Tuesday, January 18th, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) and the U.S. Justice Department’s Antitrust Division (“DOJ”) launched a joint public inquiry regarding the agencies’ horizontal and vertical merger guidelines. As part of this inquiry, the agencies are soliciting public comment via a Request for Information (“RFI”) on a wide range of topics that could lead
NTIA Seeks Input on Broadband Infrastructure Programs
On November 15, 2021, the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (“IIJA”) became law, authorizing $65 billion in federal broadband investments with the goal of connecting all Americans to reliable, high speed, and affordable broadband. The IIJA directed the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (“NTIA”) to oversee the distribution of $48.2 billion in infrastructure grants to
New GAO Report: HHS Faces Outstanding Issues as it Assumes Vaccine Responsibilities
Since May 2020, federal efforts to fast-track the development, manufacturing, and distribution of COVID-19 vaccines has been led by a joint effort between the Department of Health and Human Services (“HHS”) and the Department of Defense (“DoD”), formerly known as Operation Warp Speed but renamed the HHS-DoD COVID-19 Countermeasures Acceleration Group (“CAG”). As of December
State Legislative Trends to Watch in 2022
A new year means new state privacy bills introduced in states across the country. With two additional states joining California last year with the passage of the Virginia Consumer Data Protection Act and the Colorado Privacy Act, it is likely that more states will join the fray this year in creating a patchwork of comprehensive
Irish DPC Publishes Guidance On Processing Children’s Personal Data
One of every five people (20.5%) in Ireland are children under the age of 14. This constitutes the highest proportion of children in the EU, where the average was 15.2% in 2019. Ireland’s proportion of young people under the age of 30 is also the highest in the EU, at 39%. It’s an influential figure
UK Aims for Faster and Fairer Access to Innovative Treatments as NICE Announces Major Changes to its Health Technology Appraisals Process
On 20 January 2022, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) announced major changes to the processes and methods by which it assesses the cost-effectiveness of medicines and other health technologies.
NICE is an independent expert body tasked with appraising the cost-effectiveness of medicines and recommending whether a product should be funded
German Regulators Publish Cookie Guidance
On 22 December 2021, the conference of German data protection supervisory authorities (“DSK”) published its Guidance for Providers of Telemedia Services (Orientierungshilfe für Anbieter von Telemedien). Particularly relevant for providers of websites and mobile applications, the Guidance is largely devoted to the “cookie provision” of the German Telecommunication and Telemedia Privacy Act (TTDSG),
Brussels Court of Appeal Considers GDPR Rights
In a decision handed down on December 1, 2021, the Brussels Market Court (Court of Appeal) had an opportunity to consider the GDPR right of access. The Belgian Ministry of Finance appealed the Belgian Supervisory Authority’s recent decision requiring the Ministry to grant a complainant access to her financial file and make corrections to the
SENATE JUDICIARY COMMITTEE VOTING ON ANTITRUST LEGISLATION
The U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee announced this week its plan to vote on the American Innovation and Choice Online Act (S. 2292), antitrust legislation that would impose obligations on certain online platforms regarding the treatment of their own goods and services relative to competing services on their platform. This will be the third antitrust bill
French National Assembly’s Committee Approves Bill on Internet Parental Control
On 12 January 2022, the French National Assembly’s Committee on Cultural Affairs and Education (the “Committee”) unanimously approved a draft bill seeking to “encourage the use of parental controls on certain equipment and services sold in France and allowing access to the Internet” (the “Bill”).
In 2021, the French Supervisory Authority (“CNIL”) conducted a