6/7. The House Judiciary Committee's (HJC) Subcommittee on Courts, the Internet, and Intellectual Property (CIIP) may meet to mark up a discussion draft the "Section 115 Reform Act (SIRA) of 2006" as early as Thursday afternoon, June 8, 2006

The event is not yet listed in the calendar of the HJC web site. A spokesman for the HJC told TLJ that nothing is on the calendar. However, a member of Rep. Lamar Smith's (R-TX) staff told TLJ that the bill may be marked up as early as Thursday afternoon.

Rep. Smith, the Chairman of the Subcommittee on CIIP, has not has yet introduced a bill. However, there have been several discussion drafts. See, June 7, 2006, version [52 pages in PDF] of this draft.

17 U.S.C. § 115, which is titled "Scope of exclusive rights in nondramatic musical works: Compulsory license for making and distributing phonorecords", covers the licensing of the reproduction and distribution rights for nondramatic musical works. There is a wide degree of consensus that Section 115 is obsolete in addressing many issues raised by new technologies and services, and in need of reform. However, there is much dispute regarding how to revise it.

The discussion draft takes a blanket licensing approach to the digital reproduction and distribution of musical works.

The discussion draft also provides for a collective licensing structure for online music services through the use of designated agents. It also addresses royalty rates.

The Subcommittee on CIIP held a hearing on May 16, 2006, on an earlier version of the discussion draft. See, prepared testimony [PDF] of David Israelite (P/CEO of the National Music Publishers' Association), prepared testimony of Jonathan Potter (Executive Director of the Digital Media Association), prepared testimony [PDF] of Rick Carnes (President of the Songwriter's Guild), and prepared testimony of Cary Sherman (General Counsel of the Recording Industry Association of America).

The DiMA represents companies that provide internet radio, music download and music subscription services, including AOL Music, Yahoo! Music, MSN Music, RealNetworks, the iTunes Music Store, MTV, and Napster. The DiMA's Potter praised the discussion draft. The NMPA's Israelite also praised the discussion draft.

However, the RIAA's Sherman criticized the draft bill. First, he wrote that "New technologies have presented so many opportunities: not just online music services, but also ringtones; DVDs, DualDiscs, and other kinds of multisession discs; locked content; music videos; and hybrid offerings that combine physical and online elements – including kiosks and bundled offerings. Because Section 115 is a relic of a different time, every one of these has presented new mechanical licensing challenges, and our ability to resolve them and get products into the market is falling behind."

Then, he complained that the bill "removes record companies from the digital music value chain", "nullifies license agreements negotiated by record companies", prohibits "licensing of record company online activities", and "requires that record companies pay administrative costs as both licensors and licensees".

In addition, the Copyright Office prepared a statement for the May 16 hearing. It wrote that the discussion draft of the SIRA "appears to be a productive step forward in modernizing section 115 of the Copyright Act for the digital age".

It also wrote that "The SIRA appropriately focuses on those issues absolutely necessary to establish a functional licensing structure to enable legitimate music services to provide, and the consuming public to enjoy, vast quantities and varieties of music through the digital delivery of music online. It is also appropriate that the SIRA leaves undisturbed the structure established by section 115 for the reproduction and distribution of nondramatic musical works in physical formats (e.g., compact discs, vinyl records and cassette tapes), a structure that has worked well for that marketplace. (Parentheses in original. Footnote omitted.)

A collection of companies and groups sent a letter to Rep. Smith and Rep. Howard Berman (D-CA) on June 6, 2006, expressing opposition to the bill. They wrote that the draft bill "would constitute an extraordinary expansion of copyright rights that would harm technology, innovation, and consumers" and "threaten the development of new, innovative technologies and services that deliver all forms of content".

They continued that "This bill apparently reflects a privately negotiated outcome between two interest groups, and does not reflect such a consensus." (The bill reflects agreement between the DiMA and NMPA.) The letter added that "Any change as major as SIRA merits careful consideration and input from all users of copyrighted works, and from the general public."

