10/25. Silicon Graphics Inc. (SGI) filed a complaint in U.S. District Court (WDWisc) against ATI Technologies alleging patent infringement. The complaint, filed on October 24, alleges infringement of U.S. Patent No. 6,650,327 which relates to graphics processing.

On October 25, 2006, Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) announced that it completed its acquisition of ATI Technologies. See, AMD release.

SGI is the assignee of U.S. Patent No. 6,650,327, titled "Display system having floating point rasterization and floating point framebuffering".

Dennis McKenna, CEO of SGI, stated in a release that "The Company's technology covered by the '327 patent is an important resource in achieving enhanced graphics processing demanded by today's computer systems ... SGI has licensed this technology to ATI's major competitors and, as I have previously been stating publicly, SGI intends to aggressively protect and enforce its IP. This is the first visible step in that process."

An AMD spokesman told TLJ that AMD is still reviewing the complaint, but will "aggressively defend" itself. He added that AMD does not expect the suit to create any issues for the merger, or with its plans going forward.

SGI is a Delaware corporation based in Mountain View, California. Neither ATI nor AMD incorporated in, or established a major presence in, Wisconsin.

10/25. President Bush gave a speech at a Congressional campaign event in Sarasota, Florida on October 24. He discussed the extra-judicial electronic surveillance program of the National Security Agency (NSA) where one party in inside the U.S. and one party is outside the U.S.

He said that "We had a series of interesting votes in Washington, D.C. recently that should explain the fundamental differences between how we view the war on terror and how the Democrats view the war on terror. I felt that the President should do everything in his power within the Constitution to protect you. And therefore, after 9/11, I made a couple of decisions that recently were brought to a vote on the floor of the House of Representatives, which should give you an indication about the differences of opinion."

President Bush did not reference any bill numbers or titles. However, the House approved HR 5825, the "Electronic Surveillance Modernization Act", sponsored by Rep. Heather Wilson (R-NM), on September 28, 2006. The House vote was 232-191. Republicans voted 214-13, while Democrats voted 18-177. See, Roll Call No. 502. See also, story titled "Bush Discusses Surveillance, FISA and HR 5825" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,461, October 4, 2006.

He continued that "I believe that we must work to prevent attacks from happening in the first place, but here in the homeland -- by staying on the offense. But here in the homeland, I understand that the enemy has to be right one time, and we have to be right a hundred percent of the time in order to protect you. And therefore I feel it's important to make sure our professionals have the tools necessary to protect you."

"I felt like that if al Qaeda or an al Qaeda affiliate was making a phone call into the United States of America from outside our country, our intelligence professionals need to know why. This is a different kind of war. Past wars -- in past wars, you could watch flotillas of ships or count airplanes to determine the intent or the strength of the enemy; you could watch manpower being moved. This is a different kind of war. It's a war that requires intelligence so that we can make sure our professionals are able to protect you", said Bush.

He added that "The idea of people -- professionals being able to listen to al Qaeda and its affiliates came to a vote on the floor of the United States Congress. The American people must fully understand that the vast majority of Democrats opposed the right of this administration to have a tool necessary to protect you. We just have a different view. They must not think we're at war. They must think that the best way to protect you is to respond after the attack."

President also held a long news conference in Washington DC on October 25 at which he discussed the war on terrorism, Iraq, Iran and North Korea. See, transcript.

He stated that terrorists "are lethal, cold-blooded killers. And we must do everything we can to protect the American people, including questioning detainees, or listening to their phone calls from outside the country to inside the country. And there was -- as you know, there was some recent votes on that issue. And the Democrats voted against giving our professionals the skill -- the tools necessary to protect the American people."

10/20. Peter Mandelson, the European Commissioner for Trade, gave a speech in Monaco on ideas, intellectual property rights (IPR), globalization, and trade.

Mandelson (at right) said that Europe trades in ideas that are transformed into products and services, that those ideas are being stolen, and that nations need to address this.

