9/22. The Department of Justice's (DOJ) Antitrust Division and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced in a release that they will "solicit public comment and hold joint public workshops to explore the possibility of updating" the Horizontal Merger Guidelines (HMG).

The HMG were last revised in 1997. Although, a "Commentary" was issued in 2006. The HMG state that they "outline the present enforcement policy" of the Antitrust Division and the FTC concerning horizontal acquisitions and mergers subject to § 7 of the Clayton Act (15 U.S.C. § 18), § 1 of the Sherman Act (15 U.S.C. § 1), or § 5 of the FTC Act (15 U.S.C. § 45).

The HMG include, among other things, product market definition, which is often at issue with new information and communications technologies (see, Chapter 1.1), the Herfindahl-Hirschman Index (HHI), which measures concentration in markets, and is often important in analyzing telecommunications mergers (see, Chapter 1.5), and unilateral effects, which is applied to mergers where products are highly differentiated, such as in the tech sector (see, Chapter 2.2).

Product market definition was at issue in DOJ's attempt to block the Oracle PeopleSoft transaction in 2004. The question is made more complex in the tech sector, because software products and electronic devices are often differentiated. See, stories titled "Antitrust Division Sues Oracle to Enjoin Its Proposed Acquisition of PeopleSoft" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 846, March 1, 2004, and "DOJ Loses Oracle Case" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 974, September 10, 2004.

One way to look at anticompetitive effects of mergers is the extent to which concentration is increased, and hence, the potential for coordination, such as raising prices, is increased. Another way is to look at the potential unilateral effects in markets where products are highly differentiated. Here, price or other coordination is difficult. There is a body of theory, which is incorporated into the current HMG, that states that "A merger may diminish competition even if it does not lead to increased likelihood of successful coordinated interaction, because merging firms may find it profitable to alter their behavior unilaterally following the acquisition by elevating price and suppressing output. Unilateral competitive effects can arise in a variety of different settings."

The DOJ/FTC release states that the two regulators "will issue a set of questions about the current Guidelines and possible revisions." These include: "the overall method of analysis used by the agencies; the use of more direct forms of evidence of competitive effects; market definition; market shares and market concentration; unilateral effects, especially in markets with differentiated products; price discrimination; geographic market definition; the relevance of large buyers; the distinction between uncommitted and committed entry; the distinction between efficiencies involving fixed and marginal cost savings; the non-price effects of mergers, especially the effects of mergers on innovation; and remedies."

The release also states that "Following receipt of public comments and original research addressing those questions or other issues related to the Guidelines, the agencies will host a series of five workshops. The workshops, which are open to the public and press, will take place in December 2009 and January 2010. The first workshop will be held in Washington, D.C., on Dec. 3, 2009, followed by workshops in Chicago, New York City and San Francisco. A final workshop also will be held in Washington, D.C."

Christine Varney, the Assistant Attorney General in charge of the DOJ's Antitrust Division, gave a speech in Washington DC, on September 22 in which she discussed the HMG.

She offered this summary of the application of antitrust law to horizontal mergers. "The ability to substantially lessen competition occurs when a merger creates or enhances market power or facilitates its continued exercise. The core purpose of the Guidelines is to provide a set of tools illuminating whether a given merger is likely to create, enhance, or facilitate market power and thereby have harmful effects on consumers. Those harmful effects can take many forms, including higher prices, slower innovation, lower quality, and reduced product variety. In some cases, a transaction's effects may take the form of reduced incentives to innovate, to cut prices, or to expand consumer choice through product variety. In other cases, the impact on market structure will increase the opportunity for coordinated behavior and raise the risks of the associated anticompetitive effects. Regardless of the particular form of the competitive harm, the bottom line is that mergers that create or facilitate the exercise of unilateral or coordinated market power tend to harm competition and are therefore prohibited by the antitrust laws."

The HMG then provide "broad transparency to businesses and the antitrust bar as to how the Agencies approach merger review".

She stressed many times that the last major revision of the HMG was conducted in 1992.

