10/30. The House Commerce Committee (HCC) approved by voice vote HR 3526 [LOC | WW], a bill to include all banking agencies within the existing regulatory authority under the Federal Trade Commission Act (FTCA) with respect to depository institutions.

Rep. Barney Frank (D-MA) introduced this bill on September 14, 2007. It was referred to both the HCC and the House Financial Services Committee (HFSC), which Rep. Frank chairs. The HFSC approved the bill on September 18, 2007.

On October 23, 2007, the HCC's Subcommittee on Commerce, Trade and Consumer Protection held a hearing.

Also on October 23, the HCC/SCTCP approved by voice vote an amendment [1 page in PDF] offered by Rep. Bobby Rush (D-IL). It then approved by voice vote the bill as amended.

This October 23 amendment provides for a Government Accountability Office (GAO) report "on the status of regulations of the Federal banking agencies and the National Credit Union Administration regarding unfair and deceptive acts or practices by the depository institutions."

The full committee marked up the bill on October 30. It approved an amendment [2 pages in PDF] offered by Rep. John Dingell (D-MI), the Chairman of the Committee. It provides for concurrent Federal Trade Commission (FTC) rulemaking authority.

10/30. The House Commerce Committee (HCC) amended and approved by voice vote HR 3403 [LOC | WW], the "911 Modernization and Safety Act of 2007". This bill requires interconnected VOIP service providers to provide 911 and E911 services. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has already accomplished this by rulemaking in 2005. This bill affirms, revises, and further defines the legal framework.

Rep. Bart Gordon (D-TN) (at right), the sponsor of this bill, stated in a release that this bill "is a common sense public safety bill ... Regardless of where you live or what phone technology you use, you should be able to reach 911 during an emergency. This bill gives us an opportunity to incorporate Internet phones into the nation's 911 system, modernize 911 for the digital age and improve 911 services for the deaf community."

Legislative History. Rep. Gordon introduced HR 3403 on August 3, 2007.

He also promoted 911 VOIP legislation in the 109th Congress. For example, he offered an amendment during the HCC's markup of its huge telecommunications reform bill on April 26, 2006, that was related to HR 3403. The HCC approved the amendment. The full House approved the bill. However, the Senate did not, and the bill did not become law. See, story titled "Amendment by Amendment Summary of Full Committee Mark Up of COPE Act" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,360, April 28, 2006. (This was amendment 21.)

On September 19, 2007, the HCC's Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet (STI) held a hearing. See, prepared testimony [PDF] of Jason Barbour (National Emergency Number Association), prepared testimony [PDF] of Catherine Avgiris (Comcast), prepared testimony [PDF] of Robert Mayer (USTelecom), prepared testimony [PDF] of Christopher Putala (Earthlink and VON Coalition), and letter [PDF] of Craig Donaldson (Intrado).

On October 10, 2007, the HCC/STI approved by voice vote an amendment in the nature of a substitute [13 pages in PDF] offered by Rep. Gordon. The Subcommittee then approved by voice vote the bill as amended. Also, Rep. Mike Doyle (D-PA) offered but withdrew an amendment [1 page in PDF].

The full committee marked up the bill on October 30, 2007. It approved manager's amendment [3 pages in PDF] offered by Rep. Gordon by voice vote. It then approved the bill as amended by voice vote.

FCC Rules. The FCC first imposed 911/E911 regulation upon interconnected VOIP service providers in May of 2005. The FCC was supported by many in Congress, incumbent phone companies, and law enforcement agencies. It had scant statutory authority (Title I), but its imposition of carrier like 911/E911 regulation upon VOIP is now a two and one half year old fait accompli.

The FCC adopted its 911 VOIP order on May 19, 2005, and released the text [90 pages in PDF] on June 3, 2005. See story titled "FCC Releases VOIP E911 Order" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,148, June 6, 2005. See also, stories titled "FCC Adopts Order Expanding E911 Regulation to Include Some VOIP Service Providers", "Summary of the FCC's 911 VOIP Order", "Opponents of FCC 911 VOIP Order State that the FCC Exceeded Its Statutory Authority", and "More Reaction to the FCC's 911 VOIP Order", in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,139, May 20, 2005.

This item is FCC 05-116 in the FCC's proceedings titled "In the Matter of IP-Enabled Services" and numbered WC Docket No. 04-36, and titled "E911 Requirements for IP-Enabled Service Providers" and numbered WC Docket No. 05-196.

Statutory Authority. In its 2005 rulemaking the FCC relied upon nebulous Title I authority. This bill gives the FCC express statutory authority to promulgate regulations regarding imposing 911 regulations on interconnected VOIP service providers.

This bill refers to "IP enabled voice services providers", which produces the acronym IPEVSP. The FCC has used the term interconnected voice over internet protocol (VOIP) service provider. This bill states that its term (IPEVSP) has the same meaning as the FCC's definition of interconnected VOIP service provider.

