The Technology Policy Institute has confirmed speakers for the TPI Aspen Forum panel, “A Discussion with Media and Telecom Leaders.” The panel, comprising the top public policy minds in the key sectors of media and the Internet, will discuss current and leading-edge issues such as privacy, cybersecurity, wireless broadband and spectrum reform, next-generation broadband, and intellectual property in an Internet age, from both a U.S. and global perspective. The panelists will also explore the role and limits of government regulation in an Internet age. The TPI Aspen Forum is scheduled for August 21 – 23 in Aspen, Colorado.
Miscellaneous
Press Releases
“A Conversation with the Commissioners” at TPI Aspen Forum
The importance of the communications sector as a driver of innovation and the economic recovery has increasingly put the Federal Communications Commission at the center of critically important policy debates. Policies involving broadband penetration and adoption, spectrum allocation, and network neutrality will affect the evolution of the media and communications industries for years to come. FCC Commissioners Mignon Clyburn and Robert M. McDowell will share their views and recommendations on these and related issues during the closing luncheon panel, “A Conversation with the Commissioners” at the TPI Aspen Forum, scheduled for August 21 – 23 in Aspen, Colorado.
Press Releases
Senator Udall to Give Welcoming Remarks at Aspen Forum
Colorado Senator Mark Udall will offer welcoming remarks at the Technology Policy Institute’s Aspen Forum, scheduled for August 21-23. Senator Udall, elected to the U.S. Senate in 2008 after serving five terms as Representative of Colorado’s 2nd district, has worked to promote the development of Colorado’s aerospace industry, and the clean energy and high technology sectors. Senator Udall currently serves on the Senate Armed Services Committee, the Energy and Natural Resources Committee, and the Select Committee on Intelligence.
Press Releases
Aspen Panel: Information and Privacy: In Search of a Data-Driven Policy
Data privacy raises issues that are central to the health of the Internet ecosystem and will be a major focus of this year’s TPI Aspen Forum. While proposals have emanated from the Federal Trade Commission, the Department of Commerce, and Congress, few data exist on the nature and extent of the problem and how proposed privacy regulations would impact consumers. Distinguished speakers from academia, government and industry will debate the future of privacy policy during the discussion panel, “Information and Privacy: In Search of a Data-Driven Policy.” The TPI Aspen Forum is scheduled for August 21 – 23 in Aspen, Colorado.
Press Releases
Little Risk of Re-Identification through Health Data
Properly anonymized health data pose little risk of patient identification, state Jane Yakowitz and Daniel Barth-Jones in “The Illusory Privacy Problem in Sorrell v. IMS Health,” published today by the Technology Policy Institute. Moreover, if the Department of Health and Human Services were to abandon the distinction between personally identifiable and anonymized data (as the Federal Trade Commission has done in its recent report) “the result would be nothing short of disastrous for health care improvements and medical research,” according to the authors.
Commentaries and Op-Eds
Improving ICANN’s Governance and Accountability: A Policy Proposal
The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) has control over extremely important aspects of the Internet. Yet, its non-profit corporation status, combined with the way that it is funded and governed, make accountability a serious problem. This paper draws on the accountability framework that has been developed by Mueller (2009) to evaluate the structure and governance of ICANN and then compares it to the structure and governance of a number of other organizations that perform a roughly comparable range of coordination and standard-setting functions, to explore what might be applicable to ICANN. Virtually all of these other organizations are governed by their direct users, thereby building accountability into their structures. We suggest that this would be a good model for ICANN as well.
Press Releases
ICANN Should Move Toward Greater Private Sector Accountability
The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers should be more accountable to its private sector users, state Thomas Lenard and Lawrence White in �Improving ICANN’s Governance and Accountability: A Policy Proposal,� published in the latest issue of Information Economics and Policy. Instead of increased government involvement, as some have been advocating, Lenard and White recommend ICANN be governed by its direct users, the registries and registrars, as a way of improving accountability, a longstanding issue with ICANN.
Press Releases
Tech Entrepreneur Peter Thiel to Speak at TPI Aspen Forum
Peter Thiel, technology entrepreneur, investor, and philanthropist, will join other notable keynote speakers at the Technology Policy Institute’s 2011 Aspen Forum, scheduled for August 21 – 23. Thiel, co-founder of PayPal and investor in such tech companies as Facebook, LinkedIn, and SpaceX, is expected to share his perspective on the current economy and the environment for innovation in the technology sector.