More Top Stories from 2002
Where Sen. Frist Stands on Tech
Issues
12/23. Sen. Bill Frist (R-TN), who is
likely to be the next Senate Majority Leader, has not been
active on technology related issues. He is a doctor who has focused more on
health, drug, biotech, Medicaid, Medicare, and social security related issues. However,
he has a voting record on tech related legislation, and has either
sponsored, cosponsored, or spoken about a number of other technology related bills. This article
examines his tech record. Basically, despite his focus on health issues, he has
a record on tech related issues, and it is
pro-technology. See, full story.
Indictment Alleges Dallas Computer Business
Was Funded by Middle Eastern Terrorist
12/16. A grand jury of the U.S.
District Court (NDTex) returned a 33 count
indictment
[32 page PDF scan] against seven individuals and one company. The indictment
charges five brothers named Elashi who have all worked for a company named Infocom
Corporation, which is also charged, that exported computers and computer
components to customers in the Middle East. The indictment contains twelve
counts naming the Elashi brothers pertaining to exports to Libya and Syria in
violation of U.S. export control laws. Also charged is a cousin of the Elashi
brothers, Nadia Marzook, and her
husband, Mousa Abu Marzook. Mr. Marzook is the Deputy Chief of Hamas' Political
Bureau. The U.S. named Mousa Abu Marzook a Specifically Designated Terrorist (SDT) in
1995, thus making certain transactions with him illegal. The remaining counts of the
complaint allege that three of the Elashi
brothers and Mr. and Mrs. Marzook engaged in various financial transactions that
are illegal because of Mr. Marzook's status as a terrorist. More specifically,
the indictment alleges that Mr. Marzook invested $250,000 in Infocom through his
wife, and that Infocom made various transfers to her as a share of the profits.
See, full story.
4th Circuit Rules in Internet Jurisdiction
Case
12/13. The U.S.
Court of Appeals
(4thCir) issued its opinion
[12 pages in PDF] in Young
v. New Haven Advocate, holding that a court in Virginia does not
have jurisdiction over two small newspapers, and their editors and reporters, located
in Connecticut, who wrote allegedly defamatory stories about a Virginia prison
warden and published them on the Internet. The Court held that the web
publication did not establish minimum contacts because the newspapers are not
directed at a Virginia audience. See,
full story.
Martin Offers Proposal for Resolution of Pending FCC
Broadband Proceedings
12/12. Federal Communications Commission
(FCC) Commissioner Kevin
Martin gave a speech
[13 pages in PDF] in which he said that the FCC has "four critical rulemakings that
have been pending since
the beginning of the year: the Triennial Review of unbundled network elements,
the dominant nondominant proceeding, the wireline broadband NPRM, and the cable
modem service NPRM." He offered his proposal. See,
full story.
So, Just What
Are All of These FCC Broadband Proceedings About Anyway?
12/12. This story reviews the broadband related proceedings currently pending
before the FCC. See, full story.
6th Circuit Buries Protectionist Statute in
Tennessee Casket Case
12/6. The U.S.
Court of Appeals (6thCir) issued its
opinion in
Craigmiles
v. Giles, a constitutional law case
that may make it easier to overturn some protectionist state statutes that impede electronic
commerce. The Court held unconstitutional a state
statute that it found to be an "attempt to prevent economic competition".
This case does not specifically involve Internet commerce, the use of
technology, or even technology companies. It deals with the sale of caskets.
This case involves a challenge to an obscure Tennessee statute regarding funeral
directors. Nevertheless, this case may have broader consequences for other
businesses, and particularly those involved in electronic commerce. The Court
held unconstitutional on Due Process and Equal Protection grounds a statute
enacted to protect state funeral directors from competition. Numerous state
protectionist statutes have the effect of banning many forms of e-commerce,
including sales of cars, wines, contact lenses, and other products. These types
of laws also obstruct Internet based travel agencies, pharmacies, mortgage
brokers, and many other services. See,
full story.
Election Outcomes
May Affect Tech Policy
11/5. Control of the Senate will switch from the Democrats to the Republicans as a
result of the November 5 general election. Democrats and their allies held a
slim one vote majority before the election. The Republicans now have at least a
51 vote majority, with two seats still undecided. The change of control will have
major consequences across a wide range of
policy areas. It will also affect confirmations, particularly of judges. However, the
most important consequences for technology lie in the changes in control of a
few committees. See, full story.
Virginia Court Affirms Denial of Motion
to Quash Subpoena for AOL Records on Anonymous Poster
11/1. The Virginia
Supreme Court
issued its opinion
[MS Word] in AOL
v. Nam Tai Electronics,
affirming a Virginia trial court order refusing an ISP's (AOL) motion to quash
a subpoena duces
tecum based upon an electronics company's (Nam Tai) California
action against anonymous persons who allegedly published false and defamatory
messages about it on a Yahoo message board. See also,
opinion
[TXT] without footnotes. Bottom line: AOL cannot protect the anonymity of its
subscriber in this case. See, full story.
