11/9. The U.S. Court of Appeals (7thCir) issued its opinion [6 pages in PDF] in Wallace v. IBM, Red Hat, and Novell, holding that the GNU General Public License (GPL), and open source software generally, do not violate federal antitrust law.

The Court of Appeals reasoned that while Wallace and others who hope to license competing software derived from Linux may claim that IBM, Red Hat and Novell have conspired to set software prices at zero, there is no predatory pricing claim because there is no chance that IBM, Red Hat and Novell will some day obtain monopoly pricing. They have permanently set prices at zero through through the General Public License (GPL). Hence, consumers cannot be harmed.

The legal issue before the Court of Appeals was the relation of the GPL to antitrust law. The holding is that the GPL does not violate antitrust law. However, the Court of Appeals also stated, in dicta, that "open-source software" generally has "nothing to fear from the antitrust laws".

This is the first reported appellate opinion in the US upholding the GPL against an antitrust challenge. In addition, Judge Frank Easterbrook (at right) wrote the opinion of the Court of Appeals. He has previously taught courses at the University of Chicago law school on antitrust law. He has also published articles and books on antitrust law.

Background. The plaintiff in the District Court, and appellant before the Court of Appeals, is Daniel Wallace, a programmer who hopes to sell a Berkeley Software Distribution (BSD) operating system to schools. BSD is a variant of Linux. The Linux operating system is free, open source, and subject to the GPL.

The GPL authorizes copying. It also authorizes the creation of derivative works. However, it prohibits charging for the derivative work. The Court of Appeals wrote that the "GPL propagates from user to user and revision to revision: neither the original author, nor any creator of a revised or improved version, may charge for the software or allow any successor to charge."

The Court commented that "Copyright law, usually the basis of limiting reproduction in order to collect a fee, ensures that open-source software remains free: any attempt to sell a derivative work will violate the copyright laws, even if the improver has not accepted the GPL."

The Court of Appeals also summarized Wallace's position. He "would like to compete with Linux -- either by offering a derivative work or by writing an operating system from scratch -- but maintains that this is impossible as long as Linux and its derivatives are available for free. He contends that IBM, Red Hat, and Novell have conspired among themselves and with others (including the Free Software Foundation) to eliminate competition in the operating system market by making Linux available at an unbeatable price." (Parentheses in original.)

International Business Machines Corporation (IBM) sells servers with Linux, as well as support services. Red Hat, Inc. and Novell, Inc. sell media, manuals, and support for the installation and maintenance of Linux. That is, these companies do not sell the Linux software. Rather, their business model is to make money from the sale of the DVDs and other media on which the software is stored, works that explain how to install and use Linux, the machines that run on Linux, and/or support services.

In contrast, Wallace wants to make money by writing and licensing for a fee software that is a derivative work of Linux software. But, by doing so he would violate the GPL. Moreover, any efforts that he made to enforce his copyright would be met with a GPL based defense.

Proceedings Below. Wallace first filed a pro se complaint [PDF] in U.S. District Court (SDInd) against the Free Software Foundation (FSF), which devised the GPL, seeking a "permanent injunction prohibiting the promotion or use of the GNU GENERAL PUBLIC LICENSE by the FREE SOFTWARE FOUNDATION INC. to artificially control the the pricing of computer software programs ..." (sic).

He later filed a second pro se complaint [3 pages in PDF], which is the subject of the present appeal, in U.S. District Court (SDInd) against IBM, Red Hat, and Novell.

He alleged that IBM, Red Hat, and Novell "have used or conspired to promote a copyright licensing scheme employing the GNU GENERAL PUBLIC LICENSE [H.I.] to fix the prices of computer programs. This scheme is implemented nationwide in the sale and promotion of computer software products in the United States. This scheme denies the plaintiff Daniel Wallace an opportunity to earn future revenue in the field of computer programming."

He requested "a permanent injunction prohibiting the promotion or use of section 2(b) of the GNU GENERAL PUBLIC LICENSE by" the defendants.