Varney concluded that "although I am not prejudging the process, if a Guidelines update is deemed worthwhile, I would not at this time anticipate departing from some of the basic elements in the current Guidelines: the use of the hypothetical-monopolist test to define relevant markets, the use of HHI measures of concentration to establish structural presumptions, the centrality of the inquiry into competitive effects, the "timeliness, likelihood, and sufficiency" structure of entry analysis, and the basic treatment of efficiencies and failing firms. Instead, I envision potentially updating the Guidelines to reflect the evolution of practice and advances in learning that have taken place since 1992 largely by (1) clarifying concepts in the current Guidelines that may not be expressed as clearly or fully as they could be, and (2) incorporating some of the useful guidance that already exists in the 2006 Commentary on the Horizontal Merger Guidelines into the Guidelines themselves."

9/22. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Commissioner Michael Copps gave a speech in which he argued for government planning and regulation of broadband internet services.

He said that "a new day has dawned at the" FCC, and "I believe this FCC is poised to do historic things."

Copps (at right) said of FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski that "your leadership is already paying huge dividends -- we have only to witness your historic announcement yesterday on Internet Freedom to appreciate that". See, story titled "Genachowski, Copps and Clyburn Back Net Neutrality Rules" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1986, September 22, 2009.

He reviewed the history of infrastructure build outs in the U.S. and concluded that "Where we've been the last eight years -- operating on the misguided and totally a historical premise that business alone can get the broadband job done, even in those areas where no business plan attracts business -- ignores the way we built this country's infrastructure over the years."

He also insisted that broadband policy development "is not going to be another one of those ``inside jobs.´´"

He also spoke about FCC regulation of broadcasters. He said that there has been "mindless deregulation of public interest protections that undergirded the country's media landscape for decades".

"We should be developing policies", said Copps, "to use some of that new digital television multi-cast capacity for programs that focus on local culture and diversity groups, on local civic affairs and elections, on local music and arts and sports." He also suggested that going forward the FCC should only renew a broadcast license if the station is "serving the interests of its locality".

Copps concluded by stating that "Powerful interests on the other side may think they can outlast us. I don't believe it." He did not disclose who the powerful interests are, or what the other side is.

9/22. Adam Thierer and Berin Szoka, both of the Progress & Freedom Foundation (PFF), wrote a short piece [3 pages in PDF] critical of FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski's September 21, 2009, speech [8 pages in PDF] advocating promulgation of network neutrality rules. The two also warned of a trend towards many forms of regulation of internet related activities and products.

"There was a time, not so long ago, when the term ``Internet Freedom´´ actually meant what it implied: a cyberspace free from over-zealous legislators and bureaucrats", wrote Thierer (at left) and Szoka. "Those days are now gone; the presumption of online liberty is giving way to a presumption of regulation. A massive assault on real Internet freedom has been gathering steam for years and has finally come to a head. Ironically, victory for those who carry the banner of ``Internet Freedom´´ would mean nothing less than the death of that freedom."

They continued that "real Internet Freedom ... is about to start dying a death by a thousand regulatory cuts. Policymakers and activists groups are ramping up the FCC's regulatory machine for a massive assault on cyber liberty. This assault rests on the supposed superiority of common carriage regulation and ``public interest´´ mandates over not just free markets and property rights, but over general individual liberties and freedom of speech in particular."

Thierer and Szoka (at right) worry that various proposals "would put the FCC in the driver's seat for a host of Internet economic and social issues ... The specter of neutrality haunts not just today’s Internet service providers but also all high-tech innovators, like Google, Apple, Facebook, Microsoft, and their descendants."

They added that "Although the FCC's original mandate was mostly to deal with spectrum ``interference´´ -- something that could have been, and actually was being, dealt with using property rights -- the agency quickly expanded its mission: Broadcast regulation metastasized into government control over speech, innovation, campaign advertising and a ``fairness doctrine´´ for news coverage. Likewise, Net Neutrality mandates will give rise to neutrality mandates for other areas."

They predict that the FCC is heading towards regulation in the name of wireless neutrality, device neutrality, and application neutrality. "At the end of the day, we'll need a full-blown Federal Information Commission with a Search Bureau, a Cloud Computing Division and several other ministries to micro-manage the many flavors of neutrality regulation."

