| House Approves Unlawful
Internet Gambling Funding Prohibition Act |
10/1. The House passed HR 556,
the Unlawful Internet Gambling Funding Prohibition Act, by a
voice vote after a brief debate.
Many legislators have been trying for several Congresses to
pass legislation aimed at limiting Internet gambling. While Sen. Jon Kyl (R-AZ) has had
success moving legislation in the Senate in the past, this is
the first time that the full House has passed a bill. The
Senate has not yet passed HR 556.
Rep. Bob Goodlatte
(R-VA) has tried for years to pass a bill in the House. In
this Congress, he is the sponsor of HR 3215,
the Combating Illegal Gambling Reform and Modernization Act.
However, the bill just passed by the House is a more narrow
and targeted bill sponsored by Rep. James Leach (R-IA)
and reported by the House Financial
Services Committee (HFSC). It is directed only at
financial instruments used in connection with Internet
gambling.
HR 556 provides, in part, that "No person engaged in the
business of betting or wagering may knowingly accept, in
connection with the participation of another person in
unlawful Internet gambling (1) credit, or the proceeds of
credit, extended to or on behalf of such other person
(including credit extended through the use of a credit card);
(2) an electronic fund transfer or funds transmitted by or
through a money transmitting business, or the proceeds of an
electronic fund transfer or money transmitting service, from
or on behalf of the other person; (3) any check, draft, or
similar instrument which is drawn by or on behalf of the other
person and is drawn on or payable at or through any financial
institution; or (4) the proceeds of any other form of
financial transaction as the Secretary may prescribe by
regulation which involves a financial institution as a payor
or financial intermediary on behalf of or for the benefit of
the other person."
The HFSC approved the bill by a vote of 34-18 on October 31,
2001. See, story titled "House Committee Passes Internet
Gambling Funding Bill" in TLJ
Daily E-Mail Alert No. 299, Nov. 1, 2001. See also, HFSC
release of October 1, 2002. |
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| USTR Zoellick Addresses
Trade, Tech, and IPR |
10/1. U.S. Trade Representative Robert
Zoellick gave a speech
[PDF] titled "Globalization, Trade, and Economic
Security" in Washington DC. He stated that "A free
and open trading system is critical to many of the most
competitive sectors of the U.S. economy. ... America's dynamic
high tech sector depends on exports, with $189 billion in
foreign sales last year. Software producers earn over half of
all their revenue overseas."
He also reviewed a proposal that he and the trade ministers of
Indonesia and Singapore announced back in April. He stated
that "We announced a new U.S. trade proposal, the
``integrated tariff initiative,´´ which would not only open
duty free trade in certain information technology products,
but also eliminate burdensome processing rules. By
incorporating this initiative within our soon to be completed
free trade agreement with Singapore, we can connect Indonesia
to the global sourcing network of international business,
drawing investment and creating jobs."
He also used the occasion to promote a ten point plan named
"America's Trade Agenda". One item in the plan is to
"stimulate American and global innovation and creativity
by upgrading intellectual property rules to match
technological innovation, insisting on enforcement, and
assisting developing countries with special needs."
 Zoellick (at right) also spoke
about the broader benefits of free trade. He said that
"Free trade agreements can help establish the basic
building blocks for sustainable development, including private
property rights, competition, the rule of law, societal gains
from the transmission of ideas and technology, sectoral
reforms, and regional integration. Most importantly, free
trade is about freedom and open societies. These values are at
the heart of America's larger reform and development agenda.
The U.S. free trade agenda can help fragile democracies in
Central America and Southern Africa, and other developing
nations, just as U.S. trade policy after World War II helped
secure democracy and hope in Western Europe and Japan. From
Johannesburg to San Salvador, America is opening a new pathway
to promote prosperity, the rule of law, and liberty." |
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| NTIA Seeks Comments on
Family Law Documents Exception to E-SIGN Act |
10/1. The National
Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA)
published a notice
in the Federal Register announcing that it is seeking public
comments on the domestic and family law documents exception to
the E-SIGN Act.
The Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce
(E-SIGN) Act provides, at Section 101, for the acceptance of
electronic signatures in interstate commerce, with certain
enumerated exceptions. Section 103 of the Act provides that
"The provisions of section 101 shall not apply to ... a
State statute, regulation, or other rule of law governing
adoption, divorce, or other matters of family law". The
Act also requires the NTIA to review, evaluate and report to
Congress on each of the exceptions.
