12/8. The Republican Steering Committee selected Rep. Lamar Smith (R-TX) to be the Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee (HJC) in the 112th Congress. He has been the ranking Republican on the HJC for 110th and 111th Congresses.

Rep. Smith (at right) stated in a release that "I will focus on efforts to strengthen national security, protect intellectual property, prevent frivolous lawsuits and keep children safe from Internet sex predators. The Judiciary Committee will support industries that employ millions of Americans by protecting their patents and copyrights. And we will promote worksite enforcement efforts that make sure scarce jobs go to legal workers."

Rep. Smith is a cosponsor of HR 1260 [LOC | WW], the "Patent Reform Act of 2009". He was a cosponsor in the 110th Congress of HR 1908 [LOC | WW], the "Patent Reform Act of 2007". He was the lead sponsor in the 109th Congress of HR 2795, the "Patent Reform Act of 2005".

In the 109th Congress, he was the Chairman of the HJC's Subcommittee on Courts, the Internet and Intellectual Property (CIIP), which does not currently exist.

He stated at a hearing on April 30, 2009, that "We must enact a bill that enhances patent quality, discourages frivolous litigation, harmonizes international patent principles, and enforces core rights. Frankly, our bill promotes these goals better than the Senate version. In terms of individual issues, I am concerned about the Senate Judiciary Committee's treatment of damages, post-grant opposition, and venue. On damages, the key sticking point in our debate during previous years, the House bill acknowledges the difficulty with which courts and juries have struggled with evaluating the actual contributions made by patent holders defending their rights versus contributions made by other. The Senate gate keeper treatment needs more review." See, hearing report [178 pages in PDF], at pages 22-23 (PDF pages 26-27).

Rep. Smith is also a cosponsor of HR 5322 [LOC | WW], the "Patent and Trademark Office Funding Stabilization Act of 2010".

12/8. Various groups and companies offered their praise for the selection of Rep. Fred Upton (R-MI) to be Chairman of the House Commerce Committee (HCC) in the 112th Congress. See also, story titled "Rep. Upton to Chair House Commerce Committee" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,172, December 8, 2010.

Gary Shapiro, head of the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA), stated in a release that that "We are very pleased to congratulate Congressman Upton on his chairmanship of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce. Over his career, Upton has been a leading and steadfast advocate for the technology industry. He understands that innovation will be the key to restoring a robust economy and maintaining America’s global leadership. We look forward to working with him on ensuring the allocation of additional spectrum for wireless broadband use, and other issues key to our economic future."

Walter McCormick, head of the US Telecom, congratulated Rep. Upton in a release. He wrote that "He is a leader with broad experience on telecommunications issues and a fair and balanced legislator. USTelecom and our member companies look forward to working with him and the committee to achieve our shared goal of expanding broadband access to all Americans."

John Engler, head of the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM), stated in a release that Rep. Upton "has been a key ally for manufacturers".

12/7. On December 7, 2010, the Republican Steering Committee (RSC) selected Rep. Fred Upton (R-MI) to be Chairman of the House Commerce Committee (HCC) in the 112th Congress. See, story titled "Rep. Upton to Chair House Commerce Committee" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,172, December 8, 2010.

On December 8, the RSC selected Rep. Lamar Smith (R-TX) to be the Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee (HJC) in the 112th Congress. See, story in this issue titled "Rep. Lamar Smith to Chair House Judiciary Committee".

The RSC also selected other Chairmen on December 8. It picked Rep. Dave Camp (R-MI) to be Chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee (HWMC) for the 112th Congress. See, release.

The Business Software Alliance (BSA) stated in a release on December 1, 2010, that Rep. Camp "has served as a strong champion for the technology industry, working to protect intellectual property, lowering barriers to market entry in countries such as China, and fighting for an even playing field for competing technologies. He has also been a vocal proponent of spurring technological innovation over the long term by making R&D tax credits permanent".