More specifically, they wrote that "The bill appears to establish, for the first time, that every incidental, server, cache, network and buffer copy made in digital transmission systems, digital networks, and computers and other personal consumer equipment is subject to the control of copyright owners and must be licensed. The bill erroneously suggests that interactive public performances of sound recordings are ``digital phonorecord deliveries´´ (i.e., a transfer of ownership) subject to license for reproductions of copies. The bill goes so far as to provide that even noninteractive public performances require licenses for such copies. There is no justification to so penalize streaming, or, indeed, any other type of licensed transmission made via internet or any digital communications network, based on such a technicality. Virtually every digital transmission and display technology requires some degree of caching or buffering. ... Where a transmission is lawfully made, there is no basis for giving copyright owners added control because of incidental copies that have no independent economic value apart from the performance itself."

They also wrote that "The bill also appears to establish, for the first time, that every digital performance or display also is a distribution, for which the transmitter must take additional licenses, and potentially pay duplicative fees, for consumer conduct that long has been considered private, noncommercial ``fair use.´´" Moreover, "The apparent requirement that fair uses be licensed -- even at a zero rate -- sets a dangerous precedent for all fair uses of information, news and entertainment, regardless of whether in print, audio or video."

They added that "The bill would effectively declare all home recording – even time-shifting – to be unlawful without a reproduction license."

These opponents include BellSouth, Bonneville International, Cox Radio, Entercom Communications, Greater Media, RadioShack, Salem Communications, Sirius Satellite Radio, and XM Satellite Radio.

These opponents also include the American Association of Law Libraries, Computer & Communications Industry Association (CCIA), Consumer Electronics Association (CEA), Consumer Project on Technology, Electronic Frontier Foundation, Home Recording Rights Coalition, Local Radio Internet Coalition, National Religious Broadcasters Music License Committee, Public Knowledge, and the Association for Computing Machinery.

6/5. David Rehr, P/CEO of the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB), sent a letter [PDF] to Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Kevin Martin in which he argued that the different regulatory treatment of terrestrial radio and satellite radio "appears increasingly unjustifiable, particularly in light of the availability of satellite radio content to nonsubscribers". He asked the FCC to "open an investigation".

He wrote that satellite radio is available to nonsubscribers "in many cars from major rental car companies". He added that satellite radios are installed in some new cars, with free trial subscriptions provided to car purchasers.

He also wrote that "interference from satellite radio devices is causing ``bleed through´´ so that nonsubscribers listening to FM radio, especially in their cars, receive satellite radio programming via FM frequencies, at least for limited periods of time. According to some reports, this interference can affect car radios at distances of one quarter mile or more from the satellite radio device. Consumers listening to National Public Radio and Christian programming on noncommercial stations at the lower end of the FM spectrum have been particularly subject to the receipt of unwelcome satellite programming that could clearly fall within the FCC’s definition of indecent material."

He said that because of this, "radio broadcasters are concerned that this interference problem may subject them to indecency complaints and investigations."

See also, NAB release.

6/6. The Senate confirmed Renee Bumb to be a Judge of the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey by a vote of 89-0. See, Roll Call No. 162.

6/6. President Bush nominated Marcia Howard to be a Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida. See, White House release.

6/6. President Bush nominated Leslie Southwick to be a Judge of the U.S. District Court  for the Southern District of Mississippi. See, White House release.

6/6. President Bush announced his intent to designate Lieutenant General Ronald Burgess to be acting Principal Deputy Director of National Intelligence. See, White House release.

6/6. Jeanne Bumpus was named Director of the Federal Trade Commission's (FTC) Office of Congressional Relations. She is currently Staff Director for the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs. She replaces Anna Davis who left the FTC to become the Executive Director for Legislative Affairs at the National Board of Professional Teaching Standards. See, FTC release.

6/5. Andrew Vollmer was named Deputy General Counsel of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). He is currently a partner in the Washington DC office of the law firm of Wilmer Hale. He replaces Meyer Eisenberg. Also, Brian Cartwright remains General Counsel. See, SEC release.

6/5. Jeffrey Risinger was named acting Executive Director of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). See, SEC release.

6/3. Rep. Rick Boucher (D-VA) (at right) and Amy Houslohner were joined in holy matrimony. See, Rep. Boucher's release. Rep. Boucher is a member of the House Commerce Committee and its Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet, and the House Judiciary Committee and its Subcommittee on Courts, the Internet and Intellectual Property. He is a sponsor of many technology related bills, including HR 5417, the "Internet Freedom and Nondiscrimination Act of 2006". Houslohner is news editor of the The Galax Gazette, a newspaper based in Galax, a small town in western Virginia.

