| Computer Crime |
8/16. A grand jury of the U.S.
District Court (EDCal) returned a 13 count indictment
against Aleksey Ivanov alleging unauthorized intrusions
into computer systems owned by companies in the U.S.,
transmitting threats to damage those computer systems,
extortion, and other charges. Ivanov is a computer hacker from
Chelybinsk, Russia, who was arrested in Seattle on November
10, 2000 by the FBI while traveling to met with an undercover
company established by the FBI. Ivanov also faces similar
computer intrusion charges in Seattle, Connecticut, California
and New Jersey.
The indictment alleges that Ivanov gained unauthorized access
to computers at VPM, a Folsom, California Internet services
company. He then installed a backdoor, and used VPM as a shell
or conduit for hacking attacks on other companies to avoid
detection or exposure to his computer systems in Russia. The
indictment further alleges that Ivanov contacted the victims
whose computers he had accessed and compromised, for the
purpose of demanding and extorting money. He also threatened
further damage to their computer systems. See, CCIPS
release.
8/20. Geoffrey Osowski and Wilson Tang each pled
guilty in U.S.
District Court (NDCal) to one count of computer fraud in
violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1030(a)(4). The two exceeded their
authorized access to the computer systems of Cisco Systems in order to
illegally issue almost $8 million in Cisco stock to
themselves. They also agreed to the forfeiture of assets
already seized by the government, and agreed to pay
restitution in the amount of the difference between $7,868,637
and the amount that the government will recover from the sale
of the seized items. See, Osowski
Plea Agreement [PDF], Tang
Plea Agreement [PDF], and USAO
release.
8/16. A grand jury of the U.S.
District Court (NDCal) returned a four count indictment
[PDF] against Lawrence Jou and Eric Pang
alleging criminal copyright infringement in violation of 18
U.S.C. §§ 371and 2319. Specifically, defendants produced and
sold counterfeit CD containing Microsoft software. (Case No.
CR01 40135 CW.) See, USAO
release. |
|
|
| FEC Finally Picks General
Counsel |
8/20. The Federal Election
Commission (FEC) named Lawrence Norton to be its
next General Counsel, after a long search. The previous
General Counsel, Lawrence Noble, resigned in January.
He announced his resignation in December of last year. Noble
is now Executive Director and General Counsel for the Center for Responsive
Politics. Lois Lerner, the FEC's Associate General
Counsel for Enforcement, is the Acting General Counsel.
Norton has been Associate Director in the Commodities Futures Trading
Commmission's Division of Enforcement since 1996. Norton
will begin work at the FEC in mid September. See, FEC release.
The FEC the federal regulatory commission responsible for
enforcement of, issuance of advisory opinions pursuant to, and
promulgation of regulations under, the Federal Election
Campaign Act. The FEC has recently been involved in matters
pertaining to use of the Internet to solicit and receive
campaign and PAC contributions, and to engage in political
speech. |
|
|
| SBC Files 271 Petition for
Arkansas and Missouri |
| 8/20. SBC Communications
filed a Section
271 petition with the FCC for permission to provide
interLATA services in the states of Arkansas and Missouri. SBC
has already received approval from the FCC to provide long
distance service in Texas, Kansas and Oklahoma. See, SBC
release. |
|
|
| New Documents |
Bush:
letter
to Congress re extension of export controls, 8/20 (HTML, WH).
FCC: final
rule pertaining to collocation, 8/20 (HTML, FedReg).
USAO:
Osowski
Plea Agreement re computer fraud, 8/20 (PDF, USAO).
USAO:
Tang
Plea Agreement re computer fraud, 8/20 (PDF, USAO).
USDC:
indictment
of Lawrence Jou and Eric Pang for criminal copyright
infringement, 8/17 (PDF, USDC). |
|
|
|
| WTO Releases FSC
Replacement Act Report |
8/20. A WTO panel made
public its final report on the legality of the FSC Repeal and
Extraterritorial Income Exclusion Act of 2000, passed in
November of 2000. This is the law which replaced the Foreign
Sales Corporation (FSC) provisions of US tax law. As expected,
the report finds that the US law constitutes a prohibited
export subsidy. The WTO ruled earlier that the previous FSC
tax regime is an illegal export subsidy. So, late last year
the Congress passed replacement legislation, which the EU
again challenged. The EU's challenges to the US tax regime
are, in part, retaliation for the US's challenges to EU
agriculture policies. See, EU
release.
The FSC tax regime benefits US exporters, including software
and hardware producers with significant sales abroad, such as
Microsoft, Cisco, and Motorola. Also, ongoing disputes between
the US and EU over agriculture policies and the FSC tax regime
have the potential to lead to an escalating trade war. The EU
has indicated that if this were to occur it would target US
high tech exporters for retaliatory tariffs. For background
see, TLJ
News Analysis: The FSC Tax Bill and Technology Exporters,
Nov. 17, 2000. |
|
|
| Fed Circuit Reverses in
Glaxo v. Ranbaxy |
| 8/20. The U.S.
Court of Appeals (FedCir) issued its opinion in Glaxo
v. Ranbaxy Pharmaceuticals, a patent
infringement case involving pharmaceuticals. Glaxo obtained U.S.
Patent No. 4,267,320 in May of 1981 on a family of
cephalosporin antibiotics. Glaxo obtained a two year term
extension for the '320 patent under 35 U.S.C. § 156. That
patent expired on May 12, 2000. In December 1985, Glaxo
obtained U.S.
