Tech wants Washington to step up in global privacy rules race

Tech companies long averse to regulation are starting to embrace the idea of federal data privacy rules as they nervously eye foreign governments' moves toward more tightly regulating their expansive businesses. It's too late for tech to escape sweeping new privacy rules like Europe's General Data Protection Regulation. But clear rules from the US could serve as a global standard as countries around the world look to impose or tighten privacy laws.  As it stands, Europe's first-mover regulations are already resonating globally. Implemented in May against corporate outcry, GDPR requires companies to disclose what information they collect and give consumers more control over it. That notion is now being exported, sparking countries like Brazil, India, and China to advance their own rules. Those are major growth markets for Silicon Valley. As the industry expands, a global patchwork of regulation would force companies to contort their products and services to fit the demands of different governments — all at a cost to their bottom line.

Senate Commerce Chairman John Thune (R-SD) said he’s developing a federal data privacy bill — another sign that Congress is exploring new rules for the sector. From his powerful perch, Thune’s proposal will carry more weight than most. The Internet Association’s senior vice president of global government affairs, Melika Carroll, praised Chairman Thune for “starting a deliberate process to modernize our existing data privacy frameworks.” She added: “The internet industry commits to working with Congress to develop a national approach to privacy that provides people with transparency and trust, while still allowing companies to innovate and develop products people love.”