Webinar: Readout on the WTO MC 13 E-Commerce Decision

This webinar is an opportunity for WITSA members to learn more about what transpired on e-commerce and digital trade at the 13th WTO Ministerial Conference in Abu Dhabi in February.  Speakers from the Consumer Technology Association and the Semiconductor Industry Association, who were on the ground at MC13, will review the negotiations that led to the 2 March Ministerial Decision on the Work Programme on Electronic Commerce, which renewed the moratorium on customs duties on electronic transmissions for another two years until MC14 in Cameroon. They will also offer industry perspectives on what this means for the ongoing Joint Statement Initiative on E-Commerce and the prospects for MC14.

GUESTS

Douglas Johnson | Vice President of Emerging Technology Policy at CTA - Consumer Technology Association

Doug Johnson is vice president of emerging technology policy for the Consumer Technology Association (CTA), North America’s largest technology trade association. CTA’s members are the world’s leading innovators – from startups to global brands. CTA owns and produces CES® – the most influential tech event in the world. Doug is responsible for public policy issues affecting product development, operations, sales and marketing across the consumer technology industry. He serves as an advocate for the industry before regulators and legislators at the local, national and international levels, and he has led CTA’s efforts on artificial intelligence, drones, energy efficiency, regulatory reform, voluntary agreements, policy alignment, non-tariff barriers to trade, and consumer tech devices on airplanes.

Ed Brzytwa | Vice President of International Trade at CTA - Consumer Technology Association

Ed Brzytwa is the Consumer Technology Association's Vice President of International Trade. He leads CTA’s trade and supply chain policy and advocacy work, with a strong focus on improving the international trade environment and global supply chains to strengthen the competitiveness of the U.S. consumer technology industry. Ed previously served as an international trade advocate for the American Chemistry Council and Information Technology Industry Council and a trade negotiator in Office of the U.S. Trade Representative and U.S. Department of Commerce. Ed obtained two Master’s degrees from the Diplomatic Academy of Vienna in Austria, where he was a Fulbright fellow, and from the Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey, and has a Bachelor’s degree in The Classics from the College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, Massachusetts. 

Mary Thornton | Vice President of Global Policy at SIA - Semiconductor Industry Association

Mary Thornton joined SIA in 2023 and is vice president for global policy, where she directs SIA’s policy agenda for international competitiveness, trade, export control, supply chain, global market research, and emerging markets and regularly engages with the U.S. and foreign governments. She also serves on the Executive Committee for Beijing-based United States Information Technology Office (USITO), representing SIA and its members.

Mary has a diverse background in technology, trade, supply-chain, and security issues spanning a wide range of geographies. She previously led policy work on trade and economic security issues for Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Texas Instruments, Inc. Mary served as a senior trade negotiator for the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) from 2008-2018, where she worked to expand access and create export opportunities for U.S. companies in foreign markets through both various bilateral and multilateral fora, and successfully negotiated the expansion of the Information Technology Agreement at the WTO, which eliminated customs duties on hundreds of technology products across 80+ countries. Mary also served at the U.S. Departments of Commerce and Treasury.

Mary earned a master’s degree in public policy from the University of Michigan and a bachelor’s degree in political science and mathematics from Colgate University.

This webinar will be held in English.