He also submitted an affidavit [PDF] that attaches a copy of the GNU General Public License.

The District Court dismissed his complaint on the grounds that Wallace did not suffer antitrust injury. That is, he is a competing producer, rather than a harmed consumer. Wallace brought the present appeal.

Holding of Court of Appeals. The Court of Appeals affirmed, with a different analysis.

The Court of Appeals wrote that "Although antitrust law serves the interests of consumers rather than producers, producers, the Supreme Court has permitted producers to initiate predatory-pricing litigation." But, it continued, Wallace's predatory pricing claim is still faulty.

The Court of Appeals elaborated that "Predatory pricing is a three-stage process: Low prices, followed by the exit of producers who can no longer make a profit, followed by monopoly prices. The law’s worry is the final period in which the survivor (or cartel of survivors) recoups losses incurred during the low-price period. When exit does not occur, or recoupment is improbable even if some producers give up the market, there is no antitrust problem." (Parentheses in original.)

"When monopoly does not ensue, low prices remain -- and the goal of antitrust law is to use rivalry to keep prices low for consumers’ benefit. Employing antitrust law to drive prices up would turn the Sherman Act on its head." The Court of Appeals added that "the GPL keeps price low forever and precludes the reduction of output that is essential to monopoly?"

The Court of Appeals concluded that with the GPL there is no prospect for recouping monopoly prices, and hence, there can be no injury to consumers, and no predatory pricing in violation of the antitrust laws.

Extended Discussion of Software Markets, IPR, and Antitrust. However, the Court of Appeals continued its economic and legal analysis of open source and proprietary software.

It wrote that "Software that is not maintained and improved eventually becomes obsolete, and the lack of reward may reduce the resources devoted to maintenance and improvement of Linux and other open-source projects. If that occurs, however, then proprietary software will enter or gain market share. People willingly pay for quality software even when they can get free (but imperfect) substitutes."

The Court of Appeals examined the current state of the market for both open source and proprietary software. "Open Office is a free, open-source suite of word processor, spreadsheet and presentation software, but the proprietary Microsoft Office has many more users. Gimp is a free, open-source image editor, but the proprietary Adobe Photoshop enjoys the lion’s share of the market. Likewise there is a flourishing market in legal treatises and other materials, plus reference databases such as LEXIS and Westlaw, even though courts give away their work (this opinion, for example, is not covered by copyright and may be downloaded from the court’s web site and copied without charge)." (Parentheses in original.)

"And so it is with operating systems. Many more people use Microsoft Windows, Apple OS X, or Sun Solaris than use Linux. IBM, which includes Linux with servers, sells mainframes and supercomputers that run proprietary operating systems. The number of proprietary operating systems is growing, not shrinking, so competition in this market continues quite apart from the fact that the GPL ensures the future availability of Linux and other Unix offshoots."

The Court of Appeals continued that "Intellectual property can be used without being used up; the marginal cost of an additional user is zero (costs of media and paper to one side), so once a piece of intellectual property exists the efficient price of an extra copy is zero, for that is where price equals marginal cost. Copyright and patent laws give authors a right to charge more, so that they can recover their fixed costs (and thus promote innovation), but they do not require authors to charge more. No more does antitrust law require higher prices." (Parentheses in original.)

It added that "Linux and other open-source projects have been able to cover their fixed costs through donations of time; as long as that remains true, it would reduce efficiency and consumers' welfare to force the authors to levy a charge on each new user."

Actually, Wallace does not seek to force authors to charge. Rather, he seeks a court injunction prohibiting others from forcing him not to charge. But, this does not affect the analysis of the Court.

The Court concluded that not only the GPL, but also, "open-source software" has "nothing to fear from the antitrust laws".

Other Legal Arguments. Wallace is a programmer who proceeded on a pro se basis. He may not have effectively argued the antitrust case against the GPL, and may have failed to raise many other legal grounds for challenging the legality or enforceability of the GPL.

