UK To Create Regulator To Police Big Tech Companies

The UK government will create a technology regulator next year to police companies such as Facebook and Google after Brexit, Financial Times reported Wednesday [may be paywalled], citing several people who were involved in the process. From the report: The regulator will be given powers to implement a range of new rules, including an enforceable code of conduct for the biggest groups and greater data accessibility for consumers. The decision follows widespread calls for a curb on big tech's power, including a report published on Wednesday by the UK's Competition and Markets Authority that outlined a new regulatory regime for the digital sector.

This is a Boris Promise

[kot-begemot-uk]

I would not put any value in a promise by Boris or any of his merry men.

Details

[alvinrod]

The article is indeed paywalled and the summary gives nothing of substance. Are there any details regarding what the UK intends to do or perhaps to say it more plainly why this won’t just be a waste of time and wholly ineffectual?

Re:

[Send it to the newts]

I too would like to know, for I have no faith whatsoever that Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson, being the power-hungry liar that he is, will permit any interference of substance with a system that just handed him such a significant victory.

Re:

[Aighearach]

Yeah, Brexit. UK doesn't have any power to regulate "big" anything.

Guaranteed waste of time. They can just hurry up and tank the Pound and start sending me all their cheese, cheap. Big Tech doesn't care what the UK says, the alternatives are all in the EU.

The result is going to be some sort of hearing or commission where a bunch of English people will wear funny wigs and fancy jewels and bleet for a few hours until snack time. And then Scotland will threaten to join the EU just so they can be the ones to re

Re:

[AmiMoJo]

The plan is probably to do something insubstantial to help get a trade deal with the EU. Any deviation from EU standards makes the possible deal worse and damages the economy.

He will try to bullshit the EU with "even tougher" rules that in practice do nothing significant.

Code of conduct?

[AHuxley]

Back to the days of D notices over feelings, comments, thoughts, art, politics, links, German history, memes, been too funny about UK politics?

Ah

[Dunbal]

Someone else to buy/bribe. No biggie.

QUIT REGULATING. BREAK THEM UP

[WindBourne]

Seriously, it is long past time to simply break these companies up. However, we really need to require that other monopolies of similar size be broken up, OR be denied access to the markets.

Re:

[CaffeinatedBacon]

And how do you propose the UK breaks up American companies?

You're well known as one of the idiots claiming Europe just taxes what they can't create.
Can't wait to see what kind of slogan you would come up with next if the UK really could just magically break up US companies.

Bigger things to worry about

[clickclickdrone]

This time next year we'll be wondering how to feed ourselves as the UK economy collapses. I can't see stuff like this getting much government time.

Re:

[bn-7bc]

look at the bright side, when the pound colapses the uk will pe a somewhat less exspensive holyday destination for tourists so that sector will at lest do well

Another Toothless regulator

[Martin S.]

In the UK we have a long history of failed and toothless regulators that are ineffective or beholden to commercial interests. The establishment strategy to to talk the good talk and create a worthless quango.

Take the Independent Press Standards Organisation (IPSO) the failing regulator that replaced the failed Press Complaints Commission (PCC) regulator following the Leveson Inquiry.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/... [wikipedia.org]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/... [wikipedia.org]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/... [wikipedia.org]

The Data Protection register that failed to provide data protection.
OFTEL that failed to regulate BT unbundling local loop or mobile.
 

"Big tech"

[Motor]

Does Big Tech include ISPs?

The governments of the west want to remove any anonymity from the internet. So they can control people, tax them etc.

The biggest step in that process will be locking down ISPs so they know who (not just an IP) is connecting.

It's one thing overseeing Google but do we really want the state controlling the routes to get to any existing or new internet services?