Powell Addresses Spectrum Policy
10/30. Federal Communications Commission
(FCC) Chairman Michael Powell
gave a speech
titled "Broadband Migration III: New Directions in Wireless
Policy". He spoke to the Silicon
Flatirons Telecommunications Program at the
University of Colorado at Boulder. Powell described the speech as "my thoughts
about the next generation of spectrum policy".
He stated that consumers "deserve a new spectrum policy paradigm that is rooted
in modern day technologies and markets." See,
full story.
FRB Vice Chairman Addresses Impact of
Computer and Software Technology on Productivity Gains
10/24. Federal Reserve Board
(FRB) Vice Chairman
Roger Ferguson gave a
speech at the London Business School
titled "Productivity Growth: A Realistic Assessment ". He offered his analysis
of why productivity has grown in recent years, and even during the recent
economic downturn. His analysis is based in large part on developments in, and
adoption of, computer and software technologies. (FRB Chairman Alan Greenspan
also gave a
speech on productivity gains on October 23.) See,
full story.
District Court Holds ADA Does Not Apply to Web Site
10/18. The U.S. District Court (SDFl)
issued its
Order
Granting Defendant's Motion to Dismiss in Access Now v. Southwest Airlines,
holding that the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ban on discrimination in
public accommodations does not apply to Southwest's web site. See,
full story.
Cox and Wyden
Introduce Global Internet Freedom Act
10/10. On October 2, Rep. Chris
Cox (R-CA) and Rep. Tom
Lantos (D-CA) introduced
HR 5524, the Global Internet Freedom Act, in the House. On
October 10, Sen. Ron Wyden
(D-OR) and Sen. Jon Kyl (R-AZ)
introduced S 3093, the companion bill in the Senate. The bill
creates, and authorizes funding for, a new Office of Global Internet
Freedom to counter Internet jamming and blocking by repressive
regimes. See, full story.
FCC Declines to Approve
EchoStar DirectTV Merger
10/10. The Federal
Communications Commission (FCC) announced at a press conference
that it has "declined to approve the transfer of licenses from
EchoStar Communications Corporation and Hughes Electronics
Corporation, a subsidiary of General Motors Corporation, to a new
entity". EchoStar and Hughes both provide direct broadcast satellite
(DBS) service via their
Dish Network and DirecTV.
See,
FCC release [MS Word]. See,
full story.
Reps. Boucher and
Doolittle Introduce Digital Media Consumer Rights Act
10/3. Rep. Rick Boucher
(D-VA) and Rep. John
Doolittle (R-CA) introduced the
Digital Media Consumers’ Rights Act of 2002. Rep. Boucher gave a
lengthy
speech at an event to announce the introduction of the bill. He
stated that the bill would "reaffirm and reinforce the Fair Use
doctrine in this digital era." See,
full story.
Rep. Lofgren Introduces
Digital Fair Use Bill
10/2. Rep. Zoe Lofgren
(D-CA) introduced a bill titled the
Digital Choice and Freedom Act of 2002. This bill would broadly
expand the rights of persons who lawfully acquire digital copies of
copyrighted works, while diminishing the rights of copyright
holders. The bill does five things. First, the bill adds a reference
to "analog or digital transmissions" to
§ 107
(the fair use section) of the Copyright Act. Second, the bill
creates a new § 123 in the Copyright Act that limits the basic
exclusive rights of
§ 106.
This new section allows copying of lawfully obtained copies for
storage, or for use on a preferred digital media device. Third, the
bill limits the enforceability of non-negotiable license terms.
Fourth, the bill expands the
§ 109
right of sale to digital works. Fifth, the bill limits the anti
circumvention provisions of the DMCA. See,
full story.
House Subcommittee
Holds Hearing on State Impediments to E-Commerce
9/26. The House
Commerce Committee's Subcommittee on Commerce, Trade and
Consumer Protection held a hearing titled "State Impediments to
E-Commerce: Consumer Protection or Veiled Protectionism?" The
Subcommittee focused on three specific areas of e-commerce
regulation: contact lenses, wine sales, and auctions. See,
full story.
FCC Media Ownership
NPRM Seeks Comments on Impact of Internet
9/24. The Federal Communications
Commission (FCC) finally released its
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) [68 pages in PDF] regarding
its comprehensive review of the FCC's various media ownership rules.
The FCC it announced this NPRM back at its September 12 meeting. The
document seeks public comment on hundreds of specific questions. One
theme that runs through many of the questions is what impact does
the Internet now have on achieving the FCC's goals of promoting
diversity, competition, and localism in its various ownership rules.
