10/28. The U.S. Court of Appeals (DCCir) issued its opinion [20 pages in PDF] in Consumer Electronics Association v. FCC, upholding the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) order mandating that most TV sets be built with digital TV tuners.

The FCC order mandates technology standards, and sets deadlines for compliance with those standards, for all but the smallest TV sets. The order requires that by 2007 all TV sets capable of receiving over the air signals with screen sizes larger than thirteen inches and all TV receiving equipment, such as videocassette recorders (VCRs) and digital versatile disk (DVD) players and recorders, include digital television (DTV) reception capability.

This order is the Second Report and Order and Second Memorandum Opinion and Order [49 pages in PDF] in Media Bureau Docket No. 00-39. This is FCC No. 02-230. See also, stories titled "FCC Mandates DTV Standards and Deadlines" and "CEA Will Appeal FCC DTV Order" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 488, August 9, 2002.

Equipment makers have been free to make TV sets with DTV tuners, and consumers have had the choice of which type to buy, but very few consumers have chosen TV sets with DTV tuners. Moreover, most households have cable or DBS service, and thus do not stand to benefit from DTV tuners for over the air signals. Also, consumers who use a TV for prerecorded material do not benefit from having a DTV tuner

The FCC order eliminates this consumer choice, and raises the price of equipment for consumers, whether or not they will benefit from the DTV tuner. Predictably, the National Broadcasters Association (NAB), which will benefit from this order, while incurring none of the costs, supported the order. In contrast, the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA), which will have to make more expensive products, opposed it.

The CEA argued to the FCC in its rulemaking proceeding, and before the Court of Appeals, that the FCC exceeded its statutory authority, and that it acted in an arbitrary and capricious manner.

The FCC argued that it has statutory authority under the 1962 All Channel Receiver Act (ACRA), which is codified at 47 U.S.C. § 303. This section provides, in part, that "the Commission from time to time, as public convenience, interest, or necessity requires, shall ... (s) Have authority to require that apparatus designed to receive television pictures broadcast simultaneously with sound be capable of adequately receiving all frequencies allocated by the Commission to television broadcasting when such apparatus is shipped in interstate commerce, or is imported from any foreign country into the United States, for sale or resale to the public".

The CEA also argued that the FCC's order was arbitrary and capricious under the Administrative Procedure Act. The Court summarized its arguments as follows: "the Order the FCC: (1) addressed a problem that does not exist; (2) chose an irrational means to ensure that households can access DTV; and (3) failed to assess reasonably the costs of its mandate to consumers."

The Court of Appeals, with Judges Roberts, Williams and Ginsburg presiding, held that the FCC order is neither beyond the statutory authority of the FCC, nor arbitrary and capricious. It denied the petition for review.

The Court reviewed the history of analog and digital TV, and the efforts of the Congress and the FCC to promote a conversion to DTV.

The Court wrote that when the Congress enacted the ACRA it had in mind TV sets that could not receive analog UHF signals. However, it did not intend that the statute be limited to the analog context. Hence, the Court, applying Chevron analysis, concluded that the FCC's interpretation of the ACRA is permissible.

The Court also rejected all of the CEA's arguments regarding arbitrary and capricious conduct.

Finally, the Court held that "We hold that a petition for review filed after public notice, but still on the same day, is not premature under 28 U.S.C. § 2344." That is, attorneys may rush to their favorite courthouses to file their petitions for review on the same day that notice of the final order is published in the Federal Register.

FCC Chairman Michael Powell stated in a release [PDF] that "We're on track to have most television sets digital-ready by 2007. This will ensure that consumers are able to enjoy high-quality digital broadcast programming without the hassle and expense of hooking up a separate set-top box. We're pleased that the court has upheld a key component of our digital television transition plan."

NAB P/CEO Edward Fritts stated in a release that the opinion of the Court is "a milestone towards completing the DTV transition."

