Overview
On November 9, 2015, the Secretary of Commerce unveiled the Department of Commerce's new Digital Economy Agenda, which will help businesses and consumers realize the potential of the digital economy to advance growth and opportunity. The Agenda focuses on four key objectives: promoting a free and open Internet worldwide; promoting trust online; ensuring access for workers, families, and companies; and promoting innovation. To support the Agenda, the Secretary of Commerce has directed the creation of a Digital Economy Board of Advisors to enable the Department to have a mechanism for receiving regular advice from leaders in industry, academia, and civil society.
The Board's primary duty will be to provide independent advice and recommendations to the Secretary, through the Assistant Secretary for Communications and Information, on a broad range of policy issues impacting the digital economy. The Board will serve as a centralized forum for gathering consensus input from a wide range of stakeholders and experts. The Board's mission is to provide advice in furtherance of increasing domestic prosperity, improving education, and facilitating participation in political and cultural life through the application and expansion of digital technologies.
The Board's advice will focus on ensuring that the Internet continues to thrive as an engine of growth, innovation, and free expression. In carrying out its duties, the Board's activities may include, but are not limited to:
- Gathering information and providing an analysis of challenges related to the global free flow of information on the Internet, including policies that could restrict cross-border information flows;
- Providing advice on other policy matters that impact the digital economy, such as expanding broadband capacity, enhancing cybersecurity, protecting privacy, and examining the role of intermediaries;
- Promoting the development of new digital technologies; and
- Analyzing the impact of the Internet on job growth and the economy as a whole.
The Department will use the advice provided by the Board to inform its decision-making process and advance Administration goals.
Source
- National Telecommunications and Information Administration, "Digital Economy Board of Advisors" (Nov. 24, 2015) (full-text).