The deadline to submit written comments to the NTIA regarding
this exception is December 2, 2002. See, Federal Register,
October 1, 2002, Vol. 67, No. 190, at Pages 61599 - 61601.
This is the fourth notice in a series. On September 3, the
NTIA published a pair of notices in the Federal Register
regarding two other exceptions -- court records and hazardous
materials notices. The deadline for comments on those
exceptions is November 4. See also, NTIA
release, notice
in Federal Register, September 3, 2002, Vol. 67, No. 170, at
Pages 56277 - 56279, regarding court records, and notice
in Federal Register, September 3, 2002, Vol. 67, No. 170, at
Pages 56279 - 56281, regarding hazardous materials notices. On
September 24, the NTIA published a notice
in the Federal Register that it is seeking public comments on
the product recall notices exception. See, Federal Register,
September 24, 2002, Vol. 67, No. 185, at Pages 59828 - 59830. |
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| Congressional Hearings |
10/1. The House
Government Reform Committee's Subcommittee on Technology
and Procurement Policy held a hearing titled "Ensuring
Coordination, Reducing Redundancy: A Review of OMB's Freeze on
IT Spending at Homeland Security Agencies". See, prepared
testimony [15 pages in PDF] Joel Willemssen, Managing
Director for Information Technology Issues of the General Accounting Office
(GAO), titled "Homeland Security: OMB's Temporary
Cessation of Information Technology Funding for New
Investments".
10/1. The House
Commerce Committee's Subcommittee on Telecommunications
and the Internet held a hearing titled "Recording
Industry Marketing Practices: A Check-Up". See, prepared
testimony of witnesses: Lee
Peeler (Deputy Director of the Federal Trade Commission's
Bureau of Consumer Protection), Michael
Rich (American Academy of Pediatrics), Hilary
Rosen (Recording Industry Association of America), Gary
Severson (Wal Mart Stores), John
Marmaduke (Hastings Entertainment), and Russell
Simmons (Hip-Hop Summit Action Network).
10/1. The House
Commerce Committee's Subcommittee on Oversight and
Investigations held a hearing titled "Capacity Swaps by
Global Crossing and Qwest: Sham Transactions Designed to Boost
Revenues?" See, prepared testimony of witnesses: Lenette
Crumpler, Gary
Winnick (Chairman of Global Crossing), Jim
Gorton (former General Counsel of Global Crossing), Dan
Cohrs (CFO of Global Crossing), Joe
Perrone (EVP of Finance of Global Crossing), David
Walsh (former P/CEO of Global Crossing), Joseph
Nacchio (former Ch/CEO of Qwest), Afshin
Mohebbi (P/COO of Qwest), Peter
Hellman (Chairman of the Audit Committee of Qwest), Oren
Schaffer (VP/CFO of Qwest). |
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| 6th Circuit Rules on
"Smart Power" Trademark |
10/1. The U.S.
Court of Appeals (6thCir) issued its opinion
in Natron
v. ST, a trademark case regarding the use of
the term "smart power" in connection with
semiconductors. The Appeals Court ruled that "smart
power" is a generic term in the semiconductor industry,
and hence, affirmed a grant of summary judgment to a
semiconductor producer that had been sued for trademark
infringement.
Background. Nartron
makes electronic devices including sensors, acoustic devices,
displays, controls, harnesses and connectors, lamps, flashers
and switches. STMicroelectronics
(ST) makes semiconductors, including products that combine
power and intelligence on a single integrated circuit chip.
Nartron began using "Smart power" in 1978. It
obtained a federally registered trademark for "Smart
power" for "electrical relay assemblies in
combination with electrical logic components and parts
thereof" in 1982. Nartron broadened the identification of
its goods to "electrical power circuits in combination
with electrical logic circuits and parts thereof" in
1986.
ST has used "smart power" since 1988. So have others
in the semiconductor industry. It is used to refer to
technology that combines power transistors and control
circuitry on a single integrated circuit.