CEA CEO Gary Shapiro stated in a release that "We obviously are disappointed by the DC Circuit Court of Appeals ruling, which we are still studying. We will be reviewing the full opinion and consulting with our member companies, but of course will be compliant with any final court order."

"Everyone involved in the analog to DTV transition is trying his utmost to accomplish shared objectives. We certainly reached a critical tipping point a few weeks ago with the FCC's adoption of the historic cable plug-and-play agreement. From here, the Commission needs to be vigilant in ensuring that this well-crafted plug-and-play agreement is dutifully implemented and enforced with the interests of the American consumer top of mind", said Shapiro.

There is also legislation pending in Congress that pertains to the FCC's order. On January 28, 2003, Rep. James Sensenbrenner (R-WI) and others introduced HR 426, the TV Consumer Choice Act of 2003. See, story titled "Representatives Introduce Bill to Block FCC Digital TV Tuner Mandates" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 596, February 3, 2003.

This bill provides that "Neither section 303(s) of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 303(s)) nor any other provision of such Act shall be construed to authorize the Federal Communications Commission to require, or prescribe any schedule for the implementation of, digital television reception capability in television broadcast reception equipment."

This bill further provides that "The requirements and schedule established by the Commission for the implementation of digital television reception capability in television broadcast reception equipment as contained in section 15.117(i) of the Commission's regulations (47 CFR 15.117(i)) as modified in FCC 02-230 (August 8, 2002), shall not be effective except as expressly hereafter provided by Act of Congress."

Rep. Sensenbrenner is the Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee. But, HR 426 was referred to the House Commerce Committee, and its Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet. Rep. Chris Cox (R-CA) is a member of the Subcommittee and a cosponsor of the bill. However, no action has been taken on the bill.

This case is Consumer Electronics Association v. FCC and USA, National Association of Broadcasters and Association for Maximum Service Television, intervenors, U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, No. 02-1312, a petition for review of a final order of the FCC.

10/28. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) released a report titled "To Promote Innovation: The Proper Balance of Competition and Patent Law and Policy". See, Executive Summary [18 pages in PDF] and Report [2.28 MB in PDF].

FTC Chairman Timothy Muris (at right) and Susan DeSanti, the FTC's Deputy General Counsel for Policy Studies, also conducted a media roundtable to discuss the report on October 28. They argued that while patent law can stimulate innovation, so can competition, and that competition law and patent law are not inherently in conflict. They stated that the FTC seeks a proper balance between patent and copyright law.

They continued that to attain this balance, the patent system needs to reduce the number of questionable patents, and increase the likelihood that valid patents are issued and upheld. The report of the FTC offers six recommendations for improving patent quality (including post grant administrative reviews of patents at the PTO, using a preponderance of the evidence standard in validity challenges, and providing adequate funding to the PTO). They added that anti-competitive uses of the patent system must also be addressed (including by requiring publication of all patent applications 18 months after filing, and addressing submarine patents). The report contains three recommendations on this matter.

The report offers ten recommendations:

1. "Enact Legislation to Create a New Administrative Procedure to Allow Post-Grant Review of and Opposition to Patents"

2. "Enact Legislation to Specify that Challenges to the Validity of a Patent Are To Be Determined Based on a ``Preponderance of the Evidence´´"

3. "Tighten Certain Legal Standards Used to Evaluate Whether A Patent Is ``Obvious´´"

4. "Provide Adequate Funding for the PTO"

5. "Modify Certain PTO Rules and Implement Portions of the PTO's 21st Century Strategic Plan"

6. "Consider Possible Harm to Competition -- Along with Other Possible Benefits and Costs -- Before Extending the Scope of Patentable Subject Matter"

7. "Enact Legislation to Require Publication of All Patent Applications 18 Months After Filing"

8. "Enact Legislation to Create Intervening or Prior User Rights to Protect Parties from Infringement Allegations That Rely on Certain Patent Claims First Introduced in a Continuing or Other Similar Application"

