Research Conference on Communications, Information and Internet Policy (TPRC 53)
Over 50 Years of Policy Research
TPRC is a more than an annual conference: https://www.tprcweb.com/
It’s a community of individuals dedicated to researching pressing issues facing the digital world today. TPRC promotes interdisciplinary thinking on current and emerging issues in communications and the Internet by disseminating and discussing new research relevant to policy questions in the U.S. and around the world. It serves researchers, policymakers, and members of the private sector and civil society, from students to well-established practitioners.
The 53th conference of TPRC (TPRC53) will take place at the American University on September 19-20, 2025 in Washington DC.
Our founding director, Professor Aurelien Portuese, is the Vice Chair of the Program Committee 2024-2025.
Professor Aurelien Portuese will moderate one panel titled “Competition Policy: What’s Next After the Neo-Brandeisian Movement?”
The Trump Administration is widely expected to pivot away from the Biden Administration’s neo-Brandeisian approach to antitrust policy and enforcement. This panel will explore what comes next. Antitrust policy and enforcement in the first Trump Administration focused on deregulation, but notably featured populist skepticism toward some industries, particularly in media and technology. Panelists will discuss perspectives of the current Trump Administration and offer insight into how the Administration will approach antitrust in general, as well as whether media and technology sectors are likely to benefit from a deregulatory approach or find themselves in the antitrust authorities’ crosshairs.
Professor Aurelien Portuese will moderate another panel introdocuting the concept of the human infrastructure of broadband (HIB) and examine its critical relationship to physical broadband infrastructure. Panelists will highlight why HIB is essential for maximizing return on investment (ROI) from the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program and explore strategies for sustaining it beyond infusions of federal funding. The panel aims to catalyze a growing body of research that characterizes the impacts of HIB, complementing existing studies on physical infrastructure investment. Confirmed speakers are: