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Here's what 40 internet companies want Trump to do

The Internet Association, whose members include the likes of Amazon, Facebook and Google, has written an open letter to President-elect Donald Trump.

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Sean Hollister
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Sean Hollister Senior Editor / Reviews
When his parents denied him a Super NES, he got mad. When they traded a prize Sega Genesis for a 2400 baud modem, he got even. Years of Internet shareware, eBay'd possessions and video game testing jobs after that, he joined Engadget. He helped found The Verge, and later served as Gizmodo's reviews editor. When he's not madly testing laptops, apps, virtual reality experiences, and whatever new gadget will supposedly change the world, he likes to kick back with some games, a good Nerf blaster, and a bottle of Tejava.
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Internet companies have their own ideas for making America great.

 Chip Somodevilla, Getty Images

In July, 145 tech leaders called Donald Trump "a disaster for innovation." But now that he's been elected president, some of those companies are trying to appeal to his good graces.

The Internet Association -- a group of 40 top internet companies including Airbnb, Amazon, Facebook, Google, LinkedIn, Netflix, Twitter, Uber and Yahoo -- issued an open letter on Monday that congratulates Donald Trump on his victory and offers a long list of policy positions they hope he'll consider during his time as president.

That list includes:

  • Upholding Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act so internet companies can't get sued easily for things their users say or do online.
  • Upholding Section 512 of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act so internet companies can't get easily sued if they quickly remove copyrighted content that users upload (such as infringing photos and YouTube videos).
  • Reforming the 30-year-old Electronic Communications Privacy Act -- "Internet users must have the same protections for their inbox as they do for their mailbox," states the association.
  • Supporting strong encryption (Trump called for a boycott of Apple when it refused to comply with an FBI order to unlock an iPhone linked to terror.)
  • Reforming Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, which lets the NSA collect online communications without a warrant.
  • Providing similar copyright protections for companies that operate outside the US.
  • Reforming the US Patent Office to deter patent trolls, a term for companies that sue other companies based on patents without actually producing new products.

And many, more. You can the full proposed policy roadmap (PDF) right here.

Presently, it's not quite clear how a Trump presidency might impact the tech industry. Here's where Trump stood on 7 key tech issues before the election, and here's our current understanding of where he might be heading.