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US Tech Industry Pins Hopes on New President

Michelle Quinn

   OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA - During the presidential campaign, candidate Joe
   Biden was mostly silent about so-called Big Tech.

   When Biden becomes the next U.S. president on January 20, Silicon
   Valley will be watching to see how the new administration approaches
   tech issues.

   How might the relationship between Washington and Silicon Valley
   unfold?

   Linda Moore, president and chief executive of TechNet, a bipartisan
   network of technology firm CEOs and executives, said that with a new
   administration, there is typically an opportunity to educate officials
   on the tech industry.

   But with the Biden administration, "we will have people who are very
   knowledgeable and have deep experience on these issues and have
   well-thought-out views on them," she said.

   Broadband bill

   Most likely, the first thing on Biden's tech agenda will dovetail with
   his economic policy: a massive increase in federal broadband spending
   to get more Americans online, particularly in rural communities. The
   president-elect is reportedly in talks with Democratic leaders on a
   broadband bill.

   The need is urgent, said Gigi Sohn, a distinguished fellow at
   Georgetown Law Institute for Technology, Law & Policy and a former
   senior official with President Barack Obama's Federal Communications
   Commission.

   "In rural America, there is not even a network to connect to," Sohn
   said.

   The new administration should also address "the problem, which is
   frankly much bigger, of people can't afford broadband because it's too
   expensive," she said.

   Beyond that, it is unclear which tech issues a Biden administration
   will focus on. The tech industry and its critics are paying close
   attention to whom the president-elect nominates for key roles at
   federal agencies such as the Federal Trade Commission, the Department
   of Justice and the Federal Communications Commission, all of which
   could have oversight over technology and telecommunications firms.