See, full story.
4th Circuit Rules No
Recovery Under Privacy Act for Disclosure of SSNs Without Showing of
Actual Damages
9/20. The
U.S. Court of Appeals (4thCir) issued its split
opinion [48 pages in PDF] in
Doe v. Chao, holding that a plaintiff must prove
actual damages to recover under the Privacy Act for improper
disclosure of Social Security Numbers by the federal government.
See, full story.
CEA CEO Criticizes
Record and Movie Companies on Copyright
9/17. Consumer Electronics Association
(CEA) P/CEO Gary Shapiro gave a
speech
titled "The Campaign to Have Copyright Interests Trump Technology
and Consumer Rights" at the Optical Storage Symposium, in San
Francisco, California. He bluntly criticized the copyright related
actions and arguments of the movie and record companies, and their
supporters in the Congress and Justice Department. See,
full story.
IIPI Conference
Addresses Creation of Specialized Courts for Copyright Cases
9/13. The International
Intellectual Property Institute (IIPI) hosted a two day
conference in Washington DC titled "Specialized Intellectual
Property Courts" on September 12 and 13. One of the topics addressed
was the creation of specialized courts with jurisdiction over
copyright law. See, full
story.
Consumer Groups
Petition FTC to Promulgate Rule Banning Deceptive Spam
9/4. The Telecommunications Research
and Action Center, the
National Consumers
League, and Consumer
Action submitted a
petition
[14 pages in PDF] to the Federal Trade
Commission (FTC) requesting that it initiate a rule making
proceeding to adopt a rule pertaining to deceptive practices in the
sending of unsolicited commercial e-mail. See,
full story.
Lucent May Be Liable in
Contract for Delay in Filing SEC Form S-3
9/3. The
U.S. Court of Appeals (5thCir) issued its
opinion [21 pages in PDF] in
Herrmann Holdings v. Lucent, holding, as matter
of Texas law, that a clause in a merger contract that provides that
the acquiring company will use its best efforts to promptly file an
S-3 form with the SEC, may give rise to a breach of contract action.
See, full story.
Verizon and Privacy
Groups Oppose RIAA Subpoena
8/30. Verizon and a collection of privacy groups have filed briefs
with the U.S. District Court
(DC) in a proceeding brought by the RIAA for the purpose
enforcing a subpoena of Verizon's Internet services subsidiary. The
RIAA motion states that it seeks the identity of the user of "a
computer connected to the Verizon network that is a hub for
significant music piracy". Verizon argues that the asserted basis
for the subpoena, the DMCA, does not extend to situations such as
this, where the alleged infringing material is stored on the
computer of Verizon's customer, as opposed to Verizon's own system,
and Verizon only serves an a communications conduit for the
customer. Amici assert the First Amendment right of anonymous
speech. See, full story.
10th Circuit Disallows
R&D Tax Credit for Software Development Costs
8/30. The
U.S. Court of Appeals (10thCir) issued its
opinion in
Tax and Accounting Software Corp. v. IRS, a
case regarding when expenses of a software company may qualify for
the research and development tax credit. The Appeals Court reversed
a District Court summary judgment in favor of a small software
development company, on the grounds that its expenses were not for
"qualified research". See,
full story.
9th Circuit Rules on
Application of Wiretap Act and Stored Communications Act to Secure
Web Sites
8/23. The
U.S. Court of Appeals (9thCir) issued its
opinion [39 pages in PDF] in
Konop v. Hawaiian Airlines, a case involving
application of the Wiretap Act and the Stored Communications Act to
password protected discussion web sites. This is the Appeals Courts'
second opinion in this case. The Appeals Court held in this second
opinion that the unauthorized accessing of messages posted to a
password protected web site does not violate the Wiretap Act because
the Wiretap Act only covers messages intercepted during
transmission, not those intercepted in storage. And hence, the
Appeals Court affirmed the District Court's summary judgment on this
issue in favor of a defendant who accessed the web site under false
pretences. The Appeals Court reversed the District Court's summary
judgment for the defendant on the Stored Communications Act issue,
but only on narrow grounds peculiar to this case. See,
full story.
Rep. Barr Loses Primary
Election
8/20. Rep. John Linder
(R-GA) defeated Rep. Bob Barr
(R-GA) in the Republican primary election for the Georgia 7th
Congressional District. The two incumbents faced each other as a
result of redistricting. Rep. Barr has been active on a wide range
of technology related issues, particularly matters pertaining to
electronic privacy and Internet taxation. As a member of the
House Judiciary Committee,
and Chairman of its Subcommittee on Commercial and Administrative
Law, he has been in a position to pursue his technology related
agenda. See, full story.