6/6. The House approved HR 5126, the "Truth in Caller ID Act of 2006", by voice vote.

6/6. The House began its consideration of S 193, the "Broadcast Decency Enforcement Act of 2005". It postponed further action on the bill until June 7.

6/5. Federal Reserve Board (FRB) Chairman Ben Bernanke gave a speech in Washington DC.  He stated that "the U.S. economy is entering a period of transition.  For the past three years or so, economic growth in the United States has been robust, reflecting both the ongoing re-employment of underutilized resources as well as the expansion of the economy’s underlying productive potential, as determined by factors such as productivity trends and the growth of the labor force." He added that "It bears emphasizing that productivity growth seems likely to remain strong, supported by the diffusion of new technologies, capital investment, and the creative energies of businesses and workers."

6/6. Federal Reserve Board (FRB) Governor Susan Bies gave a speech titled "Challenges of Conducting Effective Risk Management in Community Banks" in Coronado, Colorado, in which she recommended contingency planning at financial institutions for "terrorist attacks and natural disasters". Although, her statements were applicable to a wide range of business sectors. She said that "Potential problems include destruction of facilities, missing personnel, power and communications outages ..." She recommended that banks "should plan for ways to track and communicate with personnel through a range of channels, including ways to reach personnel if phone and electrical services are down". She also said that "Employees may also need to be prepared to perform services manually if computer systems become unavailable."

6/6. The Senate Judiciary Committee (SJC) held an executive business meeting. Sen. Arlen Specter (R-PA), the Chairman of the SJC, discussed the possibility that the SJC would issue subpoenas to obtain information from telecommunications carriers regarding providing phone records to the National Security Agency (NSA). The SJC will not issue subpoenas at this time.

5/25. John White, Director of the Securities and Exchange Commission's (SEC) Division of Corporation Finance gave a speech titled "Section 404: The Need for Input". In addition, on May 17, 2006, Sen. Jim DeMint (R-SC) and other Senators introduced S 2824, the "Competitive and Open Markets that Protect and Enhance the Treatment of Entrepreneurs Act", or COMPETE Act, which would add a "Smaller Public Company Exemption" to Section 404 of the Sarbanes Oxley Act. See also, HR 5404, the companion bill in the House, introduced by Rep. Tom Feeney (R-FL) and others on May 17. See also, story titled "GAO Reports that Section 404 of Sarbanes Oxley Burdens Small Public Companies" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,366, May 9, 2006. The "Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002" was HR 3763 in the 107th Congress. It is now Public Law No. 107-204. Its main sponsors were Sen. Paul Sarbanes (D-MD) and Rep. Mike Oxley (R-OH).

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

The Senate will meet at 9:00 AM. It will resume consideration of the motion to proceed to SJRes1, the marriage protection amendment.

8:30 AM - 5:00 PM. Day one of a two day hearing held by the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission titled "China's Enforcement of IPR and the Danger of the Movement of Counterfeited and Pirated Goods into U.S.". See, agenda. Location: Room 385, Russell Building.

8:30 AM - 3:00 PM. The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award Board of Overseers will meet. See, notice in the Federal Register, May 3, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 85, at Page 26052. Location: NIST, Administration Building, Lecture Room A, Gaithersburg, MD.

9:30 AM - 5:30 PM. The Antitrust Modernization Commission will meet to deliberate regarding its report and/or recommendations to the Congress. See, notice in the Federal Register, 24, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 100, Page 29915. Location: Federal Trade Commission, Conference Center, 601 New Jersey Ave., NW.

10:00 AM. The U.S. Court of Appeals (FedCir) will hear oral argument in Intel v. Commonwealth Scientific, App. Ct. No. 2006-1032, and Microsoft v. Commonwealth Scientific, App. Ct. No. 2006-1040. Location: Courtroom 201, 717 Madison Place, NW.

10:00 AM. The U.S. Court of Appeals (FedCir) will hear oral argument in Microsoft v. Amado. This case is App. Ct. No. 2005-1531. Location: Courtroom 203, 717 Madison Place, NW.