9. "Enact Legislation to Require, As a Predicate for Liability for Willful Infringement, Either Actual, Written Notice of Infringement from the Patentee, or Deliberate Copying of the Patentee's Invention, Knowing It to Be Patented"

10. "Expand Consideration of Economic Learning and Competition Policy Concerns in Patent Law Decisionmaking"

In 2002 the FTC and the Department of Justice's (DOJ) Antitrust Division jointly held 22 days of hearings under the title of "Competition and Intellectual Property Law and Policy in the Knowledge-Based Economy". The FTC has collected most of the prepared testimony of the speakers in a web site devoted to this topic. However, the present report was prepared only by the FTC.

Muris stated at a media roundtable on October 28 that this is the first of two reports. This just released report offers recommendations for improving the quality of patents. The second report, which will be issued jointly by the DOJ and the FTC, will make recommendations regarding antitrust law.

Muris said "we haven't set a date for the report". He added that "it's months, not weeks" away. He also said that it will address patent, but not copyright, law.

The present report contains no recommendations regarding business method patents. Although, the report notes that the FTC received comments on this subject. The report states that in recent years the scope of patentable subject matter has been expanded, not only to include business methods, but also living organisms and software. It recommends that in the future, before further expanding the scope of patentable subject matter, the possible harm to competition should be taken into consideration.

The recommendation as to adequate funding for the USPTO is vague. The FTC takes no position on what the level of funding should be, or whether the appropriations practice of diverting user fees collected by the USPTO should be terminated. The report simply makes the point that the USPTO needs adequate funding to improve patent quality. The FTC report stresses patent quality, rather than pendancy.

Muris stated that antitrust policy has in the past been hostile to patent protection, citing the FTC's nine no no's in the 1970s. However, he stated that this changed in 1981 when former Assistant Attorney General William Baxter was appointed to run the DOJ's Antitrust Division. He added that the historical hostility "is gone".

DeSanti also stated that there is nothing in the USPTO's 21st Century Strategic plan that contradicts anything in this FTC report.

Muris will give a luncheon address on Thursday, October 30, at a convention of the American Intellectual Property Law Association (AIPLA), at 12:30 - 2:00 PM. The title of his address will be "Intersection of Intellectual Property Law and Competition". This will be at the Grand Hyatt Washington, at 1000 H Street. See, convention agenda [44 pages in PDF].

Then, on Friday, October 31 at 12:15 - 1:45 PM, Rep. Lamar Smith (R-TX), the Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee's Courts, the Internet, and Intellectual Property Subcommittee will give a luncheon address at the AIPLA convention. This Subcommittee has jurisdiction over most of the legislative proposals contained in the FTC's report.

10/28. Secretary of Commerce Donald Evans gave a speech in Beijing, China to the American Chamber of Commerce in which he called upon China to move to a market based economy, and afford greater intellectual property protections.

Evans (at right) said that "this trading relationship needs work -- a lot of work. A glance at the export tables makes clear that the United States is holding up our end of the bargain; the U.S. market is open to Chinese products. But the U.S. market will not remain open forever under unfair terms."

He continued that "China's leaders have promised to move to a market-based economy but the pace of change is a problem. China is moving far too slowly in its transition to an open, market-based economy. Time is running out. We need to see results. There is friction and the slow pace of reform in the Chinese market is the source of the friction."

He added that "We have been patient, but our patience is wearing thin. The American market will not remain open to Chinese exports indefinitely, if the Chinese market is not equally opened to U.S. companies and American workers."

Then he talked about intellectual property. He said that "Protecting intellectual property rights is another area where reform is urgently needed. We know that China's government understands the importance of IPR protections but the problems remain."

He said that "The Business Software Alliance estimates that software piracy rates in China exceed 90 percent. It is reasonable to assume that the vast majority of the Chinese government is operating with pirated software. ($2 billion per year). There is still a flood of counterfeit products of all types being produced and exported and consumed in China." (Parentheses in original.) See, BSA's 2003 Global Software Piracy Study [PDF].