He said that "I'm steering towards the question of IPR and counterfeiting because I want to use it as an example of the kind of issue that is around the next corner in trade policy. And it is particularly important for people who trade in ideas -- ideas as services or ideas as manufactured products."

He said that until recently counterfeiting meant fake Gucci purses and Rolex watches. However, he said that it is much bigger now, and includes "fake foodstuffs and drinks, fake car parts; fake airplane parts -- I mean think about that for a moment, fake aircraft parts! -- fake electrical appliances and fake toys."

He continued that counterfeiting now includes "fake antibiotics, fake avian-flu drugs, fake anti-malarials and fake insulin. 800000 doses of fake medicine were seized at EU borders in 2004. Most of those fake drugs were headed for the world's poorest countries. Still think its harmless?"

He said that "it goes far beyond counterfeit manufactures. Counterfeit music and film -- often easily available on the internet -- is undermining the music and film industries' investments in artist development. That single issue of internet music piracy and the abuse of music copyright is a significant part of what’s standing between Russia and the US on the issue of Russia’s accession to the WTO to which I have added Europe's voice -- so it matters."

He said that "two thirds of counterfeit goods intercepted on their way into the EU are made in China. Behind China come Russia, the Ukraine, Turkey, Chile."

He also recited some of the things that the EU is doing in response. He said We've teamed up with the US this year to create joint task forces in our embassies, and customs services and to share intelligence on border trafficking."

He added that "We've been strengthening our resources on the ground in China to help EU businesses find reliable suppliers, spot the risks from IP theft and deal with the Chinese legal system -- which is, well, opaque, shall we say. We’ve set benchmarks for intercepting counterfeit goods and we expect the Chinese to meet them."

He also suggested that it is in the interest of China to protect IPR, and that it is beginning to act accordingly. He said that "I think that I detect a definite shift in approach in China, certainly a major change of tone. There is a willingness to engage on IPR that wasn’t there even two years ago. Why? Partly because of carefully applied and constructive pressure for action. But there is also this: last month China became the fifth biggest filer for patents in the global economy after the US, Japan, Korea and the EU.

He elaborated that "half or more of those patents are foreign companies looking to protect their own production in China from local piracy. But an increasing number of Chinese companies are looking to the Chinese system to protect their own innovation."

"The infant Chinese film industry is being crippled by film piracy in China. The Chinese government’s attempts to protect the official branding of the 2008 Beijing Olympics is being undermined by the flow of counterfeit knock-offs of official merchandise. If Chinese businesses don’t have confidence in the protection of IPR in their own market then they won’t innovate." Mandelson said that "The lesson -- if you’re inclined to draw it, and I think the Chinese government is drawing it -- is that tolerating intellectual property theft is a dead end for just about everyone."

He also commented on those persons who argue against protection of IPR with slogans such as "corporate agenda" and "people not patents".

He said that "When we privatise knowledge we have to do so with great care." He urged consideration of "the incentive that drives us to innovate in the first place". He argued that Europe produces many services and products that are idea based, and "To preserve the innovation that creates those things, and to preserve the quality dividend that attaches to those things, those ideas need to be better protected."

He concluded that "IPR protection is not a ``corporate agenda´´. And it is not a favour emerging economies like China are doing for us. If you want to get ahead, move up the value chain, then looking the other way on intellectual property piracy will come back and bite you. It’s an essential element of an economy that trades in ideas."

In this speech, he referenced many types of intellectual property that should be protected, including trademarks that consist of European place names used to identify food products. He said that Camembert is an idea.

10/24. The U.S. Court of Appeals (9thCir) issued a short order [PDF] on remand in Dagher v. Texaco. It wrote simply that "Pursuant to the Supreme Court judgment, we affirm the district court’s grant of summary judgment to the defendants." On February 28, 2006, the Supreme Court issued its unanimous opinion [9 pages in PDF] reversing the judgment of the Court of Appeals. The Supreme Court held that it is not per se illegal under Section 1 of the Sherman Act for a lawful, economically integrated joint venture to set the prices at which the joint venture sells its products. See, story titled "Supreme Court Reverses in Texaco v. Dagher" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,320, March 1, 2006.