The bill as amended on October 30 provides that it shall not be construed as "altering, delaying, or otherwise limiting the ability of the Commission to enforce the rules adopted in the Commission’s First Report and Order in WC Docket Nos. 04-36 and 05-196".

Duty to Provide 911 Service. This bill provides that IPEVSPs have a basic duty to provided 911 and E911 services.

It states that "It shall be the duty of each IP-enabled voice service provider to provide 911 service and E–911 service to its subscribers in accordance with the requirements of the Federal Communications Commission ... as in effect on the date of enactment of the 911 Modernization and Public Safety Act of 2007 and as such requirements may be modified by the Commission from time to time."

Right of Access to 911 Capabilities. Having imposed a basic requirement upon IPEVSPs, the bill then grants that IPEVSPs have a basic right of access to the "capabilities" of other providers -- and this would include incumbent local exchange carriers (ILEC) facilities -- under the same rates, terms and conditions as commercial mobile service providers.

Specifically, the bill provides that "An IP-enabled voice service provider that seeks capabilities from an entity with ownership or control over such capabilities to comply with its obligations" quoted above "shall, for the exclusive purpose of complying with such obligations, have the same rights, including rights of interconnection, and on the same rates, terms, and conditions, as apply to a provider of commercial mobile service" as defined by 47 U.S.C. § 332(d).

The bill then requires the FCC to write rules that implement both this duty to provide service, and this right of access.

The bill further authorizes the FCC to delegate authority to states to enforce these regulations.

There is no requirement in the Communications Act, FCC rules, other FCC determinations, or other law, that local exchange carriers (LECs) interconnect with IPEVSPs. This bill imposes no requirement, other than for accessing capabilities to perform their 911 obligations, that LECs interconnect with IPEVSPs.

No State Diversion of 911 Taxes. The bill provides that state and local governments may impose "a fee or charge applicable to commercial mobile services or IP-enabled voice services specifically designated ... for the support or implementation of 911 or E-911 services". However, if they do so, then they can only spend funds so raised "in support of 911 and E-911 services, or enhancements of such services" as specified in the law adopting the fee or charge.

The bill further provides that "For each class of subscribers to IP-enabled voice services, the fee or charge may not exceed the amount of any such fee or charge applicable to the same class of subscribers to telecommunications services.

IPEVSP Immunity. The bill extends existing immunities wireline carriers and wireless carriers to IPEVSPs.

The FCC acted with inconsistency in 2005. It imposed carrier like 911/E911 obligations upon interconnected VOIP service providers, but did not extend to them the immunities provided to carriers.

Section 4 of the Wireless Communications and Public Safety Act of 1999 enumerates several grants of protection from liability for various entities, including communications carriers. Section 4 is codified at 47 U.S.C. § 615a.

The 1999 Act is Public Law No. 106-81. Various provisions of the Act are now codified in various sections of the U.S. Code, including 47 U.S.C. § 222, 47 U.S.C. §251(e), 47 U.S.C. § 615, and 47 U.S.C. § 615a.

The bill extends immunity to any "IP-enabled voice service provider".

CPNI. The bill also creates an exception for IP-enabled voice service providers in the customer proprietary network information (CPNI) section, which is codified at 47 U.S.C. § 222.

Other Government Access to Databases. The bill provides that "No administrator of any database used for the purpose of facilitating the provision of emergency services may use for any competitive purpose data obtained from unaffiliated telecommunications carriers or IP-enabled voice service providers in the course of maintaining and operating that database."

However, creates a exception. It provides that "Nothing in this section is intended to prohibit government agencies otherwise authorized under law from requesting information contained in any such database."

10/31. Center for Democracy and Technology (CDT) and other groups submitted to the Federal Trade Commission's (FTC) a comment [7 pages in PDF] titled "Consumer Rights and Protections in the Behavioral Advertising Sector". The FTC is holding a two day workshop on November 1-2, 2007, titled "Ehavioral Advertising: Tracking, Targeting, and Technology".

The CDT and others argue that online tracking and targeting of consumers threatens their privacy rights, and that the FTC should "take proactive steps to adequately protect consumers", including through the creation of "a national Do Not Track List similar to the national Do Not Call List".

The CDT seeks regulation of the "collection, use, maintenance, and disclosure of personal and behavioral information for marketing purposes". The document pertains to consumers' "browser or other network access device".

It defines "behavioral tracking" as the "practice of collecting and compiling a record of individual consumers' activities, interests, preferences, and/or communications over time."

The CDT's comment explains its proposed "No Not Track List". It first states that "Any advertising entity that sets a persistent identifier on a user device should be required to provide to the FTC the domain names of the servers or other devices used to place the identifier."

Then, "Companies providing web, video, and other forms of browser applications should provide functionality ... that allows users to import or otherwise use the Do Not Track List of domain names, keep the list up-to-date, and block domains on the list from tracking their Internet activity."

Nothing in this CDT document objects to online tracking for purposes other than "marketing". The CDT does not in this document propose the regulation of practices that track internet users for network security, law enforcement, employee monitoring, national security, or other non-marketing purposes.

