On Behalf of CTA, Wiley Files Reply Comments to NTIA’s Petition for Rulemaking Involving Section 230

September 17, 2020

Washington, DC – On behalf of the Consumer Technology Association® (CTA), Wiley submitted reply comments responding to the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) Public Notice on the Petition for Rulemaking filed by the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), following on initial comments submitted September 2.

Through the petition, the NTIA is asking the FCC to “interpret” Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act of 1996 and create “transparency” requirements that would mandate expansive disclosures about how internet companies curate content for users.

In its reply comments, the CTA urges the FCC to deny NTIA’s petition seeking the adoption of regulations related to Section 230 of the Communications Act and the operations of interactive computer service providers. “At a time when the American government is drawing a sharp contrast between U.S. technology leadership and Chinese online censorship, moving forward with this Petition would send the wrong message: that America, too, is willing to regulate speech when it offends the politically powerful,” the comments said.

Two key points in the reply comments were stressed – first, the “hands off” approach to the internet has distinguished the United States from other countries, and second, gutting Section 230 will hurt U.S. innovation and allow other nations to surpass the United States in global tech leadership.

To read the full reply comments, please click here.

To read CTA’s news release, please click here.