District Court. Narton filed a complaint in 1998 in U.S. District Court (EDMich)
against ST alleging wilfull infringement in violation of 15
U.S.C. §§ 1051-1127, unfair competition in violation of 15
U.S.C. § 1125(a); dilution of the distinctive and
valuable quality of the "Smart power" trademark in
violation of 15 U.S.C. § 1125(c), and unfair competition and
trademark infringement in violation of Michigan common law.
ST moved for summary judgment on Narton's trademark
infringement claim on the grounds that "smart power"
is a generic term not subject to protection, and that Narton's
suit is barred by the doctrine of laches, due to its
unreasonable delay of 11 years in filing suit. The District
Court granted summary judgment to ST on both grounds. This
appeal followed.
Appeals Court. The Court of Appeals affirmed. First, as
to genericness, the Appeals Court reasoned that "A
generic term can never function as a trademark. ... On the
other hand a term that is ``merely descriptive´´ may be used
as a trademark if it has acquired a secondary meaning. Thus,
in considering Nartron's challenge of ST's use of ``smart
power´´ as used in connection with ST's products in the
semiconductor industry ... the crucial question is whether
there is a genuine issue of material fact as to whether the
term is a generic (i.e., common descriptive) or ``merely
descriptive´´ term." (Citations and footnotes omitted.
Parentheses in original.)
The Court continued that "A generic term is one that is
commonly used as the name of a kind of goods ... Unlike a
trademark, which identifies the source of a product, a generic
term merely identifies the genus of which a particular product
is a species". It also wrote that the appropriate test is
whether the relevant public perceives the term primarily as
the designation of the article." (Citations omitted.)
The Court concluded that "ST produced overwhelming
evidence, which Nartron failed to rebut, that the term ``smart
power,´´ as used by ST and other participants in the
semiconductor industry, denotes a type of technology, not
goods associated with Nartron." (Emphasis in original.)
Second, as to laches, the Appeals Court wrote that "Nartron
failed to rebut ST's evidence demonstrating that, for eleven
years, ST had constantly and continuously used the term
``smart power,´´ and totally rejected every one of Nartron's
requests to stop using the term." In determining whether
the length of the delay was unreasonable, the Appeals Court
referred to the Michigan state law statute of limitations for
injury to personal property, which is three years. |
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| Qwest Refiles Long Distance
Application for Nine States |
9/30. Qwest Communications
refiled its Section
271 application with the Federal
Communications Commission (FCC) to provide in region
interLATA service in the states of Colorado, Idaho, Iowa,
Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Utah, Washington and Wyoming.
See, Qwest
release.
The FCC announced that comments are due by October 15, 2002,
and that reply comments are due by October 25, 2002. This is
WC Docket No. 02-314. See, FCC
release [PDF]. |
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| More News |
10/1. The Supreme Court granted certiorari in Zapata
Industries, Inc. v. W.R. Grace & Co. - Conn., No.
01-1766. See, Order
List [PDF.]
10/1. The Supreme Court denied NextWave's motion for leave to
file a supplemental appendix (and raise additional arguments)
in FCC v. NextWave. See, Order
List [PDF.] Oral argument will be heard on October 8.
10/1. Federal Reserve
Board (FRB) Governor Susan Bies
gave a speech
titled "The Challenge for Corporate Governance Posed by
Financial Innovation" at the Carnegie Endowment for
International Peace in Washington DC. She stated that
"Just as financial innovations spawned a variety of risk
management tools for businesses, they have also been
responsible, in part, for changes in the structure of equity
ownership. Along with advances in computer processing power
that have facilitated the management of ever larger
portfolios, an increasing awareness among investors of the
value of portfolio diversification has led to a dramatic
secular rise in the share of equity that is held by
institutional investors on behalf of households."
10/1. The Securities and
Exchange Commission (SEC) filed a civil complaint
in U.S. District Court
(DMass) against Arthur Goodwin, William Burke and
Christopher Whalen alleging revenue recognition fraud in
violation of Section 17(a) of the Securities Act of 1933 and
Sections 10(b), 13(a), 13(b)(2)(A) and 13(b)(5) of the
Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Exchange Act Rules 10b-5,
12b-20, 13a-13 and 13b2-1. The complaint states that the three
were officers of Interspeed, Inc., a now defunct Massachusetts
Internet equipment provider. See also, SEC
release.