The other groups that endorsed this proposal include Consumer Action, Consumer Federation of America (CFA), Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), Privacy Activism, Privacy Journal, Privacy Rights Clearinghouse, Public Information Research, and World Privacy Forum.

The Network Advertising Initiative (NAI), which represents online advertising companies, responded to this proposal in a release. It wrote that "This proposal for a government-run blacklist would break both the basic functionality and economic models of most, if not all, e-commerce and content-driven consumer websites. It would also make much of the personalization available on the web's most popular sites, enjoyed by millions, a thing of the past."

Numerous other individuals and groups submitted comments to the FTC in advance of its November 1-2 workshop. See, FTC web page with hyperlinks to comments.

Peter Swire, a law professor at Ohio State University, and a frequent participant in privacy and surveillance related debates, submitted a comment urging the FTC to incorporate privacy analysis into antitrust analysis.

A group of commenters at Stanford University submitted a comment that offers a technical explanation of some browser based privacy problems.

See also, related story in this issue titled "Industry Groups Advocate Self-Regulation of Online Adverting Practices"

10/31. Internet, online advertising, and software companies filed comments with the Federal Trade Commission's (FTC) in advance of its November 1-2, 2007, workshop titled "Ehavioral Advertising: Tracking, Targeting, and Technology". They argue that online advertising is beneficial to consumers because it drives the proliferation of free online content and services. They argue that the government should generally rely upon industry self-regulation.

Mike Zaneis of the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB), submitted a comment [47 pages in PDF; 1.1 MB] to the Federal Trade Commission's (FTC) in which he argued that online advertising is important to the growth of the internet and e-commerce, online advertising benefits consumers "through the availability of free content and services online", and that the IAB has developed "best practices and standards".

The IAB represents Yahoo, AOL, MSN, Google, Forbes.com, New York Times Digital, CNET Networks, and others.

Zaneis argued that "consumers enjoy the benefits of Internet advertising through the availability of free content and services online. Whether it is customized homepages, a multitude of search engines, free news and entertainment sites, or enhanced services such as video, social networking, and online entertainment or video gaming, the interaction among consumers, publishers, and advertisers fuels the engine that drives the Internet."

He continued that IAB members have incentives for self-regulation. "Consumer confidence in online channels is critical to the vitality of our member companies". Also, the IAB has issued a "Interactive Advertising Bureau Privacy Guidelines" which is at pages 44-47 of the comment.

He concluded that "industry guidelines are the most effective means for setting business standards for legitimate targeted marketing. ... Self-regulation is an extremely effective and efficient means to promote legitimate practices while protecting consumer privacy."

In addition, Randall Rothenberg, head of the IAB, wrote in his November 1, 2007, prepared statement for the FTC's workshop that "The unprecedented proliferation of goods, services, and information diversity that characterize the Internet has been generated within a framework of industry self-regulation and market forces."

He said that it is "incumbent on the business community to ensure that interactive advertising, marketing, and data-use practices are responsible."

Hence, the government "must be prudent in ensuring that no regulation is drawn that would curtail interactive advertising's potential to continue to support this extraordinary pattern of innovation and consumer benefit".

The Network Advertising Initiative (NAI) submitted a comment [PDF] in which it argued that "the online advertising industry currently affords more consumer privacy safeguards through, among other things, privacy policy disclosures, ability to opt-out, ability to manage cookies in the web browser and use of P3P, than any other marketing channel. The Internet has afforded a unique set of easily accessible tools to allow consumers to make granular decisions that simply are not available in an offline context."

It also noted that the FTC "has had numerous successful enforcement actions against companies that have engaged in deceptive practices online".

The NAI comment concludes that "the NAI membership is committed to monitoring the self-regulatory landscape and working with academics, advocates and regulators to address the need for new privacy protections where they emerge".

The NAI states that it "represents Acerno, Advertising.com (an AOL company), AlmondNet, Atlas (a Microsoft company), DoubleClick, Revenue Science, Safecount, Specific Media, Tacoda (an AOL company), 24/7 RealMedia, and [x+1]".

The Software and Information Industry Association (SIIA) submitted a comment [PDF] stating that its members "depend on effective and innovative advertising strategies to gain new customers, maintain existing customers and, in many cases, provide a financial basis for new entrants into the market".

It wrote that not all behavioral advertising involves the collection, use or maintenance of personally identifiable information, and that "to the degree that behavioral advertising involves the collection and use of personally identifiable information, it is the view of SIIA that the FTC’s well-establish approach of enforcing privacy promises, as well as specific statutory provisions, provide the FTC with an already existing and workable framework." (Footnotes omitted.)

10/31. Thomas Barnett, Assistant Attorney General in charge of the Department of Justice's (DOJ) Antitrust Division, gave a speech at George Mason University in northern Virginia titled "Maximizing Welfare Through Technological Innovation".

