- From: Philippe Le Hégaret <plh@w3.org>
- Date: Wed, 10 Jan 2024 11:07:11 -0500
- To: public-review-comments@w3.org
From https://lists.w3.org/Archives/Team/w3t/2023Nov/0056.html [W3C Member] does not support the Private Advertising Technologies Working Group charter. The group should not be chartered. This charter has not changed materially since it was first submitted for Advisory Committee review in October 2022. The substance of the Formal Objections (FO) raised during that review by 51Degrees [1], [W3C Member 1] [2], and [W3C member 2] [3] remain applicable and we include the test of those objections in this FO by reference. [1] Since October 2022 evidence has been disclosed in court. - Meeting between Tim Cook CEO of Apple and Sundar Pichai CEO of Google around 20th December 2018; [2] o "Sundar also discussed our respective approaches to privacy in the follow on session" o "Tim's overall message to Google was 'I imagine us as being able to be deep deep partners; deeply connected where our services end and yours being as sees no natural impediment to use doing more together. Knows there is a past but doesn't feel encumbered by it and wants to figure out how we work more deeply together (and share information better - he stressed this a few times)." o "Our vision is that we work as if we are one company" Whilst Mozilla was not present at the 20th December 2018 meeting the majority of Mozilla Foundation's funding comes from Google who were. As such there is a clear financial dependency problem between Mozilla Foundation and Google and it seems likely via this financial dependency Google have some influence over Mozilla. [3] Within an organization where the three web browser engine vendors operate "as if we are one company" any debate that seeks to design markets, raise rival's costs, restrict interoperability, or otherwise interfere with markets, must be avoided. As this group intends to engage in such debates, and has done so as a Community Group, the charter should have been ruled out of scope by W3C Team and been rejected prior to an AC review. [4] Of additional consideration is Meta who along with Apple and Google have now been designated gatekeeper status under the Digital Markets Act (DMA). It is not clear to use how the work of the group can be conducted in a manner that complies with the DMA. [5] The charter lacks language concerning requirements for impartiality of chairs and W3C Team members. In any case the W3C's antitrust enforcement and policy is insufficient to host the debates and standards work contemplated. Please see Linux Foundation and IAB Tech Lab for examples of antitrust policies from comparable organisations which reenforce the presentation prepared for W3C Improving Web Advertising Business Group by MOW and provided in September 2023. [6] [1] https://www.w3.org/2002/09/wbs/33280/PATWG-charter-2022/results [2] https://www.justice.gov/d9/2023-10/417460.pdf [3] https://assets.mozilla.net/annualreport/2021/mozilla-fdn-2021-fs-final-1010.pdf Page 16 - "Mozilla incorporates search engines of its customers as a default status or an optional status available in the Firefox web browser." Page 6 - Royalties for 2021 $527 million USD. [4] https://docs.google.com/document/d/1raFJmEEobFzXj7VPC0GRXKtL_pxfR-5Mi6YJwtHalYg/edit#heading=h.fv36lheauhcb - restricting implementation to "reputable cloud provider" only is one overt example. [5] https://digital-markets-act.ec.europa.eu/commission-designates-six-gatekeepers-under-digital-markets-act-2023-09-06_en [6] https://www.linuxfoundation.org/legal/antitrust-policy | https://iabtechlab.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/IAB-Tech-Lab-Antitrust-Compliance-Policy.pdf | https://movementforanopenweb.com/mow-and-preiskel-co-present-to-the-w3c-on-competition-law-in-standards-making/ [1] https://www.w3.org/2002/09/wbs/33280/PAT-WG-Charter/
Received on Wednesday, 10 January 2024 16:07:10 UTC