The Trade Alliance to Promote Prosperity and The American Edge Project

The American Edge Project (AEP) is a coalition of organizations and companies – both small and large – dedicated to protecting and promoting American innovation for the long term and economic recovery in the near term. 

The Trade Alliance to Promote Prosperity (TAPP) has long advocated for innovation in the American economy, especially by protecting intellectual property rights. TAPP has joined AEP in a coalition to maintain “America’s edge” through smart regulatory and policy strategies to preserve an open and accessible digital environment. 

How American innovation has fostered a large and rapidly growing digital economy that has provided tangible benefits to the overall economy

 The American Economy Is Going Digital

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The digital economy is now larger than wholesale trade and retail, and just smaller than professional, scientific and technical services. As a relatively new industry, growth in the digital economy is inherently connected to innovation. Protecting this industry’s ability to innovate must be a top priority in trade agreements in order for it to continue to grow at this pace. 

How the success of American small businesses relies on digital products and services and is vital to the American economy as a whole 

Small Businesses in the Digital Economy 

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Small businesses are a driving force of the American economy but are also the most likely to fail. The digital economy has provided small business with tools to serve and engage with a broader customer base in ways that they can’t do traditionally. A strong digital economy that is accessible to small businesses will strengthen the foundations of the American economy and stabilize its future. 

How the American digital environment has fostered free speech while many other nations have done the opposite 

Innovation Protects Americans’ First Amendment Rights

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Freedom of speech is a foundational tenet of our country, and restricting that right would tear at the fabrics of our society. Many countries across the globe restrict access and content and violate user rights at their discretion. As the global community becomes more digital, it is critical to allow for the same freedoms online as Americans are afforded in-person. 

How to protect intellectual property with reasonable measures in international trade agreements 

Measures to Protect and Promote American Innovation 

By cutting bureaucracy at the borders, streamlining cross-border trade, and reducing regulatory uncertainty, international trade agreements can encourage the creation of the jobs of the future, which before COVID-19 were growing four times faster than the rest of the economy. 2 Consumers benefit from lower prices and greater availability of products and services.

References

  1. “Digital Economy Accounted for 6.9 Percent of GDP in 2017 | U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA).” The BEA Wire, 4 Apr. 2019, https://www.bea.gov/news/blog/2019-04-04/digital-economy-accounted-69-percent-gdp-2017.

  2. Barefoot, Kevin, et al. Defining and Measuring the Digital Economy. p. 25. https://www.bea.gov/system/files/papers/WP2018-4.pdf

  3. John O’Mahony, and Sara Ma. “2017 Connected Small Businesses US.” Deloitte, p. 38. https://www2.deloitte.com/content/dam/ Deloitte/us/Documents/technology-media-telecommunications/us-tmt-connected-small-businesses-Dec2017.pdf

  4. “Small Business & Entrepreneurship Council.” SBE Council, 12 Sept. 2019. sbecouncil.org, https://sbecouncil.org/2019/09/12/small-business-and-the-digital-economy-online-advertising-fuels-startups-and-boosts-small-business-growth/.

  5. Tan, Anjelica. “Technology Is Essential to Future of Small Businesses across America.” TheHill, 9 Nov. 2017. thehill.com, https:// thehill.com/opinion/technology/359616-technology-is-essential-to-future-of-small-businesses-across-america.

  6. Shahbaz, Adrian, and Allie Funk. Freedom on the Net 2019. Freedom House, https://freedomhouse.org/sites/default/ files/2019-11/11042019_Report_FH_FOTN_2019_final_Public_Download.pdf.

  7. Trump, Donald J. “Executive Order on Preventing Online Censorship.” The White House, 28 May 2020. www.whitehouse.gov, https:// www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/executive-order-preventing-online-censorship. 

Ainsley Shea