However, he is not one of the 106 sponsors of HR 422 [LOC | WW], an untitled bill that would extend the R&D tax credit.

The RSC selected Rep. Spencer Bachus (R-AL) to be Chairman of the House Financial Services Committee in the 112th Congress. He has been the ranking Republican on the HFSC for 110th and 111th Congresses.

Rep. Bachus (at right) stated in a release that "We are going to protect taxpayers by ending `too big to fail´ and the Administration's unlimited bailout of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. We are committed to going title by title through the 2,300 page Dodd Frank Act to correct, replace, or repeal the job killing provisions that unnecessarily punish small businesses and community banks that did nothing to cause the financial crisis."

The RSC selected Rep. Peter King (R-NY) to be Chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee (HHSC). See, release.

The RSC selected Rep. Darrell Issa (R-CA) to be Chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee (HOGRC). See, release.

The RSC selected Rep. Ralph Hall (R-TX) to be Chairman of the House Science and Technology Committee (HSTC).

Rep. Hall (at left) stated in a release that "Smart investments in basic research and development, coupled with proper business and tax incentives, will spur innovation and allow American businesses to commercialize and manufacture technologies here in the United States". He added that he wants the HSTC to "improve science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education to promote competitiveness in the global marketplace".

The RSC selected Rep. Hal Rogers (R-KY) to be Chairman of the House Appropriations Committee (HAC).

The RSC selected Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL) to be Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee (HFAC). See, release.

The RSC selected Rep. John Kline (R-MN) to be Chairman of the House Education and Labor Committee (HELC). He stated in a release that "Job creation and American competitiveness are vital national priorities. As Chairman, I will ensure they are at the forefront of the Education and Labor agenda."

The RSC selected Rep. Doc Hastings (R-WA) to be Chairman of the House Natural Resources Committee (HNRC).

The RSC selected Rep. Buck McKeon (R-CA) to be Chairman of the House Armed Services Committee (HASC).

12/8. The House passed S 3789 [LOC | WW], the "Social Security Number Protection Act of 2010", by voice vote. The Senate passed this bill on September 28, 2010.

11/30. The Senate amended and passed S 3386 [LOC | WW], the "Restore Online Shoppers' Confidence Act", by unanimous consent. See, Congressional Record, November 30, 2010, at Pages S8305-8. Sen. John Rockefeller (D-WV) introduced this bill on May 19, 2010. See, story titled "Sen. Rockefeller Introduces Bill to Regulate Aggressive Sales Tactics on Internet" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,086, May 21, 2010. The Senate Commerce Committee (SCC) amended and approved it on June 19, 2010. See, story titled "Senate Commerce Committee Approves Bill to Regulate Aggressive Sales Tactics on Internet" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,096, June 17, 2010. See also, story titled "Sen. Rockefeller Discusses His Bill to Regulate Internet Sales Practices" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,162, November 22, 2010. The House has not passed this bill, or the companion bill in the House, HR 5707 [LOC | WW].

12/8. The R&D Tax Credit Coalition stated in a release that it "applauds the inclusion of a two-year seamless extension of the R&D tax credit in the bipartisan tax cut agreement announced by President Obama. Since the credit expired on December 31, 2009, companies across America have been coping with the uncertainty of the credit's future in addition to the overall economic uncertainty. Since its inception in 1981, the R&D tax credit has spurred countless new jobs, innovation and economic growth in the United States." See also, story titled "Congress May Extend R&D Tax Credit" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,172, December 8, 2010.

12/7. Rep. Henry Waxman (D-CA), the Chairman of the House Commerce Committee (HCC), sent a letter to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) regarding its long running antitrust merger review of the Comcast NBC Universal transaction.

He wants the FCC to impose by antitrust merger review what it has not yet been able to impose by rulemaking or adjudication -- regulation of broadband internet access service (BIAS). However, while rules would apply to all BIAS providers, antitrust merger review conditions would only apply to the merged entity -- Comcast NBCU -- leaving similarly situated companies subject to disparate regulatory regimes.