He also asserted that "Effective protection requires criminal penalties for stolen intellectual property theft and fines large enough to be a deterrent rather than a business expense."

10/28. Sen. Ernest Hollings (D-SC) and Sen. Ted Stevens (R-AK) wrote a letter [PDF] to Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Michael Powell regarding the FCC's broadcast flag proceeding.

They wrote to urge the FCC "to implement a ``broadcast flag´´ solution that will protect digital content delivered via the broadcast platform. In our view, adoption of this technological tool will significantly advance the digital television transition and will help to place free, off-air broadcasters on a level playing field with cable and satellite platforms in their ability to protect high-value, digital content from illegal Internet redistribution."

Sen. Hollings (at right) and Sen. Stevens continued that "The ``broadcast flag´´ solution before the Commission is the result of lengthy, multi-industry negotiations organized by the Broadcast Protection Discussion Group (BPDG) that began in November 2001 between the motion picture, consumer electronics, and information technologies industries. Its aim was to develop a technological solution that would permit consumers to make copies of digital content for use on properly equipped recording devices while preventing the illegal redistribution of those copies. These talks culminated in a final report issued by the BPDG Co-Chairs in June 2002 supporting swift adoption of this technology."

The also wrote that "While the implementation of the ``broadcast flag´´ will not obviate the need for further work to address digital piracy risks resulting from the digital conversion of unprotected analog content (the so-called ``analog hole´´ problem), its adoption will mark a significant step forward in our efforts to improve protections for digital over-the-air broadcast programming while preserving the consumer's ability to make copies of such programs for time-shifting or other lawful purposes. Moreover, we believe this step can be taken consistent with the Commission's obligation to regulate in the public interest while honoring the legitimate rights of consumers to view and record digital content."

Sen. Hollings is the ranking Democrat on the Senate Commerce Committee. He is retiring at the end of the 108th Congress. Sen. Stevens is a senior Republican on the Committee, and the Chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee.

The FCC adopted its Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) [15 pages in PDF] in its proceeding titled "In the Matter of Digital Broadcast Copy Protection" on August 8, 2002. This is MB Docket No. 02-230.

The FCC stated in its report and order containing digital plug and play cable compatibility rules (announced on September 10, 2003) that the FCC "will address Digital Broadcast Copy Protection issues in the near future." See, story titled "FCC States That It Will Act On Broadcast Flag" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 737, September 11, 2003.

The House will meet at 10:00 AM for legislative business. See, Republican Whip Notice.

10:00 AM - 5:30 PM. Day one of a two day event hosted by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) titled "E911 Coordination Initiative". The event will address legal, regulatory, technical, and financial issues that arise in the implementation of wireless enhanced 911 services. See, letter [PDF] from Chairman Powell, and FCC release [PDF]. The event will be webcast. Location: FCC, Commission Meeting Room, 445 12th St., SW.

10:00 AM - 12:00 NOON. The Department of State's (DOS) Advisory Committee on International Communications and Information Policy (ACICIP) will meet. Ambassador David Gross, U.S. Coordinator for International Communications and Information Policy, is scheduled to attend. The agenda includes "communications policy issues, future directions of the Committee's work, discussion regarding countries of particular interest to the ACICIP, preparations for the World Summit on the Information Society, and consultation regarding the most important emerging technologies". See, notice in the Federal Register, October 10, 2003, Vol. 68, No. 197, at Page 58744. Location: Room 1107, Harry S. Truman Building, 2201 C Street, NW.

12:00 NOON. The Federal Communications Bar Association's (FCBA) Online Communications Practice Committee will host a brown bag lunch on wireline broadband issues. The speaker will be Jessica Rosenworcel, Legal Advisor to FCC Commissioner Michael Copps. RSVP to heidi@fcba.org. Location: Cole Raywid & Braverman, 1919 Pennsylvania Ave., NW, Suite 200.