See also, story titled "Genachowski, Copps and Clyburn Back Net Neutrality Rules", and stories titled "McDowell and Baker Comment on Genachowski Proposal to Adopt Net Neutrality Rules", "Sen. Hutchison Offers Amendment to Appropriations Bill to Block FCC Net Neutrality Rulemaking", and "More Reaction to Genachowski's Network Neutrality Speech" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,986, September 22, 2009.

9/22. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) announced in a release that it "strongly supports" FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski's net neutrality rules proposal. The ACLU's Christopher Calabrese stated that "The Internet is the greatest forum for free speech ever created, and these net neutrality principles, if adopted, will ensure access to the wide variety of information and services available online. The rules proposed by the Chairman Genachowski will allow the American public to choose how it accesses and uses the Internet without interference from some corporate monopoly. The ACLU wholeheartedly supports the FCC in its efforts to make the Internet a free marketplace of ideas. We must remain vigilant against any attempt by telecommunications corporations or cable companies to restrict content and services, stifling freedom and innovation online."

9/22. The American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) announced in a release that it "believes that a free and open Internet is best guaranteed by marketplace competition, not by government regulation ... Consumers should have access to their choice of legal Internet content, but there is simply no evidence of any problem requiring such far-reaching governmental intrusion. Pretended future dangers are a poor excuse for any attempt by the FCC to make itself the Internet’s traffic controller. Bureaucratic second-guessing of network management decisions by broadband providers will only serve to chill Internet innovation and investment."

9/21. Marc-Anthony Signorino of the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM) stated in a release that "We are concerned that new FCC rules on net neutrality could discourage investment, expansion and research and development by network equipment companies, applications and content firms, broadband network builders and other high tech firms." He added that "Our future economic growth depends on the ability of businesses and individuals to easily secure robust broadband services, not impeded by burdensome regulations. Manufacturers have invested strongly in the Internet -- enabling it to become the engine of our innovation economy. We will be working closely with the FCC to assure that its new rules address real issues, and not kill the goose that lays the golden eggs."

9/15. The Homeland Security Advisory Council (HSAC) issued a report [17 pages in PDF] titled "Homeland Security Advisory System: Task Force Report and Recommendations".

It recommends, among other things, "a national threat warning system for terrorist attacks is as central now as it was when today's system was established in 2002".

It offers recommendations for changes to the system, which is best known for its color codes.

For example, it states that "Since 9/11, a revolution has upended media and communications; the Homeland Security Advisory System should stay current with the communications revolution and adopt an "all tools" approach in reaching the general public. In addition to conventional media, this approach should encompass:
 • New media generally (i.e. Twitter, Facebook, MySpace, Wikis, etc.)
 • Bloggers
 • Social media
 • Delivery through PDAs
 • Public sign up for online/PDA alerts"

See also, October 31, 2006, report [7 pages in PDF] titled "Multi-State ISAC Procedures and Protocols for Cyber Alert Indicator".

9/22. The People's Republic of China (PRC) filed an appeal with the Appellate Body of the World Trade Organization (WTO) of the August 11, 2009, WTO Panel report [491 pages in PDF]. This pertains to the PRC's access barriers for content distributors.

On April 10, 2007, the U.S. filed its complaint with the WTO. See, story titled "US to Complain to WTO Regarding PR China's Failure to Protect IPR" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,562, April 9, 2007. The European Communities joined in the complaint in April. Japan, Korea, Taiwan and Australia reserved their third party rights.

On August 11, 2009, a panel of the WTO released its report and a document containing the final 9 pages, subtitled "Conclusions and Recommendations". The panel concluded that the PRC's access barriers violate its WTO commitments. See also, story titled "WTO Panel Rules in PRC IPR Case" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,979, August 24, 2009.

The Motion Picture Association of America's (MPAA) Greg Frazier stated in a release that "We remain committed to the strength of the United States' case. The initial decision was a significant win for the U.S. film industry and we are confident that the U.S. position will prevail, again, as the appeals process unfolds. While we respect China’s right to appeal and its decision to do so, we regret that the Chinese government did not move to implement the changes to bring itself into compliance with its WTO obligations. We will vigorously support the U.S.'s position in the appeal while standing ready to discuss with the Chinese a mutually acceptable way to move forward to resolve this dispute."