10/24. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced that it settled civil fraud charges against David Kreinberg, former Chief Financial Officer of Comverse Technology. The SEC that the settlement agreement "provides for the payment of nearly $2.4 million in disgorgement and prejudgment interest, a permanent injunction, a permanent officer-and-director bar, and suspension from appearing or practicing before the Commission as an accountant." See, SEC release and release. Kreinberg is one of three defendants in SEC v. Jacob Alexander, et al., a case in which the SEC alleged various violations of federal securities law in connection with the backdating of stock options. This case is pending in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York. It is D.C. No. CV-063844 (GJ).

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Notices & Disclaimers
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The House will not meet. It may return from it elections recess on Monday, November 13, 2006. The adjournment resolution, HConRes 483, provides for returning on Thursday, November 9, at 2:00 PM.

The Senate will not meet. See, HConRes 483.

9:30 AM - 4:30 PM. Day three of a five day meeting of the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission to conduct a final review of its 2006 annual report to the Congress. The agenda includes discussion of "China's Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights and Its Production of Counterfeit Goods", "China's Media Control Activities", "The Effect of U.S. and Multilateral Export Controls on China's Military Modernization", and "China's WTO Compliance". See, notice in the Federal Register: October 18, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 201, at Pages 61541-61542. Location: Conference Room 385, Hall of the States, 444 North Capitol Street, NW.

8:00 AM. The Federal Aviation Administration's (FAA) Commercial Space Transportation Advisory Committee (COMSTAC) will meet. See, agenda [MS Word] and notice in the Federal Register, September 15, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 179, at Page 54550. Location: FAA, Headquarters Building, Bessie Coleman Conference Center, 2nd floor, 800 Independence Ave., SW.

10:00 AM. The Consumer Electronics Association (CEA), Public Knowledge (PK), Media Access Project (MAP) will host a news conference to launch a "Digital Freedom Campaign". The speakers will include Gary Shapiro (CEA), Gigi Sohn (PK), and Harold Feld (MAP). For more information, contact Jennifer Stoltz at 202-448-3145 or jstoltz at qorvis dot com. Location: National Press Club, Main Ballroom, 13th Floor, 529 14th St., NW.

POSTPONED. 10:00 AM. The Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) Technological Advisory Council will hold a meeting. The agenda includes presentations regarding, and discussions of, fiber to the home initiatives, CATV broadband initiatives, broadband over powerline, WiMAX and WiBRO, GSM and WiFi crossover, spectrum observatory, and propagation characteristics -- HF through microwave. See, FCC public notice [PDF] and notice in the Federal Register, October 19, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 202, at Page 61774. Location: FCC, Commission Meeting Room, TW-C305 at 445 12th St., SW.

2:30 - 3:30 PM. The Broadcasting Board of Governors will hold a closed meeting. See, notice in the Federal Register, October 24, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 205, at Page 62247. Location: Cohen Building, Room 3321, 330 Independence Ave., SW.

6:00 - 8:15 PM. The DC Bar Association will host a continuing legal education (CLE) seminar titled "Export Controls and Economic Sanctions Recent Developments and Current Issues". The speakers will include Thomas Scott (Weadon & Associates) and Carol Kalinoski (Kalinoski & Associates). The price to attend ranges from $90-$135. For more information, call 202-626-3488. See, notice and notice. Location: D.C. Bar Conference Center, 1250 H Street NW, B-1 Level.

Deadline to submit initial comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) regarding the intercarrier compensation reform plan known at the Missoula Plan. This proceeding is titled "Developing a Unified Intercarrier Compensation Regime" and numbered CC Docket No. 01-92. See, notice in the Federal Register: September 13, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 177, at Pages 54008-54009.