12:15 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association's (FCBA) Young Lawyers Committee will host a brown bag lunch titled "Current Issues in Broadband Deployment". The speakers will include Kyle Dixon, Deputy Media Bureau Chief and Special Counsel to the Chairman on Broadband Policy. Location: Wilkinson Barker & Knauer, 2300 N Street, NW, Suite 700.

12:30 - 4:30 PM. The Executive Office of the President's (EOP) Office of Science and Technology Policy's (OSTP) National Science and Technology Council's (NSTC) Critical Infrastructure Subcommittee will hold a meeting. This meeting is closed to the public. For more information, contact John Hoyt. Location: White House Conference Center, Eisenhower Room, 726 Jackson Place, NW.

2:00 PM. The Senate Judiciary Committee will hold a hearing on the nominations of James Comey to be Deputy Attorney General. See, notice. Press contact: Margarita Tapia (Hatch) at 202 224-5225 or David Carle (Leahy) at 202 224-4242. Location: Room 226, Dirksen Building.

The House will meet at 10:00 AM for legislative business. See, Republican Whip Notice.

Day one of a three day convention of the American Intellectual Property Law Association (AIPLA). At 12:30 - 2:00 PM, Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chairman Timothy Muris will give a luncheon address titled "Intersection of Intellectual Property Law and Competition". See, convention agenda [44 pages in PDF] Location: Grand Hyatt Washington, 1000 H Street.

8:30 AM. The Republican Technology Council (no web site) will host a panel discussion titled "SPAM: A Public Policy Response". The speakers will include Sen. Conrad Burns (R-MT) and Rep. Heather Wilson (R-NM). To registration, contact David Miller at 202 467-0045 or Miller@fedgovlink.com. Location: Capitol Hill Club, 300 First St., SE.

POSTPONED. 8:30 AM - 3:30 PM. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce will host a conference titled "21st Century Criminal Networks: Intellectual Property Theft and Counterfeiting". See, notice. Location: U.S. Chamber of Commerce, 1615 H. Street, NW.

9:00 AM - 12:00 NOON. The American Enterprise Institute (AEI) will host a pair of panel discussions titled "Class Action Reform: The Why and the Who". The speakers will be Richard Epstein (University of Chicago), David Rosenberg (Harvard), Judge Lee Rosenthal, Todd Zywicki (FTC), John Beisner (O'Melveny & Myers), Mark Perry (Gibson Dunn & Crutcher). See, AEI notice. Press contact: Veronique Rodman at 202 862-4871 or vrodman@aei.org. Location: AEI, Twelfth floor, 1150 17th St., NW.

9:15 AM - 5:15 PM. Day two of a two day event hosted by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) titled "E911 Coordination Initiative". The event will address legal, regulatory, technical, and financial issues that arise in the implementation of wireless enhanced 911 services. See, letter [PDF] from Chairman Powell, and FCC release [PDF]. The event will be webcast. Location: FCC, Commission Meeting Room, 445 12th St., SW.

10:00 AM. The Senate Commerce Committee will hold a hearing on the "preservation and advancement of universal service, including the impact of competition and the emergence of new technologies and services". Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) will preside. Michael Powell, Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, will testify. The hearing will be webcast. See, notice. Press contact: Rebecca Hanks (McCain) at 202 224-2670 or Andy Davis (Hollings) at 202 224-6654. Location: Room 253, Russell Building.

10:00 AM. The Senate Judiciary Committee will hold an executive business meeting. See, notice. Press contact: Margarita Tapia (Hatch) at 202 224-5225 or David Carle (Leahy) at 202 224-4242. Location: Room 226, Dirksen Building.

10:00 AM. The House Commerce Committee's Subcommittee on on Commerce, Trade, and Consumer Protection will hold a hearing titled "E-Commerce: The Case of Online Wine Sales and Direct Shipment". See, notice. Press contact: Ken Johnson or Jon Tripp at 202 225-5735. Location: Room 2123, Rayburn Building.