9/21. The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (OUSTR), Department of State (DOS), and the Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) announced in a release that officials from the US, Japan, People's Republic of China, Taiwan, Korea, and the European Union held a two day meeting in JeJu, Korea to discuss counterfeiting of semiconductor products. This release states that the "customs experts reaffirmed their commitment to protect and enforce intellectual property rights. They shared their experiences and best practices in the fight against counterfeit semiconductors, from both import and export customs control perspectives, and presented options for enforcement actions between GAMS members and increasing cooperation between members and industry." GAMS is the Governments/Authorities Meeting on Semiconductors.

9/21. The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (OUSTR) announced in a release that USTR Ron Kirk met in Washington DC with Russia's First Deputy Prime Minister Igor Shuvalov regarding IPR and Russia's WTO accession. They discussed, among other things, "protection of intellectual property rights, and licensing procedures for certain information technology products", and Russia's efforts to join the World Trade Organization (WTO). The USTR release states that the US "continues to support Russia's individual accession to the WTO".

9/18. The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (OUSTR) released a vaguely worded statement regarding ongoing Doha round negotiations. "We were pleased with the efforts and outcome that emerged this week. We were particularly pleased with the broad recognition emerging from the Senior Official consultations that, in addition to re-energizing the multilateral negotiating process, an important element of moving Doha forward will be for key Members to begin a sustained bilateral engagement to assess the nature of the gaps that exist and address them -- particularly with regard to market-opening contributions under Doha by key emerging markets." Also, "While we do not underestimate the challenges presented to many members by the remaining issues, we believe that with this kind of direct and sustained engagement important progress can be made in advancing Doha toward a successful conclusion."

9/16. Pascal Lamy (at right), Director General of the World Trade Organization (WTO), gave a speech regarding, among other things, the Doha development agenda (DDA). He said that "what is outstanding in the DDA negotiations is doable and a deal is within reach, but to get there, we still need a translation of the current global political support into tangible negotiating moves."

9/15. September 15, 2009, was the deadline to submit comments to the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (OUSTR) regarding the free trade agreement (FTA) between the U.S. and Korea. Representatives of the two nations signed this FTA back on June 30, 2007. Democrats in the Congress have declined to approve it. This FTA includes technology related provisions. See, text of the FTA, and sections regarding telecommunications [17 pages in PDF], electronic commerce [4 pages in PDF], and intellectual property rights [35 pages in PDF]. The International Intellectual Property Alliance (IIPA) submitted comments. See also, OUSTR release.

9/22. President Obama announced his intent to nominate Alan Bersin to be Commissioner of  the Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP). He is currently as DHS Assistant Secretary for International Affairs and Special Representative for Border Affairs. See, White House news office release, and DHS release. CBP has responsibilities with respect to seizure of counterfeit and pirated products imported in violation of intellectual property laws. It also has a history of unnecessary, abusive and unreasonable searches and seizures of laptop commuters and other electronic devices.

9/18. The National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) named former Sen. Gordon Smith (R-OR) (at left) P/CEO. He was a member of the Senate Commerce Committee (SCC). See, NAB release.

9/11. Ike Brannon joined the House Commerce Committee's (HCC) Republican staff as staff economist. He briefly worked for the Senate Republican Policy Committee. Before that, he was chief economist for Sen. John McCain's (R-AZ) presidential campaign. He has also worked at the Department of the Treasury, for Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-UT), for the the Joint Economic Committee (JEC), and for the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). See, Rep. Joe Barton's (R-TX) release.

9/11. The National Science Foundation (NSF) published a notice in the Federal Register that announces the membership of its Senior Executive Service Performance Review Board. See, Federal Register, September 11, 2009, Vol. 74, No. 175, at Pages 46797-46798.