He discussed increases to efficiency. He first identified what he understands by efficiency. He said that one type is "incremental dynamic efficiency". It "relates to streamlining or otherwise reducing the cost of production using existing technology. ... As an example, think of fine tuning a production line so that it can produce ten widgets per hour instead of eight."

Another is "leapfrog dynamic efficiency, which refers to gains that come from entirely new ways of producing products or services. As an example, think about making video telephone calls on wireless Internet connections rather than landline analog telephones".

He said that economists, and the Antitrust Division, care about "dynamic efficiency -- particularly leapfrog dynamic efficiency" because it "accounts for the lion's share of efficiency/welfare gains".

He said that "simple competition within a given technology is not enough. We need to foster conditions that shift the supply curve ``out,´´ and dynamic efficiency, particularly leapfrog dynamic efficiency, is how best to achieve this result."

He continued that "Since dynamic efficiency is crucial, preserving innovation incentives is one of the most important concerns of U.S. antitrust law. This can mean bringing an action to prevent conduct that reduces innovation or it can mean declining to act where overly aggressive antitrust enforcement risks chilling the type of vigorous, innovative competition that brings long-term benefits to consumers."

He added that "we recognize that when innovation leads to dynamic efficiency improvements and a period of market power, it is not a departure from competition, but it is a particular type of competition, and one that we should be careful not to mistake for a violation of the antitrust laws".

Barnett's speech was about economic principles, and not political processes. He offered an argument as to how antitrust regulators should act. He did not discuss whether antitrust regulators around the world, who are given broad powers, and wide discretion, and who are ultimately responsible to political actors, do in fact follow, or can be to be expected to follow, the principles that he espouses.

10/31. The Government Accountability Office (GAO) released a report [54 pages in PDF] titled "Critical Infrastructure Protection: Sector-Specific Plans' Coverage of Key Cyber Security Elements Varies".

This report states that "federal policy has established a framework for public and private sector partnerships and identified 17 critical infrastructure sectors". These include information technology (IT), telecommunications, banking and finance, and others. (See, the Homeland Security Presidential Directive 7, issued on December 17, 2003, and the Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) National Infrastructure Protection Plan (NIPP), issued in June of 2006.)

The report states that the "NIPP requires each of the lead federal agencies associated with the 17 critical infrastructure sectors to develop plans to address how the sectors’ stakeholders would implement the national plan and how they would improve the security of their assets, systems, networks, and functions. These sector-specific plans are to, among other things, describe how the sector will identify and prioritize its critical assets, including cyber assets, and define approaches the sector will take to assess risks and develop programs to protect these assets."

This report examines the extent to which each of these 17 industry sectors' plans address key aspects of cyber security. The report finds that the IT and telecom plans fully addressed almost all of 30 its criteria, and partially addressed the others.

In contrast, the banking and finance sector's plan, and many others', left unaddressed or partially addressed many of the 30 criteria.

10/26. The Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF) released a report [23 pages in PDF] titled "Improving Health Care: Why a Dose of IT May Be Just What the Doctor Ordered". The author is the ITIF's Daniel Castro.

The report notes the President Bush issued an executive order in 2004 calling for the deployment of a nationwide interoperable health information technology network, including electronic health records (EHR), within 10 years.

See, April 27, 2004, executive order regarding "the development and nationwide implementation of an interoperable health information technology infrastructure". See also, stories titled "President Bush Advocates Conversion to Electronic Medical Records" and "Bush Addresses Privacy of Electronic Medical Records" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 886, April 28, 2004.

The ITIF report continues that the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) "has led this effort. Unfortunately, the results of the national health information network initiative to date have been disappointing. So far, for example, HHS has not established comprehensive standards for the network."

It report asserts that "The strategy of building the network from the bottom up by establishing many regional health information organizations (RHIOs) throughout the country is not working."

It states that part of the problem is that "most of the benefits of health IT accrue largely to parties other than health care providers, there is no convincing value proposition to encourage providers to make long-term investments in EHRs."

The report argues that federal legislation in several areas is necessary.

It states that "Federal leadership is needed to respond to the various challenges of promoting the widespread adoption and use of EHRs."

"Congress should work to pass additional legislation that supports the adoption of EHRs and national health data standards." It states that S 1693 [LOC | WW], the "Wired for Health Care Quality Act", introduced by Sen. Ted Kennedy (D-MA) and Sen. Mike Enzi (R-WY), and HR 3800 [LOC | WW], the "Promoting Health Information Technology Act",  introduced by Rep. Anna Eshoo (D-CA), "would provide new leadership, funding, and organization at the national level to promote health IT".

The ITIF report also argues that "Congress should pass legislation supporting the creation of health record data banks", through bills such as HR 2991 [LOC | WW], the "Independent Health Record Trust Act", introduced by Rep. Dennis Moore (D-KS) and Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI)

The report also advocates requiring "medical practices to disclose patient health information electronically upon request.

10/31. President Bush signed into law HR 3678 [LOC | WW], the "Internet Tax Freedom Act Amendments Act of 2007". See, White House release. The previous moratorium would have expired on November 1, 2007. This bill contains a seven year extension.

