest Rule on Employment Classification
Building on a public consultation held in 2023, the Department of Labor (DOL) has finalized a new rule addressing whether a worker is an employee or an independent contractor under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). Recognizing the impact on our community, ACT | The App Association has been engaged in advocacy on this issue for some time. Now that the rule is finalized, we’re recapping how we got here and what our members can expect moving forward. Background The [...]
AI Regulation in focus: balancing innovation and governance in the EU and UK
With global governments in a race to regulate, policymakers in the European Union (EU) and United Kingdom (UK) are considering various approaches to rules around artificial intelligence (AI). Last year, we outlined a flexible, thoughtful approach to AI policy and governance that considers the latest data privacy security laws as well as the pros, cons, and challenges of AI in our Global AI Principles, and we hope to see those considered as policymakers debate the rules around AI. As these [...]
ACT | The App Association statement in support of the bipartisan Promoting United States Leadership in Standards Act
“We applaud Senators Warner and Blackburn for introducing the Promoting United States Leadership in Standards Act, which can better position standards development organizations and standards participants for success. A strong, yet nimble approach to technical standards development is a foundational imperative for ACT | The App Association’s members as they create tomorrow’s innovations. Nurturing open and global participation in standardization activities, especially when hosted in the United States, can address shared technical challenges while advancing American technology leadership. This legislation [...]