12:00 NOON - 2:00 PM. The House Science Committee's Subcommittee on Research will hold a hearing titled "Implementation of the Math Science Partnership Program: Views from the Field". Committee contacts: Kara Haas (Republican) and Jim Wilson (Democrat). Location: Room 2325, Rayburn Building.

1:30 - 3:30 PM. The American Enterprise Institute (AEI) will host a panel discussion titled "The Patriot Act and Civil Liberties: Too Far or Not Far Enough?" The speakers will be Bob Barr (American Conservative Union), Alice Fisher (Latham & Watkins), and John Yoo (AEI). See, notice. Press contact: Veronique Rodman at 202 862-4871 or vrodman@aei.org. Location: Twelfth floor, 1150 17th St., NW.

2:00 PM. The House Ways and Means Committee will hold a hearing titled "United States - China Economic Relations and China's Role in the Global Economy". See, notice. Location: Room 1100, Longworth Building.

3:00 PM. The House Select Homeland Security Committee's Subcommittee for Cybersecurity, Science, and Research and Development will hold a hearing. Assistant Secretary of Homeland Security (Plans, Programs and Budgets) Parney Albright will testify. See, notice. Press contact: Vince Sollitto or Liz Tobias at 202 226-9600. Location: Room 210, Cannon Building.

The Cato Institute will host a conference titled "Telecom and Broadband Policy: After the Market Meltdown".

The House will meet at 9:00 AM for legislative business. See, Republican Whip Notice.

Day two of a three day convention of the American Intellectual Property Law Association (AIPLA). At 12:15 - 1:45 PM, Rep. Lamar Smith (R-TX), Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee's Courts, the Internet, and Intellectual Property Subcommittee will give a luncheon address. See, convention agenda [44 pages in PDF] Location: Grand Hyatt Washington, 1000 H Street.

9:00 AM. The House Ways and Means Committee will continue its hearing titled "United States -- China Economic Relations and China's Role in the Global Economy". See, notice. Location: Room 1100, Longworth Building.

9:00 - 11:00 AM. The Progressive Policy Institute (PPI) will release a paper titled "Confronting Digital Piracy: Intellectual Property Protection in the Digital Era" and host a panel discussion. The speakers will be Robert Atkinson (PPI), Shane Ham (PPI), and Gigi Sohn (Public Knowledge). See, notice. Location: PPI, 600 Pennsylvania Ave., SE, Suite 400.

Deadline for the telemarketers to submit their brief to the U.S. Court of Appeals (10thCir) in FTC v. Mainstream Marketing Service, No. 03-1429. This is the telemarketers' constitutional challenge to the FTC's do not call registry. See, October 8, 2003 order [24 pages in PDF] staying the District Court's opinion, and setting an expedited schedule.

The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office's (USPTO) new rules implementing the Madrid Protocol Implementation Act take effect. On September 26, 2003, the USPTO published a notice in the Federal Register announcing and summarizing new regulations implementing the Act of 2002, and amendments to existing regulations both to implement the Act and to otherwise clarify and improve the procedures for processing trademark applications and conducting proceedings before the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board. See, Federal Register: September 26, 2003, Vol. 68, No. 187, at Pages 55747 - 55781.

Deadline to submit comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) regarding its Fourth Notice of Proposed Rulemaking [49 pages in PDF] in which it proposes to make spectrum available to federal users that will be displaced from the 1710-1850 MHz band to make it available for advanced wireless services. See, notice in the Federal Register September 2, 2003, Vol. 68, No. 169, at Pages 52156 - 52168. See, also stories titled "FCC Releases NPRM Regarding Allocating Spectrum to DOD to Replace Spectrum Allocated for 3G Services" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 694, July 9, 2003, and "FCC Sets Deadlines for Comments Regarding Spectrum Reallocations Relating to 3G Services" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 731, September 3, 2003. This is ET Docket No. 00-258 and WT Docket No. 02-8.