The House will meet at 10:00 AM for legislative business. It will consider HR 2262 [LOC | WW], the "Hardrock Mining and Reclamation Act of 2007". See, Majority Leader Hoyer's weekly calendar and schedule for November 1.

The Senate will meet at 10:00 AM for morning business. It will then begin consideration of HR 3963 [LOC | WW], the "Children's Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act of 2007".

Day one of a two day conference hosted by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) titled "Ehavioral Advertising: Tracking, Targeting, and Technology". See, FTC release and conference web site. Location: FTC Conference Center, 601 New Jersey Ave., NW.

8:30 AM - 12:00 NOON. Day two of a two day meeting of the Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) Homeland Security Information Network Advisory Committee (HSINAC). See, notice in the Federal Register, October 12, 2007, Vol. 72, No. 197, at Pages 58108-58109, and Homeland Security Information Network (HSIN) web site. Location: Bolger Center, 9600 Newbridge Drive, Potomac, MD.

8:30 AM - 6:30 PM. Day four of a five day course of instruction hosted by Georgetown University Law Center titled "Georgetown Law -- Academy of WTO Law and Policy". The price to attend is $2,700. For more information, call Christine Washington at 202-662-4052. See, seminar web site and brochure [PDF]. Location: Georgetown Law Gewirz Student Center, 12th Floor, 120 F St., NW.

10:00 AM. The Senate Judiciary Committee (SJC) will hold an executive business meeting. The agenda again includes consideration of the nomination of John Tinder to be a Judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals (7thCir). See, notice. The SJC rarely follows its published agenda. Location: Room 226, Dirksen Building.

10:00 AM. The House Small Business Committee will hold a hearing titled "Evaluating the Impact of Pending Free Trade Agreements upon U.S. Small Businesses". Location: Room 2360, Rayburn Building.

10:00 AM - 5:00 PM. Day one of a two day meeting of the National Science Foundation's (NSF) Advisory Committee for Cyberinfrastructure. See, notice in the Federal Register, September 21, 2007, Vol. 72, No. 183, at Pages 54079-54080. Location: NSF, 4201 Wilson Blvd., Room 375, Arlington, VA.

POSTPONED. 11:00 AM. The R&D Credit Coalition will hold a press conference. The speakers will include Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-UT), Rep. David Camp (R-MI), and Rep. Ellen Tauscher (D-CA). See, HR 2138 [LOC | WW], the "Investment in America Act of 2007", a bill to permanently extend the research and development tax credit, and repeal the alternative incremental credit. Location: Room 1116, Longworth Building.

12:00 NOON. The House Judiciary Committee's (HJC) Subcommittee on Commercial and Administrative Law will hold a hearing on HR 3359 [LOC | WW], the "Mobile Workforce State Income Tax Fairness and Simplification Act of 2007". See, story titled "Summary of Teleworker and Mobile Worker Protection Bills" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,665, October 30, 2007. The hearing will be webcast by the HJC. See, notice. Location: Room 2237, Rayburn Building.

Effective date of most of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office's (USPTO) changes to its Trademark Rules of Practice. These rules changes require, among other things, plaintiffs in Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB) inter partes proceedings to serve on defendants their complaints or claims, and to utilize in TTAB inter partes proceedings a modified form of the disclosure practices included in the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure (FRCP). These rules changes also delete the option of making submissions to the TTAB in CD-ROM form. See, notice in the Federal Register, August 1, 2007, Vol. 72, No. 147, at Pages 42241-42264.

Extended deadline to submit comments to the Department of Commerce's (DOC) Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) in response to its Notice of Inquiry (NOI) regarding its Commerce Control List (CCL). See, original notice in the Federal Register, July 17, 2007, Vol. 72, No. 136, at Pages 39052-39053, and revised notice in the Federal Register, September 6, 2007, Vol. 72, No. 172, at Pages 51213-51214.

Extended deadline to submit reply comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) regarding ten studies related to government regulation of media ownership. See, FCC Public Notice [4 pages in PDF], which is DA 07-3470 in MB Docket Nos. 06-121 and 02-277, and MM Docket Nos. 01-235, 01-317, and 00-244, and notice in the Federal Register, August 8, 2007, Vol. 72, No. 152, at Pages 44539-44540. See also, Public Notice [2 pages in PDF] (DA 07-4097) extending deadlines.

Majority Leader Hoyer's weekly calendar states that "no votes are expected in the House".

Day two of a two day conference hosted by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) titled "Ehavioral Advertising: Tracking, Targeting, and Technology". See, FTC release and conference web site. Location: FTC Conference Center, 601 New Jersey Ave., NW.

8:30 AM - 6:30 PM. Day five of a five day course of instruction hosted by Georgetown University Law Center titled "Georgetown Law -- Academy of WTO Law and Policy". The price to attend is $2,700. For more information, call Christine Washington at 202-662-4052. See, seminar web site and brochure [PDF]. Location: Georgetown Law Gewirz Student Center, 12th Floor, 120 F St., NW.