11:00 AM - 2:00 PM. The New America Foundation (NAF) will host an event titled "Beyond Censorship: Technologies and Policies to Give Parents Control Over Children’s Media Content". The scheduled speakers include Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-NY), Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-LA), Sen. Rick Santorum (R-PA), FCC Commissioner Michael Copps, and FCC Commissioner Deborah Tate. See, notice. Location: Kaiser Family Foundation, 1330 G Street, NW.

12:00 NOON - 1:30 PM. The DC Bar Association's Intellectual Property Law Section will host a panel discussion titled "Structuring Your License Agreements So You Get Paid And What To Do If You Think You Are Not Receiving The Royalties You Bargained For". The speakers will include Michael Dansky and Barry Sussman (both of the Huron Consulting Group). The price to attend ranges from $15-$25. For more information, call 202-626-3463. See, notice. Location: D.C. Bar Conference Center, 1250 H Street NW, B-1 Level.

CANCELLED. 12:30 - 2:00 PM. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce will host a lunch. The speaker will be Steve Ballmer, CEO of Microsoft. See, notice and registration page. Prices vary. For more information, contact Natalie Masri at 202 463-5500 or ncfevents at uschamber dot com.notice. The Chamber also states that "Credentialed members of the media are invited to attend." Register by e-mailing press at uschamber dot com. For more information, call 202 463-5682. Ballmer will not take questions from reporters during the program. Location: Chamber, 1615 H St., NW.

1:00 PM. The House Judiciary Committee (HJC) will meet to mark up several bills, including HR 2840, the "Federal Agency Protection of Privacy Act of 2005". See, notice. Press contact: Jeff Lungren or Terry Shawn at 202-225-2492. Location: Room 2141, Rayburn Building.

POSTPONED TO JUNE 14. 2:00 PM. The House Commerce Committee's (HCC) Subcommittee on Commerce, Trade, and Consumer Protection will hold a hearing titled "Violent and Explicit Video Games: Informing Parents and Protecting Children". See, notice. The hearing will be webcast by the HCC. Location: Room 2322, Rayburn Building.

2:00 PM. The House Small Business Committee will hold a hearing titled "Contracting the Internet: Does ICANN create a barrier to small business?". See, notice. For more information, contact Dan Horowitz at 202 225-5821 . Location: Room 2360, Rayburn Building.

TIME CHANGE. 2:30 - 4:30 PM. The House Science Committee HSC) will meet to mark up several bills, including HR 5356, the "Early Career Research Act of 2006", HR 5357, the "Research for Competitiveness Act of 2006", and HR 5358, the "Science and Mathematics Education for Competitiveness Act of 2006". The hearing will be webcast by the HSC. Location: Room 2318, Rayburn Building.

3:30 PM. The House Rules Committee will meet to adopt a rule for consideration of HR 5252, the "Communications Opportunity, Promotion, and Enhancement Act of 2006" (COPE Act). Location: Room H-313, Capitol Building.

TIME? The Federal Communications Bar Association's (FCBA) Transactional Practice Committee will host a continuing legal education (CLE) seminar. Location?

Day three of a four day event titled "Colloquium for Information Systems Security Education". See, notice. Location: UMUC Inn and Conference Center, 3501 University Boulevard East, Adelphi, MD.

The House will meet at 10:00 AM for legislative business. The Republican Whip Notice states that the House will take up HR 5252, the "Communications Opportunity, Promotion, and Enhancement Act of 2006" (COPE Act), on June 7, 8 or 9.

8:30 AM - 5:00 PM. Day two of a two day hearing held by the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission titled "China's Enforcement of IPR and the Danger of the Movement of Counterfeited and Pirated Goods into U.S.". See, agenda. Location: Room 385, Russell Building.

8:30 AM - 5:00 PM. Day one of a two day meeting of the National Institute of Standards and Technology's (NIST) Information Security and Privacy Advisory Board (ISPAB). See, notice in the Federal Register, May 31, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 104, at Pages 30876-30877. Location: Doubletree Hotel and Executive Meeting Center, 1750 Rockville Pike, Rockville, MD.

9:30 AM. The Senate Judiciary Committee (SJC) may hold an executive business meeting. The SJC frequently cancels or postpones meetings without notice. See, notice. Location: Room 226, Dirksen Building.

MOVED TO JUNE 15. 9:30 AM. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) will hold a meeting. The event will be webcast by the FCC. Location: FCC, 445 12th Street, SW, Room TW-C05 (Commission Meeting Room).