Deadline to submit reply comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) regarding the portion of the FCC's triennial review order [576 pages in PDF] that contains a notice of proposed rulemaking [NPRM] regarding modifications to the FCC's rules implementing 47 U.S.C. § 252(i), which requires local exchange carriers (LECs) to make available to other telecommunications carriers interconnection agreements approved under Section 252. See, notice in the Federal Register, September 2, 2003, Vol. 68, No. 169, at Pages 52307 - 52312, and September 2 FCC release [3 pages in PDF]. The Federal Register notice states that the reply comment deadline is October 23. However, the FCC release states that this was in error.

9:30 AM. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) host an event titled "Rural Wireless Internet Service Provider (WISP) Showcase and Workshop". For more information, contact Robert Pepper (Chief, Policy Development) at Robert.Pepper@fcc.gov or 202 418-2030. See, agenda [PDF]. Location: FCC, Commission Meeting Room, 445 12th Street, SW. This event was previously scheduled for September 18, but was postponed because of the weather.

9:30 AM. The U.S. Court of Appeals (DCCir) will hear oral argument in U.S. v. Microsoft and State of New York v. Microsoft, Nos. 03-5030 and 02-7155. This will be an en banc argument. Location: Courtroom 20, 333 Constitution Ave. NW.

3:00 PM. The House Ways and Means Committee will hold a hearing titled "IRS Efforts to Modernize its Computer Systems". See, notice. Location: Room 1100, Longworth Building.

10/27. MCI stated in a release that it has "retained" former Sen. Warren Rudman (R-NH) as a senior advisor to Ch/CEO Michael Capellas and its Board of Directors. MCI added that "Rudman will focus his attention on ethics and corporate governance, assisting the company in completing and implementing its expanded corporate governance initiatives."

10/27. The House Ways and Means Committee approved HR 2896, the "American Jobs Creation Act of 2003" by a vote of 24-15. This bill would, among other things, replace the Foreign Sales Corporation (FSC) and Extraterritorial Income (ETI) tax regimes that the World Trade Organization (WTO) held to be illegal export subsidies. See, Committee release.

10/27. BellSouth announced in a release that its wholly owned subsidiary, BellSouth Intellectual Property Marketing Corporation (BIPMARK), and Glenayre Technologies "have entered into a license and settlement agreement to resolve a patent infringement lawsuit filed in January by BellSouth against Glenayre. As part of the settlement, Glenayre has taken a non-exclusive patent license from BIPMARK for a specific one-number technology involving sequential routing to locate a user. Although Glenayre agreed to the terms of the license, it does not acknowledge either infringement or validity of the patent. The license includes royalties for past and future sales, but detailed financial terms were not disclosed." On January 29, 2003, BellSouth filed a complaint in U.S. District Court (NDGa) against Glenayre and Call Sciences alleging infringement of its U.S. Patent No. 5,764,747 titled "Personal Number Communication System".

10/28. Sen. Ernest Hollings (D-SC), Sen. John McCain (R-AZ), Sen. Conrad Burns (R-MT), Sen. Ted Stevens (R-AK), Sen. Byron Dorgan (D-ND), Sen. Olympia Snowe (R-ME) and Sen. Daniel Inouye (D-HI) wrote a letter [PDF] to Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Michael Powell regarding wireless local number portability. The urged the FCC to "to hold fast to the current November 24,2003 deadline for the implementation of wireless local number portability for consumers in the top 100 metropolitan statistical areas." But, they continued, "We have a growing concern, however, regarding the absence of clear and comprehensive rules that would allow consumers to port telephone numbers between wireline and wireless carriers." They also stated that "We strongly urge the Commission to redouble its efforts to resolve outstanding wireline-wireless porting issues as quickly as possible."