Music Companies Sue
Internet Backbone Companies to Block Access to Pirate Site in
PRChina
8/15. Thirteen music companies filed a complaint in
U.S. District Court (SDNY)
against four Internet backbone companies seeking an order requiring
the defendants to block access to the Internet protocol addresses
assigned to the Listen4ever
servers in the People's Republic of China. The complaint, which does
not name Listen4ever as a defendant, alleges that Listen4ever
operates a web site that engages in infringement of the music
companies' copyrighted sound recording by making them available for
download. Plaintiffs also filed a motion for preliminary injunction.
See, full story.
7th Circuit Rules on
Use of Trademarks in HTML Metatags
8/13. The
U.S. Court of Appeals (7thCir) issued its
opinion [PDF] in
Promatek v. Equitrak, a trademark case
involving HTML metatags. The Appeals Court affirmed a District Court
injunction. See, full story.
Customs Service Loses
2,251 Computers
8/8. Sen. Charles Grassley
(R-IA) wrote a
letter to Treasury Secretary
Paul
O'Neill requesting that a report written by the Treasury
Department's Office of Inspector
General (OIG) regarding the loss of computers and other items by
the U.S. Customs Service
be made public. Sen. Grassley wrote in this letter that "The report
on Customs states that the Customs Service -- an agency whose
responsibilities include tracking material -- has managed to lose or
have stolen a stunning 2,251 computers." See,
full story.
FTC Files and Settles
Complaint Against Microsoft
8/8. The Federal Trade Commission
(FTC) brought and settled an administrative
complaint
[6 pages in PDF] against
Microsoft alleging violation of Section 5(a) of the Federal
Trade Commission Act (FTCA) in connection with Microsoft's privacy
and security practices. The complaint focuses on Microsoft's sign-on
and online wallet services named Passport and Passport Express
Purchase. The FTC and Microsoft simultaneously entered into an
Agreement
Containing Consent Order [8 pages in PDF]. Microsoft admitted to
no violations of federal law. Microsoft will pay no fine. However,
the agreement, which has a twenty year duration, imposes numerous
requirements for Microsoft's information security program. See,
full story.
FBI Loses 317 Laptops
8/5. The Department of
Justice's (DOJ) Office of
the Inspector General (OIG) audited and released a series of
reports on the control of laptop computers and weapons at five DOJ
components. It found a total of 400 missing laptops, and 775 missing
weapons. For the Federal Bureau of
Investigation (FBI), it reported 317 missing laptops and 212
missing weapons. Moreover, the OIG found that the FBI does not know
if sensitive data has been lost. See,
Executive Summary [43 pages in PDF]. See,
full story.
McCain Introduces
Consumer Broadband Bill
8/1. Sen. John McCain (R-AZ)
introduced
S 2863 [17 pages in PDF], the "Consumer Broadband Deregulation
Act". The bill would add a new title to the Communications Act of
1934, titled "Consumer Broadband Services". It would provide that
"neither the Commission, nor any State, shall have authority to
regulate the rates, charges, terms, or conditions for the retail
offering of consumer broadband service." See,
full story.
Powell's Market
Oriented Approach Gives Democrats Heartburn
7/30. The Senate
Commerce Committee's hearing on telecommunications and the
Internet on July 30 gave several Democratic Senators the opportunity
to criticize Federal Communications
Commission (FCC) Chairman
Michael Powell's
market oriented approach to regulation.
Sen. Ernest Hollings
(D-SC), the Chairman of the Committee, and
Sen. Byron Dorgan (D-ND), a
senior member of the Communications Subcommittee, both stated that
Powell gave them "heartburn". See,
full story.
Senate Approps Rejects
Bush Proposals for Increased Funding for Tech Related Agencies
7/24. The Senate
Appropriations Committee (SAC) reported and released its
Commerce Justice State (CJS) FY 2003 appropriations bill. This bill
includes appropriations for most of the technology related
departments and agencies of the federal government, including the
USPTO, FCC, FTC, and Antitrust Division. President Bush's proposal,
released back in February, called for significant increases for
these entities. The Senate bill provides for no increase, or very
small increases, at most agencies. However, it would reinstate the
NTIA's TOP grant program which Bush seeks to eliminate. See,
full story.
Government Officials
Announce 3G Spectrum Plan
7/23. Officials from the Federal
Communications Commission (FCC),
Department of Commerce (DOC), and Department of Defense (DOD),
along with the heads of the CTIA and TIA, announced a plan for the
reallocation of 90 MHz of spectrum for use by Third Generation (3G)
wireless services at a press conference in Washington DC. The
identified spectrum is located at 1710-1755 MHz and 2110-2155 MHz.
The participants also called for legislation amending the spectrum
auction process. In particular, the administration proposes creating
a trust to be funded out of the proceeds of auctions of the
reallocated spectrum; this trust would then provide payments to
federal entities that must relocate to other spectrum. See,
full story.