SCOTUS Google Ruling Could Reset Internet Content Rules

Tech industry players are concerned that the Supreme Court could impose new rules that upset the internet economy.

That’s according to a report Sunday (Oct. 30) in The Wall Street Journal, which looks at the court’s upcoming ruling on Section 230, a federal law that guards sites such as Facebook or YouTube against lawsuits over harmful content posted by third parties.

The case originated with a lawsuit against YouTube owner Google by the family of Nohemi Gonzalez, who was killed in the 2015 Islamic State terrorist attack in Paris. They argue that YouTube aided ISIS by recommending the group’s videos to users. Google says that Section 230 guards it against liability for content added to its site by users.

“This is going to be the most important [Supreme Court] term ever for the internet,” Alan Rozenshtein, a Justice Department cybersecurity official turned University of Minnesota law professor, told the WSJ. “It’s not even close.”

The tech industry has already begun to try to figure out its response to an unfavorable ruling, including petitioning Congress to pass legislation to rewrite Section 230 with more obvious liability protections, said Matt Schruers, president of the trade group Computer and Communications Industry Association.

“I could foresee an outcome where the litigation and compliance risks stemming from an ill-considered decision are so great that many small firms exit the market,” which would lead to foreign-based services picking up market share, he said. “To say that another way, U.S. competitiveness is potentially at risk here, and we have the most to lose from getting this wrong,” Schruers said.

Read more: House Approves Scaled-Down Bipartisan Bill Targeting Big Tech Mergers

The court case comes as regulators around the world make efforts to curb the influence of Google, Meta and other tech giants.

This year has seen the House pass legislation aimed at limiting Big Tech’s power, although in a much more scaled-down version than intended. The package of bills proposes to increase fees for antitrust reviews of the biggest mergers and gives state attorneys general more power in antitrust cases.

The measure is scheduled to go before the Senate, where it is expected to pass, before moving to the Oval Office for President Biden to sign. The original antitrust bill Congress was considering — the American Innovation and Choice Online Act — would have prevented Big Tech firms from taking advantage of their dominant position in the market. However, the legislation lost momentum following lobbying efforts by Google, Amazon, Apple and Meta, PYMNTS reported earlier this year.