See for example, article [42 pages in PDF] by Jason Wacha titled "Taking the Case: Is the GPL Enforceable?", published in the Santa Clara Computer & High Tech Law Journal, at Volume 21, Pages 451-492. Wacha identifies other possible legal challenges, and argues that all are without merit.

And see, pleadings in SCO Group, Inc. v. International Business Machines, Inc., U.S. District Court (DUtah), D.C. No. No. 03-CV-0294.

Counsel and Case Information. Novell is represented by Philip Whistler of Ice Miller. Red Hat is represented by Curtis McCauley of Ice Miller. IBM is represented by Michael Gottschlich and Kendall Millard of Barnes & Thornburg. Wallace proceeded pro se throughout. His number is 317 dash 861 dash 6415.

The Court of Appeals decided this case on the briefs. There was no oral argument.

This case is Daniel Wallace v. International Business Machines Corporation, Red Hat, Inc. and Novell, Inc., U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit, App. Ct. No. 06-2454, an appeal from the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana, Indianapolis Division, D.C. No. No. 1:05-cv-678 RLY-VSS, Judge Richard Young presiding. Judge Easterbrook wrote the opinion of the Court of Appeals, in which Judges Kanne and Evans joined.

11/7. Deval Patrick was elected Governor of the state of Massachusetts. While he was Assistant Attorney General in charge of the Department of Justice's (DOJ) Civil Rights Division (CRD) during the Clinton administration, he asserted that web sites are subject to the ADA, but can comply by also producing braille and audio copies.

His opinion letter remains in the DOJ web site. Were the DOJ to enforce the opinion contained in this letter, millions of web sites would be compelled to shut down. However, both the Clinton and Bush Justice Departments have substantially ignored Patrick's determination.

Deval Patrick, wrote a letter on September 9, 1996 to Sen. Tom Harkin (D-IA) in which he stated that "The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) requires ... places of public accommodation to furnish appropriate auxiliary aids and services where necessary to ensure effective communication with individuals with disabilities ... Covered entities under the ADA are required to provide effective communication, regardless of whether they generally communicate through print media, audio media, or computerized media such as the Internet. Covered entities that use the Internet for communications regarding their programs, goods, or services must be prepared to offer those communications through accessible means as well."

Patrick wrote that web site operators could comply by providing audio tapes and braille copies of their web sites.

TLJ has met with, telephoned, and e-mailed persons in the DOJ's CRD and Office of Public Affairs many times since requesting information about the status and/or enforcement of this letter. The DOJ has not provided any information other than to confirm the authenticity of the letter, and to assert Patrick's authorship.

TLJ has also requested, without response, information about other technology related issues, such as the DOJ's assessment of how the interactive computer service immunity provision of 47 U.S.C. § 230(c)(1) affects the DOJ's efforts to enforce the ADA, and other civil rights statutes, against operators of interactive computer services.

The DOJ's CRD released a report titled "Access for All: Five Years of Progress" on October 5, 2006. This report notes that persons with disabilities are less likely to have internet access than persons without disabilities. However, it does not address application of civil rights laws to web sites or services. TLJ again requested information, records, and interviews. The DOJ has not responded.

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The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and other federal offices will be closed. See, Office of Personnel Management's (OPM) list of federal holidays.

2:00 - 3:00 PM. The Information Technology Association of America (ITAA) will host a webcast titled "The FTC's Privacy & Data Security Jurisdiction, implications of the BJ's Wholesale Case and Other Recent Enforcement Actions". The speakers will be Stuart Ingis (Venable) and Emilio Cividanes (Venable). See, notice and registration page.

Deadline to submit comments to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) regarding its proposed consent agreements with Information and Real Estate Services, LLC, and other real estate businesses. See, story titled "FTC Charges Real Estate Groups that Limited Publication of Listings on Certain Web Sites" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,469, October 16, 2006, and notice in the Federal Register, October 18, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 201, at Pages 61474-61478.