8:00 AM - 1:00 PM. Day two of a two day meeting of the National Science Foundation's (NSF) Advisory Committee for Cyberinfrastructure. See, notice in the Federal Register, September 21, 2007, Vol. 72, No. 183, at Pages 54079-54080. Location: NSF, 4201 Wilson Blvd., Room 375, Arlington, VA.

9:00 AM - 4:00 PM. The Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) Consumer Advisory Committee will meet. See, notice in the Federal Register, October 17, 2007, Vol. 72, No. 200, Page 58849-58850. Location: FCC, Commission Meeting Room, Room TW-C305, 445 12th St., SW.

9:30 AM - 3:30 PM. The Securities and Exchange Commission's (SEC) Advisory Committee Meeting on Improvements to Financial Reporting will meet. Location: SEC Auditorium, Room L-002, 100 F St., NE.

Daylight savings time ends.

5:00 PM. Deadline to submit comments to the National Institute of Standards and Technology's (NIST) Computer Security Division (CSD) regarding its SP 800-73-2, titled "Interfaces for Personal Identity Verification". See, part 1 [43 pages in PDF], part 2 [29 pages in PDF], and part 3 [19 pages in PDF].

2:00 - 3:30 PM. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce's Coalition Against Counterfeiting and Piracy (CACP) will meet. For more information, contact counterfeiting at uschamber dot com or 202-463-5500. Location: U.S. Chamber, 1615 H St., NW.

2:00 PM. Deadline for petitioner (Quanta Computer) to file its merits brief with the Supreme Court of the US (SCUS) in Quanta Computer v. LG Electronics, a patent infringement case. See, story titled "Supreme Court Grants Certiorari in Patent Exhaustion Case" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,647, September 27, 2007.

Deadline to submit initial comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in response to its Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (FNPRM) regarding potential interference unique to the reverse band operating environment in the 17/24 GHz BSS. This FNPRM is FCC 07-76 in IB Docket No. 06-123. See, notice in the Federal Register, August 22, 2007, Vol. 72, No. 162, at Pages 46939-46949.

Election day.

2:30 - 4:30 PM. The House Science Committee's (HSC) Subcommittee on Technology and Innovation will hold a hearing titled "The Globalization of R&D and Innovation, Pt. IV: Implications for the Science and Engineering Workforce". The witnesses will be Paul Kostek (IEEE-USA), Charles McMillion (MBG Information Services), Harold Salzman (The Urban Institute), and Michael Teitelbaum (Alfred P. Sloan Foundation). The hearing will be webcast by the HSC. Location: Room 2318, Rayburn Building.

9:00 AM. Day one of a two day partially closed meeting of the Department of Commerce's (DOC) Bureau of Industry and Security's (BIS) Information Systems Technical Advisory Committee (ISTAC). The November 7 portion of the meeting is open. The agenda includes "SEMI Comments: China Rule, VEU, Industry Forecast", "Industry Encryption Presentation", "Range and Standards", "History of Encryption Hardware", "MIMO Technology Overview", "Discussion: Draft Wassenaar Proposals for 2008", and "Discussion: Comprehensive Review of Commerce Control List". (VEU is an acronym for the BIS's validated end user program. See, SEMI's web page on VEU and the PRC. MIMO is an acronym for multiple input multiple output, a 4G antenna technology that is used both in transmission and receiver equipment for wireless radio communication, for VOIP and other applications. See, Nortel's MIMO web page.) This portion of the meeting will also be teleconferenced. Submit applications to participate by teleconference to Yvette Springer at Yspringer at bis dot doc dot gov by October 31, 2007. See, notice in the Federal Register, October 23, 2007, Vol. 72, No. 204, at Page 60000. Location: Room 4830, Hoover Building, 14th St. between Constitution and Pennsylvania Avenues, NW.

10:00 AM. The U.S. Court of Appeals (FedCir) will hear oral argument in Matsushita Electric v. Samsung, App. Ct. No. 2007-1156. Location: Courtroom 203.

12:30 - 2:30 PM. The DC Bar Association will host a panel discussion titled "Trade, Investment and Politics". The speakers will include Mario Gustavo Guzmán Saldana (Ambassador of Bolivia to the US), Efrén Cocíos (Ambassador of Ecuador to Permanent Mission to the Organization of American States), Bernardo Álvarez (Ambassador of Venezuela to the US), Rep. Gregory Meeks, (D-NY), Everett Eissenstat (Assistant US Trade Representative for the Americas), Thomas Shannon (Assistant Secretary of State, Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs), and Omar Garcia (BG Consulting, Inc.). The price to attend ranges from $5 to $25. For more information, call 202-626-3463. See, notice. This event was previously escheduled for September 13, 2007. Location: Alston & Bird, 950 F St., NW.

1:30 - 4:00 PM. Day one of a three day meeting of the National Science Foundation's (NSF) Mathematical and Physical Sciences Advisory Committee. See, notice in the Federal Register, October 11, 2007, Vol. 72, No. 196, at Page 57966. Location: Room 375, NSF, 4201 Wilson Boulevard, Arlington, VA.