Patent No. 4,562,181 regarding an amorphous form of
cefuroxime ester. In April 1999, Ranbaxy filed an
Abbreviated New Drug Application (ANDA) with the FDA seeking
approval to market a generic tablet form of cefuroxime axetil
in anticipation of the '320 patent's expiration. Glaxo opposed
Ranbaxy's ANDA and filed a complaint in U.S. District Court (DNJ)
against Ranbaxy under 35 U.S.C.
§ 271(e)(2). The District Court entered a preliminary
injunction, precluding Ranbaxy from marketing any cefuroxime
axetil product under its ANDA. Ranbaxy brought this
interlocutory appeal. The Court of Appeals held that the
District Court made an error in claim construction, vacated
the injunction, and remanded. |
|
|
| Collocation Rules |
| 8/20. The FCC published
in the Federal Register a final
rule pertaining to collocation. This order is in the
proceeding named "In the Matter of Deployment of Wireline
Services Offering Advanced Telecommunications
Capability". It is numbered CC Docket No. 98-147. See,
Federal Register, August 20, 2001, Vol. 66, No. 161, at Pages
43516 - 43523. On August 8 the FCC released this Fourth
Report and Order in PDF format. This order was adopted by
the FCC on July 12. The order takes effect on September 19,
2001. |
|
|
| More News |
8/20. President Bush wrote a letter
to the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the
President of the Senate regarding his decision to extend the
Export Administration Act (EAA). He extended the EAA by Executive
Order on August 17.
8/16. The SEC instituted
an administrative proceeding against Leslie Crone, an
accountant and former CFO of Max Internet Communications. The
SEC simultaneously made findings and imposed sanctions against
Crone. He made misstatements regarding Max's financial
condition, including in filings with the SEC. He is suspended
from appearing or practicing before the SEC as an accountant.
See, SEC
release.
8/17. The Recording Industry
Association of American (RIAA) stated that the U.S. District Court (CDCal)
granted summary judgment to plaintiffs in a copyright
infringement case against Media Group and its President.
See, RIAA
release.
8/20. The FCC named Barbara
Douglas Associate Chief for Program Coordination and
Management in the FC's Consumer Information Bureau (CIB). She
will be Chief of Staff to the Bureau Chief, Dane Snowden. See,
FCC
release [PDF]. |
|
|
|
| Copps Finalizes Staff |
8/20. FCC
Commissioner Michael
Copps announced members of his permanent staff. Jordan
Goldstein will be Senior Legal Advisor, and Susanna Zwerling
and Paul Margie will be Legal Advisors. Carolyn Conyers is
Confidential Assistant. See, FCC
release.
Jordan Goldstein, who is currently interim Senior Legal
Advisor, was named Senior Legal Advisor. He will focus on
competition, universal service, and broadband deployment.
Goldstein was previously a legal advisor to former
Commissioner Susan Ness. Goldstein has also been legal counsel
to the Chief of the Common
Carrier Bureau (CCB), an attorney in the CCB's Policy and
Program Planning Division, and before that, an attorney at the
NTIA.
Susanna Zwerling, who is currently interim Legal
Advisor, has been named Media and Consumer Protection Legal
Advisor. She will focus on all media issues, and consumer
protection issues, including slamming, cramming, and truth in
billing. She was previously Assistant Bureau Chief for
Planning and Communication in the Mass Media Bureau (MMB).
Prior to that she was special counsel to the Chief of the MMB,
and an attorney advisor in the Policy and Rules Division.
Before joining to the FCC in 1997, she was a trial attorney in
the Telecommunications Task Force of the Antitrust Division of the
Department of Justice. And prior to that, she was an associate
in the New York City office of the law firm of Debevoise & Plimpton.
She also was a legislative assistant to former Representative
and now Sen. Charles
Schumer (D-NY).
Paul Margie was named Spectrum and International Legal
Advisor. Margie, who started work for Commissioner Copps on
August 20, was previously Senior Commerce Counsel for Sen. John Rockefeller
(D-WV), a senior member of the Senate Commerce
Committee, which oversees the FCC. He is also an Adjunct
Professor of Law at Georgetown University (GU), where he
co-teaches a course titled Law
in Cyberspace. He also previously worked at the Washington
DC law firm of Wiley Rein &
Fielding, in its communications and technology law
practice groups. |
|
|
| Tuesday, August 21 |
| Deadline to submit comments to the FCC in response to its
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) regarding the concept of
a unified intercarrier compensation regime, including
reciprocal compensation, and alternative approaches such as
"bill and keep." See, notice
in Federal Register, May 23, 2001, Vol. 66, No. 100, at Pages
28410 - 28418. |
|
|
| Wednesday, August 22 |
| Deadline to submit comments to the Copyright Office (CO)
in response to its notice
of proposed rule making regarding rates and terms for the
digital performance of sound recordings. The CO requests
comment on proposed regulations that will govern the RIAA
collective when it functions as the designated agent receiving
royalty payments and statements of accounts from nonexempt,
subscription digital transmission services which make digital
transmissions of sound recordings under the provisions of Section
114 of the Copyright Act. See, Federal Register, July 23,
2001, Vol. 66, No. 141, at Pages 38226 - 38229. |
|
|
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