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The draft National E-Commerce Policy (“Draft Policy”) released by the Government of India on February 23, 2019 for stakeholder comments, has left the e-commerce sector in jitters. For global market players, the protectionist construct of the Draft Policy seems to suggest a shift of India’s focus from ‘Ease of Doing Business in India’ to ‘Make in India’. If the Draft Policy is implemented in its present form, it may have a serious impact demanding drastic change in internal strategies, policies and cost allocations for foreign companies having e-commercial presence in India. The Draft Policy is open for stakeholder comments up to March 9, 2019.

The Draft Policy focuses on: (i) restriction on cross-border flow of data; (ii) local presence and taxability of foreign entities having significant economic presence in India; (iii) creating a robust digital infrastructure for e-commerce, from online custom clearance to online resolution of consumer complaints; (iv) promoting exports from India with a boost to start-ups and small firms; and (v) regulatory changes to augment economic growth in e-commerce.

The key highlights of the Draft Policy are as follows: …
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The Federal Trade Commission has filed a lawsuit in federal court claiming that a networking equipment manufacturer engaged in unfair and deceptive acts, exposing thousands of consumers to the risk of cyberattack from vulnerable wireless routers and internet cameras.

The complaint against Taiwan-based networking equipment manufacturer D-Link Corporation and its U.S. subsidiary D-Link Systems alleges…

iStock_000019536561Large-300x225At the Federal Communications Commission’s (“FCC”) Open Meeting on October 27, the Commission voted along party lines (3-2) to impose more stringent rules on broadband Internet service providers (“ISPs”). Chairman Tom Wheeler, along with Commissioners Rosenworcel and Clyburn voted in favor of the item, while Commissioners Pai and O’Rielly voted against it.

The new rules clarify the privacy requirements applicable to broadband ISPs pursuant to Section 222 of the Communications Act. The new rules also apply to voice services and treat call-detail records as “sensitive” in the context of voice services.

According to an FCC press release issued immediately after the meeting, these rules “establish a framework of customer consent required for ISPs to use and share their customers’ personal information that is calibrated to the sensitivity of the information.” The Commission further asserts that this approach is consistent with the existing privacy framework of the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”).…
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On July 12, 2016, the European Commission (“Commission”) formally adopted and released the Privacy Shield Adequacy decision, which will allow certified U.S. companies to transfer EU personal data to the United States.  The EU-U.S. Privacy Shield (“Privacy Shield”) replaces the U.S.-EU Safe Harbor framework (“Safe Harbor”), which was invalidated in October 2015 by the European Court of Justice (“ECJ”) in Maximillian Schrems v Data Protection Commissioner. The decision will immediately go into effect upon notification to the EU Member States.

The more than 4,400 U.S. companies that previously relied on the Safe Harbor and have been waiting for an alternative mechanism for data transfers can choose to self-certify to the Department of Commerce (“Commerce”) under the new Privacy Shield framework. Commerce will begin accepting Privacy Shield applications on August 1, 2016. This client advisory provides an overview of Privacy Shield, highlights key differences between Privacy Shield and Safe Harbor, and offers some key considerations given the forthcoming Global Data Protection Regulation and other data privacy developments.

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Special counsel Richard Cohen was interviewed by Metropolitan Corporate Counsel in the law article “Weighing Public vs. Private Interests in the Big Data Economy: Innovations in technology continue to bring more questions about privacy.”  Mr. Cohen discusses the current startup environment, big data, and venture capital accelerators based on his extensive experience working with technology…