6:00 - 8:15 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association (FCBA) will host at seminar titled "Drafting Consumer Contracts" The price to attend is ranges from $25 to $135. Reservations and cancellations are due by 12:00 NOON on November 5. See, registration form [PDF]. This event qualifies for CLE credits. Location: Arnold & Porter, 555 12th St., NW.

6:00 - 8:30 PM. The DC Bar Association will hold a closed event titled "A Practitioner's Guide to the New TTAB Rules". The speakers will include Gerald Rogers (USPTO, TTAB Judge), Linda McLeod (Finnegan Henderson, and former TTAB Judge), and Christianna Lewis (Finnegan Henderson). The price to attend ranges from $80 to $115. For more information, call 202-626-3488. See, notice. Location: DC Bar Conference Center, B-1 Level, 1250 H St., NW.

Deadline to submit comments to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) regarding the overall costs, benefits, and regulatory and economic impact of its Mail or Telephone Order Merchandise Rule (MTOR). See, notice in the Federal Register, September 11, 2007, Vol. 72, No. 175, at Pages 51728-51730.

8:00 AM - 6:00 PM. Day two of a three day meeting of the National Science Foundation's (NSF)Mathematical and Physical Sciences Advisory Committee. See, notice in the Federal Register, October 11, 2007, Vol. 72, No. 196, at Page 57966. Location: Room 375, NSF, 4201 Wilson Boulevard, Arlington, VA.

9:00 AM. Day two of a two day partially closed meeting of the Department of Commerce's (DOC) Bureau of Industry and Security's (BIS) Information Systems Technical Advisory Committee (ISTAC). The November 8 portion of the meeting is closed to the public. The agenda is secret. See, notice in the Federal Register, October 23, 2007, Vol. 72, No. 204, at Page 60000. Location: Room 4884, Hoover Building, 14th St. between Constitution and Pennsylvania Avenues, NW.

2:00 - 3:00 PM. The President's National Security Telecommunications Advisory Committee (NSTAC) will meet by teleconference. The meeting will be partially closed. The agenda for the open portion of the meeting includes "an overview of NSTAC's investigation of identity management and emergency communications interoperability for national security and emergency preparedness communications". The agenda of the closed portion of the meeting includes a discussions and votes on an "investigation of the global network infrastructure environment" and an "investigation of commercial systems' reliance on global positioning systems for network timing synchronization". See, notice in the Federal Register, October 12, 2007, Vol. 72, No. 197, at Pages 58110-58111.

6:00 - 9:15 PM. The DC Bar Association will host a continuing legal education (CLE) program titled "How to Litigate a Patent Infringement Case". The speakers will be Patrick Coyne and Jerry Ivey (Finnegan Henderson). The price to attend ranges from $80 to $115. For more information, call 202-626-3488. See, notice. Location: DC Bar Conference Center, B-1 Level, 1250 H St., NW.

Deadline to submit comments to the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) to assist it in preparing its annual report titled "National Trade Estimate Report on Foreign Trade Barriers". See, notice in the Federal Register, August 29, 2007, Vol. 72, No. 167, at Pages 49745-49746.

10/26. Gigi Sohn, head of the Public Knowledge (PK), a Washington DC based group, gave a speech at Boston University in Boston, Massachusetts, in which she proposed six reforms to copyright law. See also, PK release.

She said that "copyright law has become out of touch with our technological reality to the detriment of creators and the public. Pre-VCR copyright policies must be transformed to embrace our new user generated culture". She offered six proposals.

First, "Fair Use Reform. The existing four-part legal test for fair use should be expanded to add incidental, transformative and non-commercial personal uses of content. In addition, Congress should provide that making a digital copy of a work for indexing searches is not an infringement."

Second, "Limits on Secondary Liability." Sohn argued that the Supreme Court's 1984 opinion in Sony Corp. of America v. Universal City Studios, Inc., 464 U.S. 417, "should be codified".

Third, "Protections Against Copyright Abuse." She argued that the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA), which is codified at 17 U.S.C. § 1201, et seq., "should be expanded to deter copyright holders from filing frivolous requests that material be taken down from a web site. Congress should provide legal relief for legitimate users of a work should copyright owners overstate their rights." See also, the Copyright Office's summary of the DMCA [PDF].

Fourth, "Fair and Accessible Licensing. Congress should simplify the Byzantine world of obtaining rights to use a musical work, and should require broadcasters to pay performance royalties as satellite and Internet radio do."

Fifth, "Orphan Works Reform. Congress should limit damages for the use of works for which a copyright can not be found after a good-faith search. In addition, competitive visual registries should be established to protect visual artists and photographers."

Sixth, "Notice of Technological and Contractual Restrictions on Digital Media. Copyright holders should be required to provide clear and simple notice to consumers of any technological or contractual limitations on a consumer’s ability to make fair use or other lawful use of a product. There would be legal consequences if that notice isn’t followed."