He wrote that "if the merger is approved", then "the FCC should impose conditions on the merger in four key areas".

He wrote that the FCC should impose conditions regarding non-discrimination, prioritization, and accessing content.

These were also addressed in the draft bill that Rep. Waxam proposed back in September, as well as in other network neutrality proposals. For a summary and comparison of the main proposals, see web page titled "TLJ Comparison Chart: Regulation of Broadband Internet Access Service (BIAS)".

Specifically, Rep. Waxman (at right) wrote in his December 7 letter that the FCC "should impose conditions that (a) prevent Comcast-NBCU from degrading or blocking online distribution of programming that competes with Comcast and its offerings, (b) ensure that Comcast-NBCU does not prioritize or guarantee a higher quality-of-service for its own video-on-demand and other online offerings over competitive video services that are delivered over Comcast’s broadband network, and (c) protect third-party programmers' ability to make their content available online via competitive Internet websites and other competitive platforms."

He also wrote that "the FCC should impose requirements to ensure that competing program distributors have access to programming or channels in which Comcast-NBCU has a financial interest." Moreover, "Such access should be available on reasonable and nondiscriminatory terms and this requirement should apply independent of the FCC’s program access rules."

Third, he wrote that "Competing programmers in news, sports, and entertainment -- especially cable programmers not affiliated with Comcast-NBCU -- should be protected against discrimination in channel placement and tiering."

Fourth, he wrote that the "should impose conditions that measurably strengthen the creative and economic opportunities of independent writers, producers, and directors".

He also wrote that "I hope that you will be able to conclude your review expeditiously, ideally by the end of the year, if possible."

Similarly, Rep. Ed Markey (D-MA) sent another letter in which he argued that "a merged Comcast-NBCU should be prohibited from favoring or blocking access to lawful content pursuant to the Commission's Internet Policy Statement adopted on August 5, 2005."

He explained that he wants to prevent the merged entity from "Stifling the rise of online video".

Rep. Markey also wrote that he wants the FCC to impose conditions regarding program access and program carriage.

The Free Press stated in a release that "Free Press shares the concerns of Chairman Waxman and Congressman Markey". It added that "The merger would put unprecedented control over content that consumers watch -- as well as how they watch it -- in the hands of one company, and would stifle any competition from innovative new online video services with the potential to free consumers from ever-increasing cable rate hikes. It is the duty of the FCC to protect consumer choice and to ensure that this merger does not do irreparable damage to competition in the marketplace."

12/7. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) released a notice, to be published in the Federal Register, that announces, describes, and sets the comment deadline for, an advance notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) regarding the FTC’s Telemarketing Sales Rule (TSR) concerning caller identification services and disclosure of the identity of the seller or telemarketer responsible for telemarketing calls.

The current TSR requires that telemarketers transmit identifying information to caller identification services.

This notice states that "The use of Caller ID information, however, has changed with the growing availability of technologies that allow callers to alter the number that appears on the recipient’s Caller ID display. Many businesses now have access to technologies that allow them to transmit Caller ID numbers that are not associated with their geographical location, or that, when dialed, connect the caller to a voice mail service. Users of these technologies also have the ability to cause the recipient’s Caller ID equipment to display a telephone number that is not in service as the source of the call, or create the appearance that the call is coming from someone who is not affiliated with the actual caller."

This advance NPRM asks whether changes should be made to the TSR to reflect the current use and capabilities of Caller ID technologies.

The FTC "is interested in whether the TSR should be amended to better achieve the objectives of the Caller ID provisions including to enable consumers and law enforcement to use Caller ID information to identify entities responsible for illegal telemarketing practices. The Commission also solicits comment on whether it should amend the TSR specifically to regulate services that misrepresent, conceal, or obscure the identity of telemarketers or sellers, or should expand the provisions of the TSR that require oral disclosure of the identity of the seller or charitable organization on whose behalf a call is being made to require additional or more specific disclosures."