9:30 AM - 12:00 PM. The Department of Justice's (DOJ) Antitrust Division and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) will hold another of their series of hearings on single-firm conduct. This hearing is titled "Understanding Single-Firm Behavior: Business History Session". The speakers will include Tony Allan Freyer (University of Alabama School of Law), Louis Galambos (Johns Hopkins University), James May (American University law school), and George David Smith (NYU Stern School of Business). See, notice. Location: FTC Headquarters Building, Room 532, 600 Pennsylvania Ave., NW.

9:30 AM - 4:30 PM. Day four of a five day meeting of the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission to conduct a final review of its 2006 annual report to the Congress. The agenda includes discussion of "China's Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights and Its Production of Counterfeit Goods", "China's Media Control Activities", "The Effect of U.S. and Multilateral Export Controls on China's Military Modernization", and "China's WTO Compliance". See, notice in the Federal Register: October 18, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 201, at Pages 61541-61542. Location: Conference Room 385, Hall of the States, 444 North Capitol Street, NW.

12:15 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association's (FCBA) Wireless Telecommunications Practice Committee will host a lunch titled "Meet the FCC Wireless Advisors". The speakers will be Fred Campbell (office of FCC Chairman Kevin Martin), Barry Ohlson (office of Jonathan Adelstein), Bruce Gottlieb (office of Michael Copps), Aaron Goldberger (office of Deborah Tate), and Angela Giancarlo (office of Robert McDowell). See, registration form [PDF]. The price to attend is $15. Registrations are due by 12:00 NOON on October 24. Location: Latham & Watkins, 10th floor, 555 11th St., NW.

1:30 - 4:00 PM. The Department of Justice's (DOJ) Antitrust Division and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) will hold another of their series of hearings on single-firm conduct. This hearing is titled "Understanding Single-Firm Behavior: Business Strategy Session". The speakers will include Jeffrey McCrea (Intel), David Reibstein (Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania), David Scheffman (LECG LLC), and George David Smith (NYU Stern School of Business). See, notice. Location: FTC Headquarters Building, Room 532, 600 Pennsylvania Ave., NW.

Deadline to register for the Department of Justice's (DOJ) Global Justice Information Sharing Initiative Federal Advisory Committee meeting on November 2, 2006. See, notice in the Federal Register, October 23, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 204, at Page 62122.

9:30 AM - 4:30 PM. Day five of a five day meeting of the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission to conduct a final review of its 2006 annual report to the Congress. The agenda includes discussion of "China's Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights and Its Production of Counterfeit Goods", "China's Media Control Activities", "The Effect of U.S. and Multilateral Export Controls on China's Military Modernization", and "China's WTO Compliance". See, notice in the Federal Register: October 18, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 201, at Pages 61541-61542. Location: Conference Room 385, Hall of the States, 444 North Capitol Street, NW.

12:00 PM. The Cato Institute will host a panel discussion titled "The Future of the European Common Agricultural Policy and Global Trade Liberalization". The speakers will be Patrick Messerlin (Institut d'Etudes Politiques de Paris), Daniel Griswold (Cato), and Marian Tupy (Cato). See, notice and registration page. Lunch will follow the program. Location: Cato, 1000 Massachusetts Ave., NW.

5:00 PM. Deadline to submit comments to the National Institute of Standards and Technology's (NIST) Computer Security Division regarding its Draft Special Publication 800-98 [126 pages in PDF], titled "Guidance for Securing Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) Systems".

Extended deadline to submit applications to the Department of Commerce's (DOC) International Trade Administration (ITA) to participate in the summit portion of its Business Development Mission to India on November 29-30, 2006. See, notice in the Federal Register: October 2, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 190, at Pages 57923.

Deadline to submit comments to the Small Business Administration (SBA) in response to its proposal to grant a request for a waiver of the nonmanufacturer rule for personal computer manufacturing. See, notice in the Federal Register, October 12, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 197, at Pages 60220-60221.