9/3. John Doll, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office's (USPTO) Commissioner for Patents will retire from the USPTO on October 2, 2009. Robert Stoll will replace Doll as Commissioner for Patents. Peggy Focarino will be Deputy Commissioner for Patents. All three are long time employees of the USPTO. See, USPTO release.

9/3. Verizon Communications announced in a release that P/COO Dennis Strigl "intends to retire from the company by the end of 2009, after 41 years in the communications industry". Ivan Seidenberg remains Ch/CEO.

9/22. On August 28, 2009, the U.S. District Court (EDMich) signed Stipulated Judgment and Order for Permanent Injunction [28 pages in PDF] in USA v. New Edge Satellite, a Telemarketing Sales Rule (TSR) case involving calls by a Dish Network dealer to numbers listed on the National Do Not Call Registry. This case is USA v. New Edge Satellite, Inc. and Derek Lavictor, U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, Northern Division, D.C. No. 2:09-cv-11100-MOB-PJK. In a related TSR case, on August 10, 2009, the U.S. District Court (EDMich) signed a Stipulated Judgment and Order for Permanent Injunction [27 pages in PDF] in USA v. Vision Quest. This case is USA v. Vision Quest, LLC and Brian K. Cavett, U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, Southern Division, D.C. No. 2:09-cv-11102-AJT-VMM. On September 22, 2009, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) issued a release in which it stated that "The lawsuit against Dish Network is still in litigation."

9/22. The Copyright Office published a notice in Federal Register that extends the deadline to submit reply comments regarding its proposed rules regarding registration of copyright in online works. See, original notice in the Federal Register, July 15, 2009, Vol. 74, No. 134, at Pages 34286-34290, and extension notice in the Federal Register, September 22, 2009, Vol. 74, No. 182, at Page 48191. See also, story titled "Copyright Office Proposes New Rules for Registration of Online Only Works" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,970, July 15, 2009.

9/22. The Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC) sent a letter to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) asking when it will release its overdue annual privacy report.

9/21. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Commissioner Mignon Clyburn gave a speech [8 pages in PDF], primarily about the FCC's drafting of a "National Broadband Plan".

The House will meet at 10:00 AM for legislative business. The House will consider, under suspension of the rules, HR 3593 [LOC | WW], an untitled bill to amend the United States International Broadcasting Act of 1994 to extend by one year the operation of Radio Free Asia. See, Rep. Hoyer's schedule for week of September 21, and schedule for September 22.

The Senate will meet at 9:30 AM for morning business. It will then resume consideration of HR 2996 [LOC | WW], the "Department of the Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2010".

10:00 AM. The Senate Judiciary Committee (SJC) will hold a hearing titled "Reauthorizing the USA PATRIOT Act: Ensuring Liberty and Security". The witnesses will be David Kris (Assistant Attorney General in charge of the DOJ's National Security Division), Glen Fine (DOJ Inspector General), Suzanne Spaulding (Bingham Consulting Group), Kenneth Wainstein (O'Melveny & Meyers), and Lisa Graves (Center for Media and Democracy). The SJC will webcast this event. See, notice. Location: Room 226, Dirksen Building.

10:00 AM. The House Judiciary Committee's (HJC) Subcommittee on Courts and Competition Policy will hold a hearing titled "Expansion of Top Level Domains and its Effects on Competition". The witnesses will be Doug Brent (COO of ICANN), Richard Heath (International Trademark Association), Paul Stahura (eNOM), and Steve DelBianco (NetChoice). See, notice. The HJC will webcast this event. Location: Room 2141, Rayburn Building.

10:00 AM. The U.S. Court of Appeals (FedCir) will hear oral argument in I4i v. Microsoft, App. Ct. No. 2009-1504. This is a patent infringement case involving XML and Microsoft Word. Location: Courtroom 201.

12:00 NOON. Joe Jarzombek, the Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) National Protection Programs Directorate's (NPPD) Director of Software Assurance, will give a speech about the role of software assurance in the workplace at an event hosted by the Quality Assurance Institute. Location: The Conference Center at the Maritime Institute, 692 Maritime Blvd., Linthicum Heights, MD.

