As new technologies arrive on the scene, companies are facing increased scrutiny amid calls for tougher regulations, The Hill reports.
Here are five challenges the technology industry may face in 2018 and should keep an eye on, according to The Hill.
1. Net neutrality. In December, the Federal Communications Commission voted to end the Obama-era internet regulations that barred internet service providers from prioritizing certain content. Legal fights among states' attorneys general have already begun, and pro-net neutrality groups have expressed intent to ramp up lobbying efforts in an attempt to block the repeal.
2. Election transparency. Tech giants such as Facebook, Twitter and Google tried to defend claims that Russians manipulated their platforms to interfere in the 2016 presidential election. The tech companies promised to work better to prevent future efforts. Lawmakers have introduced legislation to regulate tech companies over political advertisements, but tech companies are adamant they can police themselves.
3. AT&T-Time Warner Cable merger. The Department of Justice rejected a deal in December to combine the telecommunications giant with the media mega-lord, citing antitrust reasons. However, in a court filing, AT&T defended the $85 billion deal as "a pro-competitive, pro-consumer response to an intensely competitive and rapidly changing video marketplace." The battle is ongoing.
4. Cryptocurrency. Digital coins are a booming market that regulators and policymakers watched closely in 2017. Financial regulators in India, the U.K. and other countries have already begun to discuss ways of policing the currency, but the U.S. has been slow to react. However, the industry is already working to get ahead.
5. Sex-trafficking. Internet companies backed legislation in 2017 that sought to crack down on online sex-trafficking. Now, other pro-internet and tech advocacy groups have come out in opposition, claiming the bill endorses internet censorship.
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