Last week, United States Trade Representative Michael Froman spoke about the benefits of tech-enabled international trade during the Coalition of Services Industries discussion on the pending Trade in Services Agreement.  As the Trade Representative for the United States, Ambassador Froman  and his staff are responsible for developing and coordinating U.S. international trade and overseeing negotiations with other countries and, therefore, very interested in the recent trends related to technology-enabled international trade.

Last week, the House Judiciary Committee’s Regulatory Reform, Commercial and Antitrust Law Subcommittee held a hearing discussing network neutrality entitled, “Net Neutrality: Is Antitrust Law More Effective Than Regulation In Protecting Consumers and Innovation?”  Witnesses included FTC Commissioner Joshua Wright, Former FCC Commissioner R

Last week, Congressman Roger Williams (R-TX) toured the eBay Inc. Commerce Innovation Center in New York City.  During the visit, eBay Inc. offered the company's vision for growth, especially through the lenses of consumer benefits, the growth of mobile, and how the competitive environment will develop. The visit was an opportunity to showcase how PayPal -- as an industry leader in mobile -- is uniquely positioned to leverage its wealth of technology and insights to create new commerce experiences for customers.

Earlier this week, Congresswoman Doris Matsui (D-CA) and Senate Judiciary Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-VT) introduced legislation that would prevent paid prioritization of Internet traffic delivery, which has been a growing concern of Open Internet advocates.  The bill would direct the FCC to prohibit special treatment or prioritization of certain Internet traffic.

eBay Inc. Global Asset Protection employees Zuzana Crawford, Hawken Averett, Dave DiSilva, Paul Jones and Christian Hardman

Recently members of the eBay Inc. Global Asset Protection (GAP) Team participated in the Nation Retail Federation loss prevention conference in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Each year the conference is attended by more than a thousand retail professionals representing retailers from across the county, many of whom are eBay Inc. clients. Training classes and networking opportunities are provided to attendees.

Congressman Thomas Massie (R-KY) recently visited the eBay Enterprise facility in Walton, Kentucky.  Congressman Massie represents the Fourth Congressional District of Kentucky, which includes the eBay Enterprise facility in Walton.  During his visit, Congressman Massie toured the state of the art distribution facility and met with employees to learn more about the important role eBay Enterprise plays in the eBay Inc. family.

This morning, the House Judiciary will hold a hearing to discuss whether anti-trust law is more effective than regulation in protecting consumers and innovation.  Witnesses include FTC Commissioner Joshua Wright, Former FCC Commissioner Robert McDowell, Professor Bruce Owen from the School of Humanities and Sciences, and Professor Tim Wu from Columbia Law School.

Yesterday, the House Judiciary Committee approved H.R. 3086, the Permanent Internet Tax Freedom Act, by an overwhelmingly bipartisan 30-4 vote. The bill makes the moratorium on Internet access taxes permanent and also prohibits multiple or discriminatory taxation of e-commerce. The current law expires on November 1^st, so Congress must act quickly to extend the law and protect consumers and businesses that rely on the Internet.