Uploaded November 2022 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
In this engaging Battle of Ideas Festival debate an impressive panel discuss with an insightful audience the state of play and what's to come.
For decades, there has been concern about how individual states can control the forces of the world market – particularly against multinational corporations that have bigger revenues than many countries. This debate is especially acute when it comes to the internet, where the world’s most valuable companies (like Apple, Facebook, Amazon and Netflix) operate on a global scale. One area of concern is the regulation of content. But many argue that the tech giants are simply too big to be regulated by any one country. Another bugbear has been tax, with big companies able to arrange their affairs to avoid paying their fair share by booking their profits in low-tax jurisdictions.
Is the nation state now redundant? With customer helplines and personalised interaction, do we relate more to online services than our own governments? How can big companies be held accountable if they operate beyond the rules of any particular country? Or are these fears overblown, with tech giants as dependent as any other company on national laws to defend their property and other rights?
The speakers are:
Timandra Harkness - Journalist, writer and broadcaster; presenter, Radio 4's FutureProofing and How to Disagree; author, Big Data: does size matter?
Andrew Orlowski - Business columnist, Daily Telegraph; founder, Think of X; assistant producer, All Watched Over By Machines Of Loving Grace
Graham Smith - Tech and internet lawyer; of counsel, Bird & Bird LLP; author, Internet Law and Regulation; blogger, Cyberleagle
Dr Keith Teare - CEO, Signalrank Corporation; Silicon-Valley-based serial entrepreneur
The Chair is Sally Taplin - Business consultant, Businessfourzero; visiting MBA lecturer, Bayes Business School; board member, Lewes FC
In this engaging Battle of Ideas Festival debate an impressive panel discuss with an insightful audience the state of play and what's to come.
For decades, there has been concern about how individual states can control the forces of the world market – particularly against multinational corporations that have bigger revenues than many countries. This debate is especially acute when it comes to the internet, where the world’s most valuable companies (like Apple, Facebook, Amazon and Netflix) operate on a global scale. One area of concern is the regulation of content. But many argue that the tech giants are simply too big to be regulated by any one country. Another bugbear has been tax, with big companies able to arrange their affairs to avoid paying their fair share by booking their profits in low-tax jurisdictions.
Is the nation state now redundant? With customer helplines and personalised interaction, do we relate more to online services than our own governments? How can big companies be held accountable if they operate beyond the rules of any particular country? Or are these fears overblown, with tech giants as dependent as any other company on national laws to defend their property and other rights?
The speakers are:
Timandra Harkness - Journalist, writer and broadcaster; presenter, Radio 4's FutureProofing and How to Disagree; author, Big Data: does size matter?
Andrew Orlowski - Business columnist, Daily Telegraph; founder, Think of X; assistant producer, All Watched Over By Machines Of Loving Grace
Graham Smith - Tech and internet lawyer; of counsel, Bird & Bird LLP; author, Internet Law and Regulation; blogger, Cyberleagle
Dr Keith Teare - CEO, Signalrank Corporation; Silicon-Valley-based serial entrepreneur
The Chair is Sally Taplin - Business consultant, Businessfourzero; visiting MBA lecturer, Bayes Business School; board member, Lewes FC
