Technology regulation comes whether or not the industry is involved, according to Microsoft President Brad Smith, so companies can lean on those talks now.
“It doesn’t matter if you like it or hate it,” Smith told CNBC’s Steve Kovacs at Tech Check on Wednesday. “And it’s right for people to point out issues that cause concern, but most of all we need to lean in and figure out how to make it work, because it won’t work if we don’t.”
Smith’s announcement came after his keynote address on the same topic at a conference of the International Association of Privacy Professionals in Washington, DC. The speech contrasted with an earlier keynote speech by Apple CEO Tim Cook, who warned that some antitrust laws being considered by Congress could harm consumer privacy protections.
Smith is no stranger to standing apart from his Big Tech counterparts in Washington. He has been a key force in reshaping Microsoft’s relationship with DC after its remarkable antitrust battle at the turn of the century. While Microsoft inspired an earlier wave of concern about the impact of major technology platforms, Smith helped transform his image into something of a friendly giant, largely avoiding the latest outrage against the industry. However, Microsoft may once again be under scrutiny, as it is still one of the world’s most valuable companies, producing products that millions of consumers rely on, including the US government.
Smith said in his keynote address that his experience as Microsoft’s chief adviser after the antitrust case helped show him “that you can find a way to navigate the thicket of demands, expectations that others have of you.”
Smith told CNBC that there are similarities in the way Microsoft and Apple see the importance of things like privacy and cybersecurity, but acknowledged differences in other areas.
On Tuesday, Cook said the proposed competition rules, which could require companies like Apple to give consumers a way around the centralized App Store, could ultimately damage consumer privacy. Apple said the App Store plays an important role in ensuring that users download safe and secure products.
But Smith suggested in an interview with CNBC that it might not be a proposal for all or nothing.
“If you can set standards in one app store that manages a million apps, you can set standards to make room for two or three or four app stores, all of which must meet the same objective security requirements and confidentiality, “Smith said. “So you can always approach these issues and put these things in conflict with each other, or you can find a way to reconcile these points.”
In the end, Smith said that even if the industry could dissuade Congress from certain regulations, “this is a big world.”
“Europeans, Britons, Australians, Japanese, Koreans, they’re all moving forward,” Smith said. “We will be better served as a country if the United States also plays an active role.
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