9/19. Michael
Powell, Chairman of the Federal
Communications Commission (FCC) gave a speech
[PDF] to the National Summit on Emerging Tribal Economies in
Phoenix, Arizona. He discussed, among other topics,
telecommunications in Indian Country, and the benefits of
broadband. He stated that " With a sufficient technology
infrastructure, Indian Country can take advantage of many of
the economic realities of rural life to become competitive in
any number of technology industries. Independent professional
workers working from reservations via broadband facilities
could constitute an attractive workforce for both tribal and
non-tribal companies. Broadband infrastructure deployed to
support tribal entrepreneurs will allow them to gain access to
business information once reserved only to the largest
multinational corporations." |
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| About Tech Law Journal |
Tech Law Journal publishes a free access web site and
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information page.
Contact: 202-364-8882; E-mail.
P.O. Box 4851, Washington DC, 20008.
Privacy
Policy
Notices
& Disclaimers
Copyright 1998 - 2002 David Carney, dba Tech Law Journal. All
rights reserved. |
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| Wednesday, October 2 |
The House will meet at 10:00 AM for legislative business.
The agenda includes several non tech related matters. See, Whip
Notice.
7:30 AM. Rep.
Sherwood Boehlert (R-NY) and Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR) will
speak at an event titled "Cybersecurity Initiatives:
Challenges for Agencies and Opportunities for Businesses",
hosted by the TechNews.com Breakfast Series. Location: The
Ritz Carlton, 1700 Tysons Blvd., McLean, VA.
8:00 AM. NueStar will
host a press conference and breakfast titled ".USe-Gov
Breakfast". For more information, contact Denise Henning
at 571 434-5762. Location: Zenger Room, National Press Club, 529 14th
St. NW, 13th Floor.
10:00 AM. The Senate
Judiciary Committee will hold a hearing titled
"Stopping Child Pormography: Protecting our Children and
the Constitution". See, notice.
Location: Room 226, Dirksen Building.
11:00 AM. The Consumers
Union (CU), Consumer
Federation of America (CFA), and National Association of State
Utility Consumer Advocates (NASUCA) will host a press
briefing on "possible actions by the Senate and the FCC
that have the potential of raising consumer phone rates and
eliminating competition in telecommunications". The
speakers will be Gene Kimmelman (CU) and Mark Cooper
(CFA), and Charles Acquard (NASUCA). Press contact: David
Butler (CU) 202 462-6262. Location: Room SC-4, Capitol
Building.
1:30 - 3:30 PM. The FCC's WRC-03
Advisory Committee Informal Working Group 7: Regulatory Issues
and Future Agendas will meet. Location: Boeing Company,
Arlington, VA. |
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| Thursday, October 3 |
The House will meet at 10:00 AM for legislative business.
The agenda includes several non tech related matters. See, Whip
Notice.
9:00 AM. Rep.
Sherwood Boehlert (R-NY) will give a speech to the
National Research Council Board on Science, Technology and
Economic Policy (STEP) Conference titled "Public Private
Partnerships: Partnering Against Terrorism". He will
focus on cybersecurity. Location: National Academies
Building, 2100 C Street, NW.
10:00 AM - 12:00 NOON. The AEI Brookings Joint Center will
host an event titled "High Stakes Antitrust: The
Clinton Legacy". Location: Stein Room, Brookings
Institution, 1775 Massachusetts Ave., NW.
10:00 AM. The Senate
Judiciary Committee will hold a business meeting. See, notice.
Press contact: Blythe McCormick at 202 224-9437. Location:
Room 226, Dirksen Building.
11:00 AM. Rep. Rick
Boucher (D-VA) and Rep. John Doolittle
(R-CA) will hold a press conference to announce the
"introduction of legislation to reaffirm fair use rights
in the digital era". Press contact: Alyssa Mastromonaco
at 202 225-3861. Location: Room 2218, Rayburn Building.
1:00 - 3:00 PM. The FCC's Office
of Engineering and Technology will host a tutorial titled
"Free Space Optical Communications". FSO is
the practice of transmitting information, or data by means of
modulated beams of light through the atmosphere, rather than
through fiber optical cables. John Schuster, CTO of Terabeam Corporation, will
speak. See, notice
[PDF]. Location: FCC, Commission Meeting Room (TW-C305), 445
12th Street, SW.