Veterans Day.

The House will return from its elections recess. See, HConRes 483. It will meet at 2:00 PM for legislative business. It will consider numerous non-technology related items under suspension of the rules. Votes will be postponed until 6:30 PM. See, Republican Whip Notice.

Senate will return from its elections recess at 2:00 PM. See, HConRes 483.

12:00 NOON - 1:15 PM. The DC Bar Association will host a panel discussion titled "The Future of Obviousness: Will Teaching/ Suggestion/ Motivation to Combine Remain the Test?". The speakers will include Delano Jordan (Kenyon & Kenyon). The price to attend ranges from $15 to $35. For more information, call 202-626-3463. See, notice. Location: D.C. Bar Conference Center, 1250 H Street NW, B-1 Level.

12:15 - 1:30 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association's (FCBA) Legislative Committee will host a brown bag lunch. This is a planning meeting. RSVP to Amy Levine amy dot levine at mail dot house dot gov or 202-225-3861. Location: Verizon, Suite 400 West 1300 I St., NW.

6:00 - 9:15 PM. The DC Bar Association will host a continuing legal education (CLE) seminar titled "Basics of Intellectual Property Taxation". The speakers will be Kenneth Appleby (Foley & Lardner). The price to attend ranges from $80 to $135. For more information, call 202-626-3488. See, notice. Location: D.C. Bar Conference Center, 1250 H Street NW, B-1 Level.

Day one of a five day meeting of the Department of Commerce's Judges Panel of the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award. See, notice in the Federal Register, October 20, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 203, Pages 61958-61959. Location: National Institute of Standards and Technology, Building 222, Room A230, Gaithersburg, MD.

6:00 PM. Deadline to submit to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Short Form applications to participate in Auction No. 68, the FM broadcast auction. See, October 6, 2006, FCC Public Notice [60 pages in PDF] (DA 06-1949), and notice in the Federal Register, November 7, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 215, at Pages 65098-65113.

Deadline to submit comments to the Copyright Royalty Board regarding its amendments to the procedural regulations governing the practices and procedures of the Copyright Royalty Judges in royalty rate and distribution proceedings. See, notice in the Federal Register, September 11, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 175, at Pages 53325-53331.

Deadline to submit reply 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 initial comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in response to it further notice of proposed rulemaking (FNPRM) regarding maritime Automatic Identification Systems (AIS). The FCC adopted this item on July 20, 2006, and released it on July 24, 2006. It is FCC 06-108 in WT Docket No. 04-344. See, notice in the Federal Register, October 12, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 197, at Pages 60102-60106.

Extended deadline to submit reply comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in response to its Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) regarding possible changes to the Part 27 service rules applicable to existing and prospective Upper 700 MHz Guard Bands licensees as well as on proposals to modify the existing Upper 700 MHz band plan with respect to the Guard Bands. See, notice in the Federal Register, November 6, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 214, at Pages 64917-64919. This NPRM is FCC 06-133 in WT Docket Nos. 06-169 and 96-86.

The House will meet at 10:00 AM for morning hour, and at 11:00 AM for legislative business. It will consider several non-technology related items under suspension of the rules. See, Republican Whip Notice.

9:30 AM - 4:00 PM. The Antitrust Modernization Commission (AMC) will meet. The agenda of this meeting includes discussion of the role of state attorneys general in merger enforcement, the application of antitrust in regulated industries, and the Foreign Trade Antitrust Improvements Act (FTAIA). See, notice in the Federal Register, October 27, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 208, at Pages 62991-62992. Location: Mogan Lewis, 1111 Pennsylvania Ave., NW.

10:00 AM - 12:00 NOON. The Department of State's (DOS) International Telecommunication Advisory Committee (ITAC) will meet by teleconference to discuss proposed U.S. contributions to Study Group 17 (Security, languages and telecommunication software) of the International Telecommunication Union's Telecommunication Standardization Sector. See, notice in the Federal Register, October 31, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 210, at Page 63828.