10/31. Norihiko Minato was named head of the AT&T Asia Pacific and Japan region, effective November 1, 2007. He will replace Gopi Gopinath who will lead AT&T's global business services in India. See, AT&T release.

10/29. President Bush will give a Presidential Medal of Freedom to C-SPAN's Brian Lamb at a White House ceremony on November 5, 2007. A White House release states that Lamb "has elevated America's public debate and helped open up our government to citizens across the Nation. His dedication to a transparent political system and the free flow of ideas has enriched and strengthened our democracy." The National Cable & Telecommunications Association (NCTA) stated in a release that Lamb "was the industry's torch carrier in persuading Congress more than a quarter-century ago to support his then-revolutionary idea of televising Congressional proceedings -- no easy task at the time."

10/31. The House Ways and Means Committee approved HR 3688 [LOC | WW], the "United States-Peru Trade Promotion Agreement Implementation Act". The US and Peru entered into this trade promotion agreement on April 12, 2006. See, story titled "US and Peru Sign Trade Agreement" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,349, April 13, 2006. It was amended on June 24 and June 25, 2007. Chapter 16 [33 pages in PDF] pertains to intellectual property, Chapter 14 [15 pages in PDF] pertains to telecommunications, and Chapter 15 [3 pages in PDF] pertains to electronic commerce. Susan Schwab, the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR), stated in a release that "With this vote, committee members are opening up Peru's market to U.S. exports and cementing the benefits of two-way trade for both our nations. I look forward to an overwhelming bipartisan vote by the full House in favor of this agreement."

10/30. The Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC) and others sent a letter [5 pages in PDF] to the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) urging the removal of registrants' contact information from the publicly accessible WHOIS database. They argued that "Current ICANN WHOIS policy conflicts with national privacy laws, including the EU Data Protection Directive, which requires the establishment of a legal framework to ensure that when personal information is collected, it is used only for its intended purpose. As personal information in the directory is used for other purposes and ICANN's policy keeps the information public and anonymously accessible, the database could be found illegal according to many national privacy and data protection laws including the European Data Protection Directive, European data protection laws and legislation in Canada and Australia." See also, story titled "House Subcommittee Holds Hearing on Access to WHOIS Database" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,423, August 2, 2006.

10/30. The Progress & Freedom Foundation (PFF) released a paper [14 pages in PDF] titled "Inadvertent Filesharing Revisited: Assessing LimeWire’s Responses to the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform". The authors are Tom Sydnor (PFF), Lee Hollaar (University of Utah, School of Computing), and John Knight (University of Utah student). See also, PFF release. And see, story titled "Representatives Write FTC Regarding Inadvertent P2P File Sharing" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,658, October 19, 2007.

10/29. The Department of Commerce's (DOC) National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) announced in a release that it will "consult with interested stakeholders regarding the mid-term review of the Joint Project Agreement (JPA)" between the DOC and the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN). It also stated that the NTIA "will soon release" a Notice of Inquiry (NOI). Comments will be due by February 15, 2008.

10/29. The Supreme Court of the US (SCUS) denied certiorari in Advanced Cellular Systems v. Puerto Rico Telephone Company, a bankruptcy case. See, Orders List [13 pages in PDF] at page 4, and SCUS docket. This lets stand the March 28, 2007, opinion of the U.S. Court of Appeals (1stCir). This case is Advanced Cellular Systems, Inc., et al. v. Puerto Rico Telephone Company, dba Verizon Wireless, U.S. Supreme Court, Sup. Ct. No. 07-269, a petition for writ of certiorari to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 1st Circuit, App. Ct. No. 06-1332.

10/29. The Center for Democracy and Technology (CDT) and others filed their amicus curiae brief [46 pages in PDF] with the U.S. Court of Appeals (3rdCir) in ACLU v. Gonzales, a long running challenge to the constitutionality of the Child Online Protection Act (COPA), which is codified at 47 U.S.C. § 231. The COPA bans sending to minors over the web material that is harmful to minors. The COPA also allows web site operators to distribute pornography, but requires those web sites which distribute material that is harmful to children to verify adult status through the use of credit cards, adult access codes, adult PIN numbers, or other technologies. The amici include the CDT, Computer & Communications Industry Association (CCIA), Information Technology Association of America (ITAA), and other internet, publishing, content, journalism and library groups. They argue that the "COPA creates significant burdens on constitutionally protected speech on the Internet while being less effective than a broad range of less restrictive alternatives, including both technological user empowerment tools and parental guidance." The Congress enacted the COPA in late 1998.

10/26. The U.S. Court of Appeals (3rdCir) issued two corrections [3 pages in PDF] to its October 16, 2007, opinion [PDF] in Time Warner Telecom v. FCC. This opinion denied petitions for review of the FCC's August 2005 order that classifies wireline broadband internet access service as an information service. See also, story titled "3rd Circuit Upholds FCC's Wireline Broadband Order" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,656, October 17, 2007.

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