The deadline to submit comments is January 28, 2010.

12/8. Intellectual Ventures (IV) filed three complaints in the U.S. District Court (DDel) alleging patent infringement by nine different information technology companies. See, IV release.

IV was founded by Nathan Myhrvold and others in 2000. Its business model is to acquire patents, mainly from others, and then license them. Myhrvold was previously Chief Technology Officer at Microsoft. These actions commence IV's use of litigation to enforce its patents.

Melissa Finocchio, Chief Litigation Counsel for IV, stated in a release that "Over the years, Intellectual Ventures has successfully negotiated license agreements with some of the top technology companies in the world. However, some companies have chosen to ignore our requests for good faith negotiations and discussions ... Protecting our invention rights through these actions is the right choice for our investors, inventors and current licensees".

IV alleges in its complaints that it "has been deeply involved in the business of invention. Intellectual Ventures creates inventions and files patent applications for those inventions; collaborates with others to develop and patent inventions; and acquires and licenses patents from individual inventors, universities and other institutions."

"Intellectual Ventures' business includes purchasing important inventions from individual inventors and institutions and then licensing the inventions to those who need them".

The complaints continue that "To date, Intellectual Ventures has purchased more than 30,000 assets, and in the process, has paid individual inventors hundreds of millions of dollars for their inventions. Intellectual Ventures, in turn, has earned nearly $2 billion by licensing these patents to some of the world's most innovative and successful technology companies who continue to use them to make computer equipment, software, semiconductor devices, and a host of other products."

IV filed a complaint [101 pages in PDF] in the District Court against Check Point Software Technologies, Ltd., McAfee, Inc., Symantec Corporation, and Trend Micro Incorporated alleging infringement of patents pertaining to software security. IV seeks judgment of infringement, monetary relief, and injunctive relief.

It filed a second complaint [307 pages in PDF] in the District Court against Elpida Memory, Inc. and Hynix Semiconductor, Inc. alleging infringement of patents regarding dynamic random access memory (DRAM) and Flash memory technology. IV seeks judgment of infringement, monetary relief, and injunctive relief.

It filed a third complaint [280 pages in PDF] in the District Court against Altera Corporation, Lattice Semiconductor Corporation, and Microsemi Corporation alleging infringement of patents related to field programmable gate array (FPGA) technology. IV seeks judgment of infringement and monetary relief. This complaint does not plead for injunctive relief.

12/6. Microsoft announced in a release "the immediate availability of a unilateral software license for non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and small, independent media operating in the following 12 countries: Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Malaysia, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, and Vietnam." See also, Microsoft's web page titled "Microsoft Unilateral Software Licensing for NGOs".

On September 11, 2010, the New York Times published a story by Clifford Levy titled "Russia Uses Microsoft to Suppress Dissent". The gist of the story is that Russia is enforcing its copyright laws against dissenting entities that use pirated copies of Microsoft's software.

Microsoft's General Counsel Brad Smith responded two days later in a release that "To prevent non-government organizations from falling victim to nefarious actions taken in the guise of anti-piracy enforcement, Microsoft will create a new unilateral software license for NGOs that will ensure they have free, legal copies of our products."

12/8. The Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF) released a paper [178 pages in PDF] titled "Refueling the U.S. Innovation Economy: Fresh Approaches to Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) Education".

It proposes that the US shift from a "some STEM for all" approach, to an "all STEM for some" approach in educating future STEM workers.

It notes that "while STEM is critical to the economy, very few workers actually need extensive STEM skills. In fact, STEM jobs constitute at most 5 percent of all jobs."

It argues that "Implementing a ``Some STEM for All´´ approach requires a much larger expenditure of societal resources than the more targeted ``All STEM for Some´´ However, the paper also proposes more federal government spending on STEM education.

It states that "Under this approach, STEM educational resources are targeted to those likely to become STEM workers. Crucial to this plan is an aggressive talent identification system that does not rely on chance social networks and accidents of birth, but rather deploys a thorough national recruiting effort aimed at our nation’s middle and high schools, much as is done for basketball by the NCAA."