11:00 AM. The Senate Finance Committee will hold a hearing on pending nominations. Location: Room 215, Dirksen Building.

11:00 AM - 1:00 PM. The Progress and Freedom Foundation's (PFF) will host an event titled "Regulatory Reform Options for Today's Digital Age". The PFF's Digital Age Communications Act (DACA) project's Institutional Reform Working Group will present and discuss a paper that contains proposals for reforming the structure of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). The speakers will include Sen. Jim DeMint (R-SC), Jonathan Nuechterlein (Wilmer Hale), Randy May (Free State Foundation), Roger Noll (Stanford University), and Bryan Tramont (Wilkinson Barker & Knauer). Lunch will be served. See, PFF notice and registration page. Location: Room 188, Russell Building, Capitol Hill.

12:00 NOON - 1:00 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association's (FCBA) Annual Seminar Committee will host a brown bag lunch. RSVP to Yaron Dori at ydori at hhlaw dot com. Location: Harris Wiltshire & Grannis, 1200 18th Street, NW.

12:15 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association's (FCBA) Joint Cable Practice and Mass Media Practice Committees will host a brown bag lunch titled "Meet the Legal Advisors". The speakers will be Heather Dixon (advisor to FCC Chairman Kevin Martin), Rudy Brioché (Jonathan Adelstein), Cristina Pauzé (Robert McDowell), Chris Robbins (Deborah Tate), and Jessica Rosenworcel (Michael Copps). RSVP to Daphney Sheppard at dsheppard at sidley dot com or 202-736-8019. For more information, contact Erin Dozier at edozier at sheppardmullin dot com or Jennifer Tatel at jtatel at sidley dot com. Location: Sidley Austin, 6th floor, 1501 K St., NW.

2:00 PM. The House Judiciary Committeee (HJC) will hold a hearing on titled "The Administrative Law, Process and Procedure Project for the 21st Century". Location: Room 2141, Rayburn Building.

2:00 - 4:00 PM. The Department of State's (DOS) International Telecommunication Advisory Committee (ITAC) will meet to discuss the upcoming meeting of the ITU Radiocommunication Sector's Conference Preparatory Meeting (CPM) for the 2007 World Radiocommunication Conference, to be held on February 19 through March 2, 2007 in Geneva, Switzerland. See, notice in the Federal Register, October 10, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 195, at Page 59580. Location: Boeing Company, 1200 Wilson Blvd., Arlington, VA.

5:00 PM. Deadline to submit comments to the Department of Commerce's (DOC) Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) regarding it notice in the Federal Register that announces, describes, and recites its notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) regarding the mandatory reporting of transactions with foreign person involving services (including telecommunications, information services, and news gathering) and intangible assets (including intellectual property). See, Federal Register, September 15, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 179, at Pages 54448-5445. The current rule is codified at 15 C.F.R. § 801.10 [3 pages in PDF]. See also, story titled "Commerce Department Proposes to Mandate Reporting of International IP Transactions" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,451, September 18, 2006.

5:00 - 7:00 PM. The AEI-Brookings Joint Center will host a lecture by Roger Noll (Stanford) titled "Still Reforming Regulation". See, notice. Location: American Enterprise Institute, 12th floor, 1150 17th St., NW.

Day two of a five day meeting of the Department of Commerce's Judges Panel of the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award. See, notice in the Federal Register, October 20, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 203, Pages 61958-61959. Location: National Institute of Standards and Technology, Building 222, Room A230, Gaithersburg, MD.

The House will meet at 10:00 AM for legislative business. It will consider several non-technology related items under suspension of the rules. See, Republican Whip Notice.

9:00 AM - 4:00 PM. Day one of a two day public meeting of the Federal Accounting Standards Advisory Board (FASAB). See, notice in the Federal Register, July 12, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 133, at Pages 39318. Location: Room 7C13, GAO Building, 441 G St., NW.

