Senators Introduce Bipartisan Bill to Encourage Competition in Social Media

Statement

Today, U.S. Sens. Mark R. Warner (D-VA), Josh Hawley (R-MO) and Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) will introduce the Augmenting Compatibility and Competition by Enabling Service Switching (ACCESS) Act, bipartisan legislation that will encourage market-based competition to dominant social media platforms by requiring the largest companies to make user data portable -- and their services interoperable -- with other platforms, and to allow users to designate a trusted third-party service to manage their privacy and account settings, if they so choose.

"Social media has enormous benefits. But, as we've seen, the tremendous dominance of a handful of large platforms also has major downsides -- including few options for consumers who want to use social media to connect with friends, store their photos or just watch cat videos, but who face a marketplace with just a few major players and little in the way of real competition," said Sen. Warner, a former technology entrepreneur and venture capitalist. "As a former cell phone guy, I saw what a game-changer number portability was for that industry. By making it easier for social media users to easily move their data or to continue to communicate with their friends after switching platforms, startups will be able to compete on equal terms with the biggest social media companies. And empowering trusted custodial companies to step in on behalf of users to better manage their accounts across different platforms will help balance the playing field between consumers and companies. In other words -- by enabling portability, interoperability, and delegatability, this bill will help put consumers in the driver's seat when it comes to how and where they use social media."

"Your data is your property. Period. Consumers should have the flexibility to choose new online platforms without artificial barriers to entry. This bill creates long-overdue requirements that will boost competition and give consumers the power to move their data from one service to another," said Sen. Hawley.

"The exclusive dominance of Facebook and Google have crowded out the meaningful competition that is needed to protect online privacy and promote technological innovation. As we learned in the Microsoft antitrust case, interoperability and portability are powerful tools to restrain anti-competitive behaviors and promote innovative new companies. The bipartisan ACCESS Act would empower consumers to finally stand up to Big Tech and move their data to services that respect their rights," said Sen. Blumenthal.

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