The details of the massive explosion of products and practices in the digital economy that place consumer interests at grave risk have already been noted and will be discussed in detail over the next couple of days. Digital products, mobile computing, consumer-to-consumer auctions, social networking, behavioral advertising, to mention the most obvious, have exploded in an environment where there is inadequate protection of privacy, the abuse of personal information, lack of transparency about basic product information, uncertainty about product rights, complaints about payment schemes, and ambiguity of dispute resolution. Therefore, at the outset of the conference I want to offer a different perspective, step back from the details and focus on the big picture. I will address why public policy has failed to provide the consumer protection to ensure that the digital economy promotes the public interest and why the framework for establishing consumer protection can and must change quickly. Now is the moment to shift the fundamental framework on which consumer protection in cyberspace stands in order to ensure a more effective regime and secure a more stable footing for economic activity.