It also recommends that the "Congress should allocate $200 million a year for ten years to the Department of Education, to be supplemented by states and local school districts and industry, with the goal of quintupling the number of STEM high schools to 500 and enrollment to around 235,000 by 2015."

Implementation of such proposals would require Congressional legislation and appropriation. Yet, legislators are democratically elected, and tend to support more egalitarian and inclusive approaches to education.

Robert Atkinson (ITIF) and Merrilea Mayo (Mayo Mayo Enterprises) wrote the report, with assistance from others.

The House will meet at 10:00 AM for legislative business.

The Senate will meet at 9:30 AM. It will resume consideration of the motion to proceed to S 3992 [LOC | WW], the "Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors Act of 2010" or "DREAM Act".

8:30 - 11:45 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, November 26, 2010, Vol. 75, No. 227, at Page 72843. Location: Room 1235, NSF, 4201 Wilson Blvd., Arlington, VA.

RESCHEDULED FROM DECEMBER 3. 9:30 AM. 10:00 AM. The House Judiciary Committee's (HJC) Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights, and Civil Liberties will hold a hearing titled "Civil Liberties and National Security". The witnesses will be Thomas Pickering, Laura Murphy (ACLU), Jamil Jaffer (Kellogg Huber), Michael Lewis (Ohio Northern University law school), Jeremy Scahill (Democracy Now), Mary Ellen O'Connell (University of Notre Dame Law School), and Bruce Fein (The Litchfield Group). See, notice. Location: Room 2141, Rayburn Building.

10:00 AM. The U.S. Court of Appeals (FedCir) will hear oral argument in Alexsam, Inc. v. Interactive Communications International, Inc., App. Ct. No. 2010-1267, an appeal from the U.S. District Court (EDTex) in a case regarding enforcement of a settlement agreement regarding patent licensing. Location: Courtroom 201, 717 Madison Place, NW.

12:00 NOON - 2:00 PM. The Federal Society will host a panel discussion and lunch titled "Changing the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure: Has the Time Come?". See, notice. CLE credits. Location: First Amendment Lounge, National Press Club, 13th floor, 529 14 St., NW.

1:00 - 2:30 PM. The House Intelligence Committee (HIC) will hold a closed hearing titled "WikiLeaks Update". See, notice. Location: Room HVC-304, Capitol Visitor Center.

2:30 PM. The Senate Intelligence Committee (SIC) will hold a closed meeting. Location: Room 219, Hart Building.

2:40 PM. The Federal Trade Commission's (FTC) Bureau of Economics will host a presentation titled "Diversity, Social Goods Provision, and the Firm". See, paper [PDF] with the same title. The speaker will be Wallace Mullin (GWU). For more information, contact Loren Smith at lsmith2 at ftc dot gov or Tammy John at tjohn at ftc dot gov. Location: Room 8089, 1800 M St., NW.

3:00 - 5:00 PM. The New America Foundation (NAF) will host an event titled "Network Nation: How Business, Technology, and Government Shaped American Telecommunications". The speakers will include Richard John (Columbia University journalism school), author of the book [Amazon] titled "Network Nation: Inventing American Telecommunications". See, notice and registration page. Location: NAF, Suite 400, 1899 L St., NW.

6:00 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association (FCBA) will host an event titled "24th Annual FCC Chairman’s Dinner". The speaker will be FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski. A reception begins at 6:00 PM. Dinner begins at 7:30 PM. Prices vary. Location: Washington Hilton, 1919 Connecticut Ave., NW.

Day two of a two day event sponsored by the SANS Institute titled "What Works in Incident Detection & Log Management Summit 2010". See, notice. Location: Dupont Hotel, 1500 New Hampshire Ave., NW.

Deadline to submit reply comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in response to its October 25, 2010, Public Notice (PN) regarding its closed captioning rules. This PN is DA 10-2050 in CG Docket 05-231, ET Docket No. 99-254. See, notice in the Federal Register, November 17, 2010, Vol. 75, No. 221, at Pages 70168-70169.