9:30 AM. The House Judiciary Committeee (HJC) will hold a hearing on HR 5304, the "Preventing Harassment through Outbound Number Enforcement (PHONE) Act". It would criminalize the modification of caller ID information with intent to mislead. Location: Room 2141, Rayburn Building.

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 will address exclusive dealing. The speakers will be Jonathan Jacobson (Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati), Howard Marvel (Ohio State University), Richard Steuer (Mayer Brown Rowe & Maw), Mary Sullivan (George Washington University), and Joshua Wright (George Mason University School of Law). See, notice. Location: Conference Room A, FTC Conference Center, 601 Pennsylvania Ave., NW.

12:00 NOON. The Federal Communications Bar Association (FCBA) will host a lunch. The speaker will be FCC Commissioner Robert McDowell. See, registration form [PDF]. Prices vary. Registrations and cancellations are due by 5:00 PM on November 9. Location: Mayflower Hotel, 1127 Connecticut Ave., NW.

12:00 NOON - 2:00 PM. The DC Bar Association will host a panel discussion titled "Counterfeiting -- Defining the Problem and Providing Solutions". The speakers will include Brian Brokate (Gibney Anthony & Flaherty), Travis Johnson (International AntiCounterfeiting Coalition), and Leigh Ann Lindquist (Sughrue Mion). The price to attend ranges from $15 to $30. For more information, call 202-626-3463. See, notice. Location: Bell Labs, Suite 620W, 1100 New York Ave., NW.

1:30 AM - 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 will address exclusive dealing. The speakers will be Stephen Calkins (Wayne State University Law School), Benjamin Klein (UCLA), Abbott Lipsky (Latham & Watkins), and Joseph Farrell (University of California at Berkeley). Farrell was previously chief economist at the FCC and Antitrust Division. See, notice. Location: Conference Room A, FTC Conference Center, 601 Pennsylvania Ave., NW.

5:00 PM. Deadline to submit comments to the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) regarding its Draft Special Publication 800-103 [70 pages in PDF] titled "An Ontology of Identity Credentials, Part I: Background and Formulation".

Day three of a five day meeting of the Department of Commerce's Judges Panel of the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award. See, notice in the Federal Register, October 20, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 203, Pages 61958-61959. Location: National Institute of Standards and Technology, Building 222, Room A230, Gaithersburg, MD.

Deadline to submit comments to the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (OUSTR) regarding the European Communities (EC) complaint to the World Trade Organization (WTO) regarding U.S. zeroing and anti-dumping duty orders on certain products from the EC. See, notice in the Federal Register, October 27, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 208, at Pages 63053-63055.

The Republican Whip Notice states that "there are no votes expected in the House".

8:00 AM - 5:00 PM. Day one of a two day meeting of the National Science Foundation's (NSF) Advisory Committee for Engineering. The agenda includes "Critical Infrastructure Systems", "New Frontiers in Nanotechnology", and "Update on Cyberinfrastructure and Simulation-Based Engineering Science". See, notice in the Federal Register, October 17, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 200, at Page 61073. Location: NSF, 4201 Wilson Blvd., Room 1235, Arlington, VA.

9:00 AM - 4:00 PM. Day two of a two day public meeting of the Federal Accounting Standards Advisory Board (FASAB). See, notice in the Federal Register, July 12, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 133, at Pages 39318. Location: Room 7C13, GAO Building, 441 G St., NW.

10:30 AM - 12:00 NOON. The Department of State's (DOS) International Telecommunication Advisory Committee (ITAC) will meet to discuss proposed U.S. contributions to the Committee on Information Services and Policy (CISP) and Working Party on the Information Economy (WPIE) meetings of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). See, notice in the Federal Register, October 31, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 210, at Page 63828. Location: Room 2533A, Harry Truman Building.