1:00 - 4:00 PM. The U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission will hold one of a series of meetings to consider staff drafts of material for its 2009 Annual Report to Congress. See, notice in the Federal Register, August 5, 2009, Vol. 74, No. 149, at Pages 39145-39146. Location: Conference Room 231, Hall of States, 444 North Capitol St., NW.

2:30 PM. The Senate Judiciary Committee (SJC) will hold a hearing on four nominees for judgeships in California. The nominees are Jacqueline Nguyen and Dolly Gee (U.S. District Court for the Central District of California) and Edward Chen and Richard Seeborg (USDC, Northern District of California). The SJC will webcast this hearing. Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) will preside. See, notice. Location: Room 226, Dirksen Building.

4:00 - 6:00 PM. The House Intelligence Committee's (HIC) Subcommittee on Terrorism, HUMINT, Analysis and Counterintelligence will hold a closed hearing titled "I&A Reform Effects". See, notice. Location: Room HVC-304 Hearing Room, Capitol Building.

Day two of a three day closed event hosted by the New America Foundation (NAF) titled "Beyond Broadband Access: Data Based Information Policy for a New Administration". See, notice. Location: NAF, Suite 400, 1899 L St., NW.

Day three of a five day event titled "Network Centric Operations Industry Consortium Plenary". The afternoon session may begin at 1:30 PM. Chad Raduege (USAF) may give a speech titled "J6 -- GIG 2.0, Web 2.0 and Information Sharing". There may then be a panel disscussion titled "Cybersecurity and Critical Infrastructure Protection". The panelists may include Bob Lentz (DOD Director of Information Assurance), Bruce McConnell (DHS National Protection & Programs Directorate), Sherrill Nicely (Deputy IC CIO, Office of Director of National Intelligence), Neill Sciarrone (BAE Systems), and Michael Brown (DHS NPPD Deputy Assistant Secretary for Cybersecurity and Communications). See, conference web site and agenda. Location: Fair Lakes Hyatt, 12777 Fair Lakes Circle, Fairfax, VA..

The House will meet at 10:00 AM for legislative business. See, Rep. Hoyer's schedule for week of September 21.

9:00 AM - 4:30 PM. The National Telecommunications and Information Administration's (NTIA) Online Safety and Technology Working Group (OSTWG) will meet. See, agenda [PDF] and notice in the Federal Register, September 8, 2009, Vol. 74, No. 172, at Pages 46099-46100. Location: Department of Commerce, Room 4830, 1401 Constitution Ave., NW.

10:00 AM. The House Commerce Committee's (HCC) Subcommittee on Communications, Technology and the Internet will hold a hearing titled "A National Interoperable Broadband Network For Public Safety: Recent Developments". See, notice. Location: Room 2123, Rayburn Building.

10:00 AM. The House Homeland Security Committee's (HHSC) Subcommittee on Intelligence, Information Sharing and Terrorism Risk Assessment will hold a hearing titled "I&A Reconceived: Defining a Homeland Security Intelligence Role". The witness will be Bart Johnson, acting Under Secretary in charge of the DHS's Office of Intelligence and Analysis. The HHSC will webcast this hearing. See, notice. Location: Room 311, Cannon Building.

10:00 AM. The Senate Judiciary Committee (SJC) will hold an executive business meeting. The agenda includes consideration of HR 985 [LOC | WW] and S 448 [LOC | WW], both titled the "Free Flow of Information Act of 2009", and S 1670 [LOC | WW], the "Satellite Television Modernization Act of 2009". The agenda also includes consideration of four U.S. Attorney nomination: Paul Fishman (District of New Jersey), Jenny Durkan (Western District of Washington), Florence Nakakuni (District of Hawaii), and Deborah Gilg (District of Nebraska). See, notice. The SJC will webcast this event. The SJC rarely follows its published agendas. Location: Room 226, Dirksen Building.

10:00 AM - 4:00 PM. The U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission will hold one of a series of meetings to consider staff drafts of material for its 2009 Annual Report to Congress. See, notice in the Federal Register, August 5, 2009, Vol. 74, No. 149, at Pages 39145-39146. Location: Conference Room 231, Hall of States, 444 North Capitol St., NW.