The House will not meet.

Supreme Court conference day (discussion of argued cases, and decision on cert petitions). Closed.

10:00 AM. The U.S. Court of Appeals (FedCir) will hear oral argument in Juniper Network Services, Inc. v. SSL Services, Inc., App. Ct. No. 2010-1107, an appeal from the U.S. District Court (NDCal) in a patent case involving the issue of personal jurisdiction. Location: Courtroom 201, 717 Madison Place, NW.

10:00 AM. The U.S. Court of Appeals (FedCir) will hear oral argument in Alcohol Monitoring Systems, Inc. v. Actsoft, Inc., App. Ct. No. 2010-1250, an appeal from the U.S. District Court (DColo) in a patent case involving the issue of personal jurisdiction. Location: Courtroom 402, 717 Madison Place, NW.

10:00 AM. Deadline to submit pubic comments to the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (OUSTR) regarding its Special 301 out of cycle review of the Philippines and Thailand. These reviews pertain to identifying countries that deny adequate and effective protection of intellectual property rights (IPR) or deny fair and equitable market access to U.S. persons who rely on intellectual property protection. See, notice in the Federal Register, November 12, 2010, Vol. 75, No. 218, at Pages 69519-69520.

5:00 PM. Extended deadline to submit comments to the Department of Commerce's (DOC) Internet Policy Task Force regarding the relationship between the availability and protection of online copyrighted works and innovation in the internet economy. See, original notice in the Federal Register, October 5, 2010, Vol. 75, No. 192, at Pages 61419-61424, and extension notice in the Federal Register, November 26, 2010, Vol. 75, No. 227, at Pages 72790. See also, story titled "Commerce Department Extends Comment Deadline for Online Copyright NOI" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,164, November 24, 2010.

Day one of an eight event sponsored by the SANS Institute titled "SANS Cyber Defense Initiative 2010". See, event web site. On December 10-14, there will be a five day series of courses titled "Law of Data Security and Investigations". The five one day courses will be "Fundamentals of IT Security Law and Policy", "E-Records, E-Discovery and Business Law", "Contracting for Data Security", "The Law of IT Compliance: How to Conduct Investigations", and "Applying Law to Emerging Dangers: Cyber Defense". CLE credits. Location: Marriott Wardman Park, 2660 Woodley Road, NW.

8:30 AM. Day one of a two day partially closed meeting of the Department of Commerce's (DOC) Bureau of Industry and Security's (BIS) Emerging Technology and Research Advisory Committee. See, notice in the Federal Register, November 26, 2010, Vol. 75, No. 227, at Pages 72792-72793. Location: Room 3884, DOC, Hoover Building, 14th Street between Pennsylvania and Constitution Avenues, NW.

9:00 AM. 9:30 AM. The Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) Communications Security, Reliability, and Interoperability Council (CSRIC) will meet. See, original notice in the Federal Register, November 30, 2010, Vol. 75, No. 229, at Pages 74050-74051, and supplemental notice in the Federal Register, December 8, 2010, Vol. 75, No. 235, at Pages 76465-76466. Location: FCC, Commission Meeting Room (Room TW-C305), 445 12th St., SW.

11:00 AM - 2:00 PM. The Department of Commerce's (DOC) National Telecommunications and Information Administration's (NTIA) Spectrum Management Advisory Committee will meet by teleconference. The call in number is 1-888-769-8761; the passcode is 2684385. See, notice in the Federal Register, November 26, 2010, Vol. 75, No. 227, at Page 72792.

