House privacy hearing provides little clarity on path forward

The House Energy and Commerce Committee's first foray into the issue of Internet privacy on Thursday provided little guidance on whether lawmakers will proceed with legislation.

Energy and Commerce Chairman Fred Upton, R-Mich., indicated that he is in no hurry, either.

"I want to get this issue right," Upton said at a joint hearing of the Commerce, Manufacturing, and Trade and the Communications and Technology subcommittees. "We need to hear from everyone with a stake in Internet privacy before we contemplate legislating."

Many of the Republicans present voiced concern about the impact that legislation might have on innovation. "At this point, it is not clear what legislation, if any, is necessary, but the hope is that this hearing will shed additional light on that question," said Communications and Technology Subcommittee Chairman Greg Walden, R-Ore.

Other Republicans questioned whether legislation would make it more difficult for companies to provide free content on the Web if their current advertising models were restricted. Increasingly, advertisers are trying to personalize their ads using information collected as consumers surf the Web. Several Democrats argued that given such practices, Congress needs to step in and give consumers more control over their personal data.

Commerce, Manufacturing and Trade subcommittee Chairwoman Mary Bono Mack, R-Calif., said she has yet to make up her mind on whether legislation is necessary, but that she believes companies should be transparent about their privacy practices. She also said lawmakers need to look closely at how children are treated online and examine how well current laws are working.

Walden questioned why telecommunications companies are subject to federal privacy rules under the Communications Act when the makers of operating systems that may have also have access to personal data about consumers are not.

Federal Communications Commission Chairman Julius Genachowski agreed that companies providing similar technologies should be treated the same, calling it "a completely reasonable goal." But he added, "How to achieve it is a different question."

Rep. Joe Barton, R-Texas, was the only Republican on the panel to say that he favors privacy legislation. He and Rep. Ed Markey, D-Mass., said a online privacy bill they introduced earlier this year would update rules related to the collection of personal information from children.

Bono Mack said she expects to hold another hearing on the issue, although she didn't know when.