Stealth-Mode DC Tech Lobby Group The Internet Association Names A CEO: Michael Beckerman

A sign, if you needed one, of how big tech companies have become, how central they would like to be in the world of policymaking -- and how they may be getting nervous about heavier regulation down the line: a new lobbying group is being formed called The?Internet Association, with charter members reportedly including Google, Amazon, eBay and Facebook. The group, due to launch formally in September,?has made very little noise up to now, but today it announced the appointment of a president and CEO -- Washington insider Michael Beckerman -- to lead it in a more public effort. The news comes in the same week that it was revealed that Google's budget for lobbying went up by 90 percent in the last quarter to nearly $4 million (on par with large telcos like Verizon), while Facebook's went up by 200 percent to $960,000, according to Reuters.

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