Deadline to submit comments to the Department of Justice's (DOJ) Antitrust Division regarding the proposed final judgment in USA v. American Express, et al., D.C. No. CV-10-4496. The DOJ initiated an action against American Express, MasterCard and Visa alleging violation of Section 1 of the Sherman Act, which is codified at 15 U.S.C. § 1, in connection with their alleged anticompetitive conduct at the point of sale. The settlement, which covers only MasterCard and Visa, requires public notice and comment, and approval by the District Court. The DOJ's notice in the Federal Register states that comments are due within 60 days of publication of its notice in the Federal Register. However, it does not fix an actual date. See, Federal Register, October 13, 2010, Vol. 75, No. 197, at Pages 62858-62874. See also, story titled "DOJ and States Bring Antitrust Action Against Credit Card Companies" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,139, October 5, 2010.

Deadline to submit reply comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in response to its Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) [25 pages in PDF] regarding commercial radio operator licenses for maritime and aviation radio stations who perform certain functions performed within the commercial radio operators service. The FCC adopted this item on August 31, 2010, and released the text on September 8, 2010. It is FCC 10-154 in WT Docket No. 10-177. See, notice in the Federal Register, October 29, 2010, Vol. 75, No. 209, at Pages 66709-66715.

Deadline for Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Commissioner Michael Copps to respond to Rep. Joe Barton's (R-TX) interrogatories regarding his proposal that broadcasters be subjected to a public value test (PVT). See, story titled "Copps Wants to Impose Public Value Test on Broadcasters" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,168, December 4, 2010. See also, Rep. Barton's letter and story titled "Barton Questions Copps Regarding Public Value Test" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,171, December 7, 2010.

RESCHEDULED FOR FEBRUARY 8. 8:00 - 10:00 AM. Broadband Census News LLC will host a panel discussion titled "Meet The Chinese Embassy IP Attache". The speakers will be Fuli Chen (Intellectual Property Rights Attache for the Chinese Embassy to the US), Steven Adkins (Orrick), Drew Clark, and others. Breakfast will be served. This event is free and open to the public. See, notice and registration page. This event is also sponsored by the National Cable & Telecommunications Association (NCTA) and the Public Knowledge (PK). Location: Clyde's of Gallery Place, 707 7th St., NW.

8:30 AM. Day two of a two day partially closed meeting of the Department of Commerce's (DOC) Bureau of Industry and Security's (BIS) Emerging Technology and Research Advisory Committee. See, notice in the Federal Register, November 26, 2010, Vol. 75, No. 227, at Pages 72792-72793. Location: Room 3884, DOC, Hoover Building, 14th Street between Pennsylvania and Constitution Avenues, NW.

10:30 AM. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) will host an event titled "Generation Mobile Forum". The speakers will include FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski. The topics to be discussed include cyber bullying. Location: McKinley Technology High School, Auditorium, 151 T St., NE.

12:15 - 1:30 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association's (FCBA) Mass Media Committee will host a brown bag lunch titled "Views from the Fourth Estate". The speakers will be Amy Schatz (Wall Street Journal), Cecilia Kang (Washington Post), Kim Hart (Politico), and Dennis Wharton (NAB). The FCBA bars reporters from some of its events. Location: Wiley Rein, 1776 K St., NW.

2:30 PM. The Federal Trade Commission's (FTC) Bureau of Economics will host a presentation by Wallace Mullin (George Washington University Department of Economics). He will present a paper [PDF] titled "Diversity, Social Goods Provision, and Performance in the Firm". For more information, contact Loren Smith at lsmith2 at ftc dot gov or Tammy John at tjohn at ftc dot gov. Location: Room 8089, 1800 M St., NW.

5:00 PM. Deadline to submit comments to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) in response to its notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) regarding practice before the Board of Patent Appeals and Interferences (BPAI) in ex parte patent appeals. See, notice in the Federal Register, November 15, 2010, Vol. 75, No. 219, at Pages 69827-69849.

6::00 - 9:15 PM. The DC Bar Association will host an event titled "Intellectual Property Law 2010: Year in Review Series:Copyright and Trademark Update". The speakers will be Brian Banner (H&A Intellectual Property Law) and Terence Ross (Crowell & Moring). The price to attend ranges from $89 to $129. For more information, contact 202-626-3488. See, notice. CLE credits. Location: DC Bar Conference Center, B-1 Level, 1250 H St., NW.