10:00 AM. The House Government Reform Committee will hold a hearing titled "Once More Into the Data Breach: The Security of Personal Information at Federal Agencies". The witnesses will be Clay Johnson (Office of Management and Budget), David Walker (Government Accountability Office), James Nicholson (Secretary, Department of Veterans Affairs), William Gray (Social Security Administration), Daniel Galik (Internal Revenue Service). Press contact: Robert White at 202-225-5074. Location: Room 2154, Rayburn Building.

10:00 AM. The Senate Banking Committee will hold a hearing on several pending nominations, including those of Donald Kohn (to be Vice Chairman of the Federal Reserve Board) and Kathleen Casey to be a member of the Securities and Exchange Commission). See, notice. Location: Room 538, Dirsksen Building.

POSTPONED TO JUNE 20. 10:00 AM. The Senate Commerce Committee (SCC) will meet to mark up S 2686 [135 pages in PDF], the "Communications, Consumer's Choice, and Broadband Deployment Act of 2006". Press contact: Aaron Saunders (Stevens) at 202-224-3991 or Andy Davis (Inouye) at 202-224-4546. The meeting will be webcast by the SCC. Location: Room 216, Hart Building.

TIME? The House Judiciary Committee's (HJC) Subcommittee on Courts, the Internet, and Intellectual Property may meet to mark up the discussion draft [52 pages in PDF] of HR __, the "Section 115 Reform Act (SIRA) of 2006". Press contact: Jeff Lungren (HJC) or Terry Shawn (HJC) at 202-225-2492, or Beth Frigola at 202-225-4236. Location: Room 2141, Rayburn Building.

Day four of a four day event titled "Colloquium for Information Systems Security Education". See, notice. Location: UMUC Inn and Conference Center, 3501 University Boulevard East, Adelphi, MD.

The House will meet at 9:00 AM for legislative business. The Republican Whip Notice states that the House will take up HR 5252, the "Communications Opportunity, Promotion, and Enhancement Act of 2006" (COPE Act), on June 7, 8 or 9.

8:30 AM - 5:00 PM. Day two of a two day meeting of the National Institute of Standards and Technology's (NIST) Information Security and Privacy Advisory Board (ISPAB). See, notice in the Federal Register, May 31, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 104, at Pages 30876-30877. Location: Doubletree Hotel and Executive Meeting Center, 1750 Rockville Pike, Rockville, MD.

10:00 AM. The House Commerce Committee's (HCC) Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations will hold a hearing titled "Cyber Security Challenges at the Department of Energy". See, notice. The hearing will be webcast by the HCC. Location: Room 2123, Rayburn Building.

12:15 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association's (FCBA) Wireless Telecommunications Practice Committee will host a lunch titled "Wireless Emergency Alert Service". The price to attend is $15.00. See, registration form [PDF]. Location: Sidley Austin, 6th Floor, 1501 K St., NW.

10:00 AM. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) will hold a roundtable meeting on the use of interactive data and Extensible Business Reporting Language (XBRL). See, SEC release and story titled "SEC to Hold Series of Roundtable Meetings on XBRL" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,328, March 13, 2006. Location: SEC, 100 F St., NE.

6:00 - 8:15 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association's (FCBA) Professional Responsibility Committee will host a continuing legal education (CLE) seminar titled "Client Creation, Conflicts and Confidentiality in the Administrative Process". See, registration form [PDF]. Prices vary. The deadline to register is 5:00 PM on June 8. Location: Wiley Rein & Fielding, 1776 K Street, NW.

Deadline to submit comments to the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) regarding its draft [122 pages in PDF] of its Federal Information Processing Standard titled "Digital Signature Standard (DSS)". This is FIPS Pub 186-3. See also, notice in the Federal Register, March 13, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 48, at Pages 12678-12679.

Deadline to submit comments to the Department of Defense's (DOD) Defense Acquisition Regulations System (DARS) in response to its notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) regarding amending the Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (DFARS) with respect to the exemption from the Buy American Act for the acquisition of commercial information technology. See, notice in the Federal Register, April 12, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 70, at Pages 18694-18695.

Deadline to submit applications to the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Rural Utilities Service (RUS) for Distance Learning and Telemedicine (DLT) Program grants. See, notice in the Federal Register, April 11, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 69, at Pages 18271-18276.