1:00 PM. The House Small Business Committee's (HSBC) Subcommittee on contracting and Technology will hold a hearing titled "The Roles of Federal Labs in Spurring Innovation and Entrepreneurship Across the U.S." Location: Room 2360, Rayburn Building.

2:00 - 4:00 PM. The House Science Committee's (HSC) Subcommittee on Research and Science Education will meet to mark up HR __, the "Cybersecurity Research and Development Amendments Act of 2009". The HSC will webcast this event. Location: Room 2318, Rayburn Building.

3:00 - 4:30 PM. The House Intelligence Committee (HIC) will hold a closed hearing. The witness will be Dennis Blair (Director of National Intelligence). See, notice. Location: Room HVC-304 Conference Room 1, Capitol Building.

Day three of a three day closed event hosted by the New America Foundation (NAF) titled "Beyond Broadband Access: Data Based Information Policy for a New Administration". See, notice. Location: NAF, Suite 400, 1899 L St., NW.

Deadline to submit comments, or petitions to deny, to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in response to the applications of Caribbean Crossings Ltd. and Trinity Communications Ltd. for transfer of control pursuant to the Submarine Cable Landing Licensing Act and Section 214 of the Communications Act. Since the Bahamas is not a member of the World Trade Organization (WTO) the applicants seek an FCC determination that the Bahamas provides effective competitive opportunities to U.S. carriers. See, public notice [PDF]. It is DA 09-1856 in IB Docket No. 09-149.

The House will meet at 9:00 AM for legislative business. See, Rep. Hoyer's schedule for week of September 21.

9:00 - 10:30 AM. The Progress & Freedom Foundation (PFF) will host a panel discussion titled "Next-Generation Parental Controls & Child Safety Efforts". The speakers will be Adam Thierer (PFF), Stephen Balkam (Family Online Safety Institute), Steve Crown (Microsoft), and Dane Snowden (CTIA). See, notice and registration page. Location, Room H-137, Capitol Building.

10:00 AM - 12:00 NOON. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) will hold a workshop titled "Ten-Digit Numbering and E911 Requirements for VRS and IP Relay". See, notice. Location: FCC, Commission Meeting Room, 445 12th St., SW.

TIME AND TITLE CHANGE. 10:30 AM - 12:15 PM. The Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF) will host an event titled "End-to-End Arguments, Internet Innovation, and the Net Neutrality Debate". The speakers will be Richard Bennett (ITIF), John Day (Boston University Metropolitan College), Christopher Yoo (University of Pennsylvania law school), William Lehr (MIT), and David Farber (Carnegie Mellon University). See, notice. The ITIF will webcast this event. Light refreshments will be provided. Location: ITIF, Suite 610A, 1101 K St., NW.

12:15 - 1:30 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association's (FCBA) Young Lawyers Committee will host a brown bag lunch titled "The Role of In-House Counsel". The speakers will be Eric Einhorn (Windstream Communications), Jerald Fritz (Allbritton Communications), Cristina Pauze (Time Warner Cable), and Richard Whitt (Google). For more information, contact Micah Caldwell at mcaldwell at fh-law dot com or Evan Morris at emorri05 at harris dot com. Location: Harris Corporation, Suite 650E, 600 Maryland Ave., SW.

12:30 - 2:00 PM. The New America Foundation (NAF) will host an event titled "Broadband Competition Policy Broadband Competition Policy: How Much Regulation is Enough?" The speakers will be Ben Scott (Free Press), Everett Ehrlich (ESC Company), Mark Cooper (Consumer Federal of America), Robert Atkinson (Information Technology & Innovation Foundation), and Michael Calabrese (NAF). See, notice. Location: NAF, Suite 400, 1899 L St., NW.

Deadline to submit comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) regarding the recommendations of its World Radiocommunication Conference Advisory Committee (WRC-11 Advisory Committee). See, public notice [2 pages in PDF], Attachment 1 [54 pages in PDF], and Attachment 2 [18 pages in PDF]. It is DA 09-1994 in IB Docket No. 04-286.

Yom Kippur begins at sundown.

Yom Kippur.

