Event Recap: App Publisher Successes
With Congress’ renewed focus on addressing policy challenges after voting on government funding in November, ACT | The App Association and the Developers Alliance seized the opportunity to host a briefing focused on the relationship between small business successes and app store platforms. The presentation, “Maximizing Small App Publisher Success with Mobile App Stores,” featured opening remarks by Representative Jay Obernolte (R-CA-23), a presentation on a recently conducted small tech business survey on app platforms, and a panel discussion highlighting [...]
Event Recap – Copyright’s Digital Dilemma: The Benefits and Risks of Generative AI
On November 15, 2023, ACT | The App Association hosted a Capitol Hill briefing that featured a conversation between copyright experts and small businesses to educate members of Congress about the benefits and risks of generative artificial intelligence (GAI) for copyright rights holders. GAI has accelerated creation and innovation for businesses by employing an independent process to generate content, such as text, images, and videos, with little human intervention, offering incredible efficiencies to consumers and businesses. This process improves upon [...]
The Unsung Heroes of Digital Trade: Small Businesses’ Vital Role
In the vast landscape of digital trade, global corporations and tech giants often dominate the headlines. It's easy to overlook the significant and indispensable role played by small businesses. These small enterprises are the unsung heroes of the digital economy, and their contribution cannot be overstated. As we navigate the ever-evolving terrain of digital trade, it is crucial to recognize and celebrate the immense value that small businesses bring to the table. Small businesses are the lifeblood of any [...]
Webinar Debut – Encryption and Equity: A Global Call for Consumer Protection
With the risk of privacy breaches increasing daily, researchers continue to find that the dangers of such compromises disproportionately burden disenfranchised communities. In order to protect the most at-risk populations, lawmakers around the globe must tackle consumer protection issues one by one, especially the widespread efforts directed at privacy, content moderation, and online safety. During this discussion, we’re diving into how developers are harnessing existing digital protections, like encryption, to build secure products and how various pieces of legislation in [...]
Call to Action: Defend US Small Businesses’ Ability to Compete in the Global Digital Economy
For as long as the United States has had a digital economy, the nation’s trade negotiators – across different administrations – have worked to combat foreign policies that would impede American small business innovators’ ability to compete and succeed abroad. However, in an unprecedented move, the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) decided to withdraw U.S. support from our own digital trade priorities at the World Trade Organization (WTO). USTR’s decision weakens the ability of U.S. small [...]
SMEs urge MEPs to support the new SEP Regulation
An Open Letter to the Members of the European Parliament As the European Parliament deliberates on the proposed EU Regulation on Standard-Essential Patents (SEPs), our members urge lawmakers to endorse this vital regulation. The SEP licensing regime in Europe is fundamentally broken, placing far too much power in the hands of large SEP holders, and harming the ability of European businesses to develop exciting new internet of things (IoT) technologies. Recent court cases, academic studies, and small and medium-sized enterprise [...]