RESCHEDULED FOR DECEMBER 21. 10:30 AM. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) may hold an event titled "open meeting". The agenda may include adoption of a network neutrality order. Location: FCC, Commission Meeting Room, 445 12th St., SW.

6:00 - 8:15 PM. The DC Bar Association will host an event titled "Intellectual Property Law 2010: Year in Review Series: Patent Update". The speakers will be Eric Wright (Stites & Harbison) and Bradley Wright (Banner & Witcoff). The price to attend ranges from $89 to $129. For more information, contact 202-626-3488. See, notice. CLE credits. Location: DC Bar Conference Center, B-1 Level, 1250 H St., NW.

Deadline to submit applications to participate in the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) Auction 90, regarding certain VHF construction permits. See, FCC September 8, 2010, Public Notice (DA 10-1351 in AU Docket No. 10-147) and notice in the Federal Register, September 23, 2010, Vol. 75, No. 184, at Pages 57947-57952. See also, November 1, 2010, Public Notice (DA 10-2008 in in AU Docket No. 10-147). And see, notice in the Federal Register, December 1, 2010, Vol. 75, No. 230, at Page 74719-74731.

9:30 AM - 5:00 PM. The Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) North American Numbering Council (NANC) will meet. See, notice in the Federal Register, November 30, 2010, Vol. 75, No. 229, at Pages 74051-74052. Location: FCC, Commission Meeting Room (Room TW-C305), 445 12th St., SW.

9:30 AM - 4:00 PM. The Department of Justice's (DOJ) Civil Right Division (CRD) will hold a hearing regarding its four notice of proposed rulemakings (NPRMs) that propose to expand the scope of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) to regulate certain communications and information technologies. See, story titled "DOJ/CRD Releases Advance NPRMs Proposing Expansion of ADA" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,111, July 26, 2010. Location: U.S. Access Board, 1331 F St., NW.

12:00 NOON - 1:30 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association's (FCBA) will host a lunch. The speaker will be Erwin Chemerinsky. The topic will be "Approaches to First Amendment regulations with the distinctions between traditional mediums disappearing with a lot of discussion of the Fox indecency case". The price to attend ranges from $25 to $40. See, registration form. Registrations and cancellations are due by 12:00 NOON on December 14. Location: Hogan Lovells, 555 13th St., NW.

5:30 - 7:30 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association's (FCBA) Homeland Security and Emergency Communications Committee will host an event titled "Holiday Happy Hour Mentoring Opportunity for Young Lawyers. The speakers will include James Barnett (Chief of the FCC's Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau). For more information, contact Jeff Cohen at jeff dot cohen at mail dot house.gov or Mark Brennan at mark dot brennan at hoganlovells dot com. Location: Mandarin Hotel, Empress Lounge, 1330 Maryland Ave., SW.

Deadline to submit initial comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in response to its Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) [58 pages in PDF] regarding universal service subsidies and certain 3G and next generation wireless services. The FCC adopted and released this item on October 14, 2010. It is FCC 10-182 in WT Docket No. 10-208. See, notice in the Federal Register, November 1, 2010, Vol. 75, No. 210, at Pages 67060-67077. See also, story titled "FCC Adopts NPRM Regarding Universal Service Subsidies for 3G and Next Generation Wireless" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,142, October 19, 2010.

Deadline to submit initial comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in response to its Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) regarding expanding the FCC's universal service program to subsidize certain 3G and next generation wireless services. The FCC calls this its "Mobility Fund". The FCC adopted and released this item on October 14, 2010. It is FCC 10-182 in WT Docket No. 10-208. See, notice in the Federal Register, November 12, 2010, Vol. 75, No. 218, Page 69374-69395. See also, story titled "FCC Adopts NPRM Regarding Universal Service Subsidies for 3G and Next Generation Wireless" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,142, October 19, 2010.

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