The George Mason University (GMU) Tech Center and the
Federalist Society will host a one day conference on cyber
crime. Registration is free, except for persons seeking
CLE credit, who must pay $50. A continental breakfast and
buffet lunch will be provided. See, notice.
Location: GMU School of Law, 3301 Fairfax Drive, Arlington,
VA. |
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| Friday, October 4 |
Target adjournment date for the House and the Senate.
The House will meet at 9:00 AM for legislative business. The
agenda includes several non tech related matters. See, Whip
Notice.
9:30 AM. The U.S.
Court of Appeals (DCCir) will hear oral argument in Seven
Company Services, Inc. v. FCC, No. 01-1326. This is a
petition for review of a final order of the FCC regarding 47
U.S.C. § 224 (Section 703 of the 1996 Act) and rates,
terms and conditions of access for attachments by cable
operators and telecommunications carriers to utility poles,
ducts, conduits and rights of way. See, FCC order [78 pages in
PDF in three parts: 1
| 2
| 3]
titled "Consolidated Partial Order on
Reconsideration", released on May 25, 2001. This in the
proceedings titled "In the Matter of the Commission's
Rules and Policies Concerning Pole Attachments" (CS
Docket No. 97-98), and "In the Matter of the
Implementation of Section 703(e) of the Telecommunications Act
of 1996" (CS Docket No. 97-151). Judges Edwards, Rogers
and Garland will preside. Location: 333 Constitution Ave., NW.
9:30 - 10:45 AM. Paul Gallant (Chair of the FCC's Media
Ownership Working Group) will participate on a panel titled,
"Media Ownership and the Public Interest: The Role of the
FCC" at a Consumer
Federation of America's conference on energy and
communications regulation. Location: Radisson Barcelo Hotel.
12:15 PM. The FCBA's
Wireless Committee will host a luncheon titled "Wireless
Industry Consolidation: Is It Needed? Will It Happen?"
The scheduled speakers are Chris Murphy (Consumers Union), Rudy
Baca (Precursor Group),
and Lauren Patrich (FCC Commercial Wireless Division). The
price to attend is $15. RSVP to wendy @fcba.org.
Registrations and cancellations due by 5:00 PM on October 1.
Location: Sidley Austin, 1501
K Street, NW, Conference Room 6E. |
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| Monday, October 7 |
The Supreme Court will return from its recess, which it
began on June 28, 2002.
12:00 NOON. The FCBA's
Engineering and Technical Practice Committee will hold a brown
bag lunch to discuss committee planning and priorities for the
rest of the year. Location: Paul Hastings, 1299 Pennsylvania
Ave., NW, 10th floor.
2:00 - 4:00 PM. The FCC will hold
an en banc hearing on "the current state of the
telecommunications sector and to discuss steps needed to
restore its financial health". See, notice
[PDF]. Location: FCC, Commission Meeting Room (TW-C305), 445
12th St., SW.
Extended deadline for the U.S.
International Trade Commission (USITC) to complete its
investigation titled "Certain Integrated Circuits,
Processes for Making Same, and Products Containing Same".
This is the USITC's Investigation No. 337-TA-450. See, notice
in the Federal Register. |
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| Tuesday, October 8 |
The Supreme
Court will hear oral argument in FCC v. Nextwave, Case No.
01-653, and Arctic Slope Corp. v. Nextwave, Case No. 01-657.
Day one of a three day public workshop hosted by the FTC
to "explore how certain state regulations and private
business practices may be having significantly anticompetitive
effects on e-commerce". See, FTC release.
Location: FTC, 600 Pennsylvania Ave., NW.
12:15 PM. The FCBA's
Professional Responsibility Committee will hold a brown bag
lunch to discuss the scheduling of committee events and
activities for the upcoming year. For More Information: Frank
Montero. No RSVP is required. Location: Arnold &
Porter, 555 12th Street, NW.
12:30 PM. Tom Donahue, P/CEO of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce,
will give a luncheon address. Location: National Press Club,
Ballroom, 529 14th St. NW, 13th Floor.
10:00 AM. The Copyright
Office (CO) will hold a status conference regarding data
format and delivery for record keeping requirements to be
established by the CO for the Section 112
and 114
statutory licenses. See, notice
[PDF]. |
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