9:00 - 10:30 AM. The Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF) will host an event titled "Benchmarking Leading Countries' National Innovation Policies". The speakers will be Rob Atkinson (ITIF), Stephen Ezell (ITIF), Debra Amidon (Entovation International) and Peter Westerstråhle (government of Finland). See, notice. The ITIF will webcast this event. Location: ITIF, 1101 K St., NW.

12:00 NOON - 1:00 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association's (FCBA) Diversity Committee will host a brown bag lunch for planning purposes. For more information, contact Edgar Class at eclass at wileyrein dot com or 202-719-7504. Location: Wiley Rein, Conference Room 9E, 1750 K St., NW.

EXTENDED TO OCTOBER 16. Deadline to submit reply comments to the Copyright Office regarding its proposed rules regarding registration of copyright in online works. See, original notice in the Federal Register, July 15, 2009, Vol. 74, No. 134, at Pages 34286-34290, and extension notice in the Federal Register, September 22, 2009, Vol. 74, No. 182, at Page 48191. See also, story titled "Copyright Office Proposes New Rules for Registration of Online Only Works" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,970, July 15, 2009.

Opening conference of the Supreme Court, October Term 2009. See, Supreme Court calendar.

8:30 AM - 5:00 PM. The Bureau of Industry and Security's (BIS) and MOFCOM's High Technology Working Group (HTWG) will meet. At 1:30 - 3:00 PM there will be a panel on information technology. See, agenda. Location: Ronald Reagan International Trade Center.

1:00 PM. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) will host an event titled "open meeting". The agenda [PDF] includes a staff report on the status of the FCC drafting of document titled "National Broadband Plan". See also, revised notice released on September 22. For more information, contact Jen Howard at 202-418-0506 or jen dot howard at fcc dot gov. Location: FCC, Commission Meeting Room, 445 12th St., SW.

6:00 - 9:15 PM. The DC Bar Association will host an event titled "How to Protect and Enforce Trademark Rights". The speakers will be Shauna Wertheim (Marbury Law Group) and Steven Hollman (Hogan & Hartson). The price to attend ranges from $89 to $129. Most DC Bar events are not open to the public. This event qualifies for continuing legal education (CLE) credits. See, notice. For more information, call 202-626-3488. Location: DC Bar Conference Center, 1101 K St., NW.

9:00 AM. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) will hold an event titled "Workshop: Cyber Security". See, FCC web page related to the drafting of a document titled "National Broadband Plan". Location: FCC, Commission Meeting Room, 445 12th St., SW.

10:00 AM. The Senate Judiciary Committee (SJC) will hold a hearing titled "Advancing Freedom of Information in the New Era of Responsibility". The witnesses will be Thomas Perrelli (Associate Attorney General), Miriam Nisbet (National Archives and Records Administration), Tom Curley (AP), and Meredith Fuchs (National Security Archive). The SJC will webcast this event. See, notice. Location: Room 226, Dirksen Building.

2:30 PM. The Senate Judiciary Committee's (SJC) Subcommittee on Administrative Oversight and the Courts will hold a hearing titled "Responding to the Growing Need for Federal Judgeships: The Federal Judgeship Act of 2009". See, notice. The SJC will webcast this event. Location: Room 226, Dirksen Building.

Scheduled date for the Department of Commerce's (DOC) National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) and the Department of Transportation's (DOT) National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to approve and announce grant awards under under the E-911 grant program authorized by the ENHANCE 911 Act. See, notice in the Federal Register, June 5, 2009, Vol. 74, No. 107, at Pages 26965-26981, and story titled "NTIA and NHTSA Publish E-911 Grant Program Rules" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,949, June 5, 2009.

Deadline to submit to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) nominations for membership on its Technological Advisory Council (TAC). See, notice in the Federal Register, September 8, 2009, Vol. 74, No. 172, at Pages 46198-46199.

Deadline to submit comments to the National Institute of Standards and Technology's (NIST) Computer Security Division (CSD) regarding its draft SP 800-81 Rev. 1 [118 pages in PDF] titled "Secure Domain Name System (DNS) Deployment Guide".

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