12:15 - 1:30 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association's (FCBA) Communications Law, Copyright, and Digital Rights Management Committee will host a brown bag lunch titled "Copyright and the Internet". The speakers will be Rick Lane (Newscorp) and Jonathan Potter (Digital Media Association). RSVP by November 13 to Ben Golant at bgol at loc dot gov or 202-707-9127. Location: National Association of Broadcasters (NAB), 1771 N Street, NW.

12:30 - 2:00 PM. The DC Bar Association will host a panel discussion titled "CALEA Implementation: A Practical Overview". The speakers will include Maura Quinn (Unit Chief, CALEA Implementation Unit, FBI), Paul Kouroupas (VP, Regulatory Affairs, Global Crossing), Tony Rutkowski (VP, Regulatory, Verisign), and Matthew Brill (Latham & Watkins). The price to attend ranges from $15 to $20. For more information, call 202-626-3463. See, notice. Location: D.C. Bar Conference Center, 1250 H Street NW, B-1 Level.

6:00 - 8:15 PM. The DC Bar Association will host a continuing legal education (CLE) seminar titled "Trade Secrets in the District of Columbia, Maryland and Virginia". The speakers will include Milton Babirak (Babirak Vangellow & Carr). The price to attend ranges from $90 to $135. For more information, call 202-626-3488. See, notice. Location: D.C. Bar Conference Center, 1250 H Street NW, B-1 Level.

7:00 - 9:30 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association's (FCBA) Young Lawyers Committee and the FCBA Foundation will host an event titled "17th Annual Charity Auction". See, notice. Location: Marriott at Metro Center, 775 12th Street, NW.

Day one of a three day convention hosted by the Federal Society. At 12:00 NOON - 1:30 PM, there will be a panel discussion titled "Telecommunications: Net Neutrality: Battle of the Titans". The speakers will be William Barr (Verizon), Paul Misener (Amazon), Timothy Wu (Columbia University Law School), Christopher Yoo (Vanderbilt University Law School), and David McIntosh (Mayer Brown). This panel will be in the East Room. See, notice and schedule. Location: Mayflower Hotel, 1127 Connecticut Ave., NW.

Day four of a five day meeting of the Department of Commerce's Judges Panel of the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award. See, notice in the Federal Register, October 20, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 203, Pages 61958-61959. Location: National Institute of Standards and Technology, Building 222, Room A230, Gaithersburg, MD.

The Republican Whip Notice states that "there are no votes expected in the House".

8:00 AM - 12:00 NOON Day two of a two day meeting of the National Science Foundation's (NSF) Advisory Committee for Engineering. The agenda includes "Critical Infrastructure Systems", "New Frontiers in Nanotechnology", and "Update on Cyberinfrastructure and Simulation-Based Engineering Science". See, notice in the Federal Register, October 17, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 200, at Page 61073. Location: NSF, 4201 Wilson Blvd., Room 1235, Arlington, VA.

Day two of a three day convention hosted by the Federal Society. At 3:30 - 4:45 PM there will be a panel discussion titled "Intellectual Property: Does IP Harm or Help Developing Countries?" The speakers will be Alex Azar (Deputy Secretary, Department of Health and Human Services), Graeme Dinwoodie (Chicago-Kent College of Law), Jerome Reichman (Duke University School of Law), Robert Sherwood (Intellectual Property Practice Group), and Bruce Lehman (Akin Gump). This panel will be in the Colonial Room. See, notice and schedule. Location: Mayflower Hotel, 1127 Connecticut Ave., NW.

Day five of a five day meeting of the Department of Commerce's Judges Panel of the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award. See, notice in the Federal Register, October 20, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 203, Pages 61958-61959. Location: National Institute of Standards and Technology, Building 222, Room A230, Gaithersburg, MD.

Deadline to submit comments to the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) regarding its Draft Special Publication 800-53 [176 pages in PDF] titled "Recommended Security Controls for Federal Information Systems". This is Revision 1, Final Public Draft. See also, mark up copy [186 pages in PDF].