Is There Anybody Out There? Analyzing the Regulation of Children’s Privacy Online in the United States of America and the European Union According to the TBGI Analytical Framework by Eberlein et al

Abstract

This article analyzes the regulation of children’s privacy online, especially in the context of personal information collection as a commodity, in the United States of America (USA) and the European Union (EU) according to the Transnational Business Governance Interactions analytical framework proposed by Eberlein et al. This article reviews the regulatory structure of the field in these two jurisdictions, including global organizations, according to Elberlein et al components and questions. In the analysis, a map of the regulatory interactions within this global realm will be presented and discussed. Analysis of the influence of each interacting party and the degree of interaction between parties demonstrates that there is a clear dominance of the industry in the regulatory realm of children’s privacy protection online. Therefore it is suggested to include an analysis of the regulatory interactions (e.g., using the TBGI analytical framework by Eberlein et al.) when discussing new or amended regulatory measures in each one of the levels described in this article. This will allow a better understanding of the overall regulatory picture and may prevent a bias towards more powerful actors, such as the industry