Kudos to Consumer Electronics Association chief Gary Shapiro for asking an A-list panel of executives what might have been one of the most intriguing questions of the day: "If you could change one law currently on the books, what would it be?"

(Photo Credit: Andrew Noyes)

Some answered more candidly than others:

Time Warner Cable CEO Glenn Britt said "we've been consistently in favor of less regulation" and having a level playing field across areas in which he does business. Charlie Ergen, CEO of EchoStar Communications, said he would reverse the FCC's 2002 decision to block his company from merging with competitor DirecTV.

Cox Communications President Patrick Esser said his answer depends on what regulators are focusing on at any given time. "Today, it's retransmission consent because David's sitting here," he joked. He was referring to David Barrett, president of Hearst-Argyle Television, and the current law that allows broadcasters to seek compensation for the consent to retransmit signals on cable television.

Verizon's Virginia Ruesterholz tossed out "voice regulation" as her pet peeve. "We have a lot of competition and we'd be looking for less regulation on that. More regulation is just the opposite of what's happening in industry."

Read more about the session in Tuesday's Technology Daily P.M. Edition.