eBay Applauds Senators Kerry & McCain’s ‘Privacy Bill of Rights’

April 12, 2011

eBay Applauds Senators Kerry & McCain’s ‘Privacy Bill of Rights’
Today, eBay, HP, Microsoft and Intel released a statement in support of Senator Kerry’s (D-MA) and Senator McCain’s (R-AZ) Commercial Privacy Bill of Rights Act.  Over the years, eBay has advocated for the enactment of strong federal privacy legislation that not only ensures consumer trust and confidence in the ecommerce marketplace, but also encourages innovation and growth on the Internet.

The current complex patchwork of privacy laws has left consumers without adequate privacy protections and has left businesses, especially small businesses, vulnerable to legal uncertainty as they struggle to navigate the myriad of state and local privacy regulations. Trust, by consumers and businesses alike, is crucial to the continued success of the ecommerce marketplace.  And without strong federal privacy protections, it is hard to build a strong and lasting foundation of trust.

eBay has long believed that carefully crafted, comprehensive federal privacy legislation would help to build a strong foundation of trust and potentially bridge the divide between consumer and industry concerns.  The Commercial Privacy Bill of Rights Act has the potential to be that bridge. The bill strikes the right balance of protecting consumers’ right to privacy, while ensuring that the Internet ecosystem continues to be an incubator of successful small businesses and entrepreneurs.

eBay applauds Senator Kerry and Senator McCain for their leadership on this important issue.  We look forward to continuing to work with Senators Kerry and McCain and their colleagues in the U.S. Congress to ensure that comprehensive federal privacy legislation is enacted and the Internet remains an outlet for consumer engagement and an economic driver for our nation’s economy.

Please click here to view eBay, Microsoft and Intel’s joint statement of support.