Deadline to submit initial comments to the Copyright Office regarding its proposal to amend its rules governing the submission of royalty fees to the Copyright Office to require such payments to be made by electronic funds transfer. See, notice in the Federal Register, April 27, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 81, at Pages 24829-24831.

Deadline to submit comments to the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) regarding Draft Federal Information Processing Standard (FIPS) 186-3 [122 pages in PDF], titled "Digital Signature Standard (DSS)".

8:45 AM - 5:00 PM. Day one of a two day meeting of the National Institute of Standards and Technology's (NIST) Visiting Committee on Advanced Technology. See, notice in the Federal Register: May 24, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 100, at Page 29919. Location: Employees Lounge, Administration Building, NIST, Gaithersburg, MD.

10:00 AM. The Senate Commerce Committee (SCC) will hold the third of three hearings on S 2686, the "Communications, Consumer's Choice, and Broadband Deployment Act of 2006". See, notice. Press contact: Aaron Saunders (Stevens) at 202-224-3991 or Andy Davis (Inouye) at 202-224-4546. The hearing will be webcast by the SCC. Location: Room 106, Dirksen Building.

3:00 PM. The House Judiciary Committee's (HJC) Subcommittee on Commercial and Administrative Law will hold a hearing titled "State Taxation of Interstate Telecommunications Services". See, notice. Press contact: Jeff Lungren or Terry Shawn at 202-225-2492. Location: Room 2141, Rayburn Building.

Deadline to submit reply comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in response to its notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) regarding mandatory thousands-block number pooling. See, notice in the Federal Register, March 15, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 50, at Pages 13323-13328. This NPRM is FCC 06-14 in CC Docket No. 99-200.

9:00 - 11:00 AM. Day two of a two day meeting of the National Institute of Standards and Technology's (NIST) Visiting Committee on Advanced Technology. See, notice in the Federal Register: May 24, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 100, at Page 29919. Location: Employees Lounge, Administration Building, NIST, Gaithersburg, MD.

9:00 - 11:30 AM. The Internal Revenue Service's (IRS) Electronic Tax Administration Advisory Committee (ETAAC) will meet. See, notice in the Federal Register, May 30, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 103, at Pages 30717-30718. Location: Embassy Suites Hotel, Capital A Meeting Room, 900 10th Street, NW.

10:00 AM - 12:00 NOON. The Department of State's (DOS) International Telecommunication Advisory Committee (ITAC) will meet to prepare for the ITU Plenipotentiary Conference 2006 on November 6-24, 2006, in Ankara, Turkey. See, notice in the Federal Register, March 29, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 60, at Page 15798. Location: __.

12:00 NOON - 1:30 PM. The DC Bar Association's Intellectual Property Law Section will host a panel discussion titled "Fair Use (Part II) -- Fair Use of Copyrighted Works in the Digital Environment". The speakers will include Jonathan Band and Robert Kasunic (Principal Legal Advisor, Copyright Office). The price to attend ranges from $20-$40. For more information, call 202-626-3463. See, notice. Location: D.C. Bar Conference Center, 1250 H Street NW, B-1 Level.

12:15 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association's (FCBA) Cable Practice Committee will host a brown bag lunch. The topic will be "Views from the Hill". The scheduled speakers are James Assey (Minority Senior Counsel for Communications, Senate Commerce Committee), Will Nordwind (Counsel and Policy Coordinator, House Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet), Johanna Shelton (Minority Counsel, House Commerce Committee), Lisa Sutherland (Majority Staff Director for Sen. Ted Stevens). RSVP to Frank Buono at fbuono at willkie dot com. Location: Willkie Farr & Gallagher, 1875 K Street, NW.

RESCHEDULED FROM JUNE 7. 2:00 PM. The House Commerce Committee's (HCC) Subcommittee on Commerce, Trade, and Consumer Protection will hold a hearing titled "Violent and Explicit Video Games: Informing Parents and Protecting Children". See, notice. The hearing will be webcast by the HCC. Location: Room 2322, Rayburn Building.

7:00 - 9:00 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association (FCBA) will host a reception. See, registration form [PDF]. Prices vary. Location: Corcoran Art Gallery, 500 17th Street, NW.