Mark Zuckerberg meets British official who wants to regulate Facebook

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After avoiding multiple requests to testify before a British parliamentary committee, the Facebook (FB) The CEO will meet Thursday Jeremy Wright, British Secretary for Digital, Culture, Media and Sports. The private meeting is part of Wright's tour into Silicon Valley before the release of a plan that will explain how the UK government could better regulate Internet companies.

In a Wednesday interview with CNN Business, Wright announced his intention to tell Zuckerberg that he should appear to testify in front of the British parliament to explain Facebook's approach to data privacy and confidentiality. its efforts to stem the spread of false information.

"I think it would be an opportunity for him to make his point," Wright said shortly after meeting with leaders at Google (GOOGL), one of the major technology companies visited by the UK official this week. "And if he does not, there will be a suspicion – and in fact there is one – that he has no good arguments to defend."

For Wright, the visit to California of British Digital Minister Margot James is a way to get the advice of companies that will be directly affected by any future regulation of the United Kingdom.

"Digital Gangsters"

Wright's visit comes the same week as the publication of a scathing British parliamentary report on misinformation and misinformation, which compared Facebook to "digital gangsters" knowingly violating data protection and competition laws.

Throughout the 18 months of investigation, the committee has repeatedly asked Zuckerberg to testify. Requests have been postponed so often that the committee announced that it would summon the billionaire CEO when he gave in to the United Kingdom.

British Legislators: Facebook intentionally and knowingly & # 39; violation of data privacy laws

In response to the report, Facebook denied violating the laws and said it was open to regulation. The company declined to comment on the planned meeting between Zuckerberg and Wright.

Last week, a report commissioned by the Wright Department on the preservation of high quality journalism in the UK recommended that the government investigate the dominance of Facebook and Google in advertising, and that one regulator monitors the relationship between the information industry and the tech giants.
Other technology companies that Wright and James will visit during their trip include Twitter (tWTR), Apple (AAPL), Break (BREAK) and Tinder. They also plan to meet technology experts and personalities such as LinkedIn founder Reid Hoffman.

The settlement arrives

Wright told CNN Business that the leaders of the technology companies he's been talking to so far seem to recognize that regulation is imminent, although they want to show him the mechanisms in place. This self-regulation is not enough, Wright said.

"It is recognized that the British government is determined to put in place a system to catch those who do not behave as they should," he said. "Although I do not think anyone appreciates the regulation, there is an acceptance that it will almost certainly happen, and we have useful discussions on how it will unfold."

2018 was the year when Facebook and Twitter grew up

Wright and Interior Minister Sajid Javid will publish in the coming weeks a white paper containing a series of legislative and non-legislative proposals to reduce risk online.

One of Wright and Javid's main concerns is to make the online world "safer" against illegal activities such as child exploitation, cyberbullying and harassment, as well as on less-than-optimal issues. defined, such as publications that seem to promote self-destruction.

Wright said they were considering various options, including the appointment of a new regulator online. But he warned that the white paper is only the starting point.

"It is a deliberate consultative process," he said, noting that if the UK promulgated these regulations, they would be "revolutionary." It makes "so important that you take the trouble to clarify the details and talk to those who will be directly affected," he added.

"It's important that we simultaneously protect people from injury … while maintaining the best in the internet," Wright said. "We must try to find a balance between them."

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