U.S. Chamber of Commerce publicly opposes S. Korea's proposed online platform rules

▲ This file photo shows Charles Freeman, senior vice president for Asia at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. (Yonhap)

US-S Korea tech bill

U.S. Chamber of Commerce publicly opposes S. Korea's proposed online platform rules

By Song Sang-ho

WASHINGTON, Jan. 29 (Yonhap) -- The U.S. Chamber of Commerce expressed concerns Monday over South Korea's proposed regulations aimed at preventing unfair market activities by major online platform businesses.

Charles Freeman, senior vice president for Asia at the U.S. Chamber, issued a statement opposing Seoul's push for the rules designed to step up oversight over market-dominant players to ensure fair competition.

Industry watchers forecast that major platform operators, including Naver, Kakao, Google and Apple could be subject to the rules should they be enacted.

"The U.S. Chamber is concerned about Korea's apparent rush to pass platform legislation," Freeman said in remarks posted on the chamber's website.

"It is critical that the full text of any proposed legislation be made publicly available, and that the government of Korea provide ample opportunity for engagement with a range of stakeholders, including the American business community and the U.S. government," he added.

Freeman claimed that having monitored legislative conversations in multiple countries, the U.S. Chamber can attest that these platform proposals are "deeply flawed."

"They trample on competition that clearly benefits consumers, ignore good regulatory practices fundamental to sound regulatory models, and place governments in a position of violating their trade commitments by arbitrarily targeting foreign firms," he said.

"We urge the Korean Fair Trade Commission to demonstrate the type of transparency and open dialogue that an action of this magnitude requires."

In December, Robert O'Brien, who served as national security advisor for then President Donald Trump from 2019-2021, made a similar case in a contribution to U.S. news outlet The Hill.

He stressed that Korea's proposed regulations would be a "gift" to China, warning they could cause friction with the United States if enacted.

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