Intel: If U.S. Doesn’t Give Internet Away, It ‘Will Incentivize Other Trade Barriers’

Fairfax, Va. — Americans for Limited Government President Rick Manning today issued the following statement responding to House Energy and Commerce Committee testimony by Audrey Plonk, Director, Global Security and Internet Governance Policy, Intel Corporation, who said if the U.S. fails to give away the Internet, Congress would “incentivize other trade barriers that we see in the tech sector being raised in many countries — it will provide a rationale”:

“This is remarkable. What countries specifically are so desperate for the U.S. to cease oversight of the domain name system that they are threatening a trade war in the tech sector? Has Intel been threatened that their products will no longer be welcome in certain countries if the transition does not occur? If not, where is this coming from? The very fact that a huge multinational company expresses fear of foreign government coercion if the Internet is not given away should raise massive red flags to the type of pressure ICANN will face when it is threatened with potential foreign capture without the U.S. government to protect the First Amendment rights that underlie oversight of the current system.

“This proves that foreign coercion is already being exercised to move this transition, the exact reason not to do it.”
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Interview Availability: Please contact Americans for Limited Government at 703-383-0880 ext. 106 or at media@limitgov.org to arrange an interview with ALG experts including ALG President Rick Manning.

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