Q3 Tech Lobbying Tackles Cybersecurity, Online Ads
Oracle topped early Q3 tech sector lobbying disclosures Friday, though many tech and telecom firms had not reported their own totals at our deadline. Oracle spent $3.82 million on lobbying during the quarter, a 90 percent increase from the same period last year. CTIA led industry groups on reported spending $2.14 million in the quarter, down from $2.77 million during the same period last year. Six groups claimed $240,000 in income for lobbying on CTIA’s behalf, and Les Brownlee & Associates reported $30,000 for lobbying for CTIA on behalf of top carriers AT&T, T-Mobile and Verizon. Comcast topped early Q3 communications sector lobbying expenditures, though it hadn't filed its own report yet. Thirty outside firms reported $1.668 million in lobbying income from the company.
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Oraclelobbied on IT procurement and modernization; security standards; consumer data privacy including in law enforcement access; copyright, patents and IP rights including the Copyright Office, Library of Congress and North American Free Trade Agreement; and cross-border data issues such as data localization issues in foreign markets. Its report cited lobbying on Stop Enabling Sex Traffickers Act, or SESTA (S-1693), making Oracle one of the few major tech companies to support the legislation (see 1709070033) that seeks to amend Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act to hold online platforms liable for sex trafficking ads.
Facebook didn't file its lobbying report yet, but firms BakerHostetler, Harbinger Strategies, Ogilvy Government Relations, Peck Madigan, Signal Consulting, Steptoe & Johnson, Stewart Strategies & Solutions and Subject Matter said it paid them a total of $375,000 to lobby on issues like SESTA, which the tech industry largely opposes; cybersecurity and encryption; and online advertising transparency efforts. House and Senate lawmakers Thursday unveiled legislation that would impose ad disclosure requirements on companies like Facebook, Google and Twitter (see 1710190054). In 2016 Q3, Facebook spent $2.02 million.
Microsoft didn't file its lobbying report by late Friday afternoon, but it paid nearly $1 million combined to nearly 20 firms, which lobbied on cybersecurity and privacy, encryption and surveillance, copyright and IP, tax-related issues. Several firms lobbied on the mutual legal assistance treaty process and changes to the Electronic Communications Privacy Act (ECPA). Microsoft has been embroiled in a legal battle with DOJ over access to a customer's emails stored in a server in Ireland. The Supreme Court recently said it would hear the case (see 1710160009). Some firms also noted lobbying on TV white spaces. In July, the company unveiled a plan to use white spaces technology to deliver high-speed internet service to rural areas of the country (see 1707110015).
Twitter cut back its Q3 spending to $120,000, or about 30 percent less. It lobbied on legislative changes to ECPA, which would close a loophole allowing law enforcement agencies to get customers' emails that are more than 180 days old and stored in third-party servers with a subpoena rather than a warrant. It also lobbied on SESTA, the FCC's Open Internet Order, encryption, commercial data security and the White House immigration travel ban, which the tech community opposes (see 1703160034).
Google didn't file its lobbying report yet, but it paid about $845,000 to nearly 20 companies to lobby on a wide range of issues including immigration policy, self-driving cars, cybersecurity, renewal of surveillance authority, and bills to halt online sex trafficking. Amazon also didn't file its lobbying report by our deadline, but it paid nearly $630,000 to nearly a half-dozen companies, which lobbied on competition, drones, cybersecurity, copyright, intellectual property and competition policy. Spending on outside firms was up about 17 percent from the third quarter in 2016.
The Information Technology Industry Council reported $430,000 in lobbying expenditures, up from $390,000. Mehlman Castagnetti reported $40,000 in lobbying income from the group. The Wireless Infrastructure Association said it spent $210,000, up from $120,000. Three outside groups reported $80,000 in income from the group. The Competitive Carriers Association reported $170,000, up from $130,000. Two firms reported $60,000 in income from the group. The Computer and Communications Industry Association reported a doubling to $20,000.
Sprint was the only major carrier to report its Q3 lobbying total by late afternoon. It said it spent $571,000, down slightly from $574,000 during the same period last year. Nine firms reported $265,000 for lobbying on Sprint’s behalf. Twenty-three outside firms reported $1.173 million for lobbying on behalf of AT&T, and 18 groups reported $697,000 from T-Mobile. Twenty-one firms reported $531,000 from Verizon.
News Corp. reported $130,000, level with spending during that period last year. Hogan Lovells reported $20,000 for lobbying on the broadcaster’s behalf. Nine lobbying firms reported a total of $318,000 in income from Charter Communications, and three firms reported a combined $120,000 from Cox Enterprises. Three firms reported $100,000 in lobbying income from Disney, and The Fritts Group said it received $75,000 from CBS.
Five groups reported a combined $180,000 in income from NCTA. BakerHostetler reported $30,000 from NTCA, and Ogilvy Government Relations reported the same amount from USTelecom. Other major groups hadn’t reported their lobbying expenditures.
Lyft spent $140,000, up 40 percent. The company reported it lobbied on ride-sharing issues and autonomous vehicles, including HR-3388, which passed the House this year and would ramp up the development and testing of self-driving vehicles (see 1709060035). Uber didn't file a report by our deadline, but some hired firms said they lobbied on House and Senate self-driving vehicle legislation, plus potential anti-competitive activities limiting consumer access to app-based technologies.