Deadline to submit comments to the National Institute of Standards and Technology's (NIST) Computer Security Division regarding its Draft Special Publication 800-95 [140 pages in PDF], titled "Guide to Secure Web Services".

Deadline to submit initial comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in response to it notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) regarding compensation of providers of telecommunications relay services (TRS) from the Interstate TRS Fund. The FCC adopted this item on July 13, 2006, and released it on July 20, 2006. It is FCC 06-106. This proceeding is titled "Telecommunications Relay Services and Speech-to-Speech Services for Individuals With Hearing and Speech Disabilities" and numbered CG Docket No. 03-123. See, notice in the Federal Register, September 13, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 177, at Pages 54009-54017.

Deadline to submit comments to the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (OUSTR) regarding the implications for U.S. trade in goods and services of the anticipated enlargement of the European Union (EU) to include Bulgaria and Romania. See, notice in the Federal Register, September 29, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 189, at Pages 57585-57586.

8:30 AM - 1:00 PM. The Department of Health and Human Services' (DHHS) advisory committee titled "American Health Information Community" will meet. The agenda includes a discussion of the Health Information Technology Standards Panel's standards recommendations. See, notice in the Federal Register, October 12, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 197, at Page 60152. Location: Conference Room 800, Humphrey Building, 200 Independence Ave., SW.

10:00 AM - 5:00 PM. The National Science Foundation's (NSF) Advisory Committee for Cyberinfrastructure will meet. See, notice in the Federal Register, October 17, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 200, at Page 61073. Location: NSF, 4201 Wilson Blvd., Room 375, Arlington, VA.

12:15 - 1:45 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association's (FCBA) Young Lawyers Committee will a brown bag lunch for the volunteers for the FCBA's November 16 auction. For more information, contact fcbavolunteers06 at gmail dot com, Josh Turner at jturner at wrf dot com or 202-719-4807, Katrina Gleber at kgleber at lsl-law dot com or 202-416-1093, or Christina Langlois at clanglois at nualumni dot com or 703-597-2265. Location: Wiley Rein & Fielding, 1776 K Street, NW.

9:30 AM. The U.S. Court of Appeals (DCCir) will hold an en banc rehearing in Rep. John Boehner v. Rep. Jim McDermott, App. Ct. No. 04-7203. See, March 28, 2006, opinion [23 pages in PDF] of the three judge panel of the Court of Appeals, and story titled "Court of Appeals Holds that Rep. McDermott Violated Wiretap Act" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,339, March 30, 2006. Location: Courtroom 20, 333 Constitution Ave., NW.

TIME? The Department of Justice's (DOJ) Antitrust Division and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) will hold another of their series of hearings on single-firm conduct. This hearing will address tying. Location?

8:00 AM - 2:00 PM. The National Science Foundation's (NSF) Advisory Committee for Cyberinfrastructure will meet. See, notice in the Federal Register, October 17, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 200, at Page 61073. Location: NSF, 4201 Wilson Blvd., Room 375, Arlington, VA.

9:00 AM - 5:00 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association (FCBA) will host a program titled "Communications Law 101". See, registration form [PDF]. Prices vary. Location: Wiley Rein & Fielding, 1776 K St., NW.

12:00 NOON - 3:00 PM. The DC Bar Association will host a panel discussion titled "DR-CAFTA: The United States-Dominican Republic-Central America Free Trade Agreement A Roundtable with the Ambassadors". The price to attend ranges from $15 to $40. For more information, call 202-626-3463. See, notice. Location: Arnold & Porter, 555 12th Street, NW.

5:30 - 7:30 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association's (FCBA) Young Lawyers Committee will host an event titled "Comm Law 101 Happy Hour". For more information, contact Chris Fedeli at cfedeli at crblaw dot com or 202-828-9874, or Natalie Roisman at nroisman at akingump dot com or 202-887-4493. Location: Restaurant Kolumbia, 1801 K St, NW.