3/10. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Michael Powell gave a speech [PDF] in which he offered a timetable for bringing the FCC unbundling rules into compliance with the March 2 order of the Court of Appeals. He also used this speech to address FCC regulation of internet services.

He spoke in Washington DC at a meeting of the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners (NARUC). Commissioner Kevin Martin gave a speech [9 pages in PDF] to the NARUC on March 8. Martin attacked the Court or Appeals for its "failure to recognize the traditional federal-state relationship".

On March 2, 2004 the U.S. Court of Appeals (DCCir) issued its opinion [62 pages in PDF] in USTA v. FCC overturning key parts of the FCC's triennial review order (TRO). The opinion leaves largely untouched those portions of the TRO in which the FCC refrained from unbundling next generation broadband facilities. The opinion vacates those portions of the TRO in which the FCC delegated decision making authority to the state to make impairment findings. See, story titled "Appeals Court Overturns Key Provisions of FCC Triennial Review Order", also published in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 848, March 3, 2004.

The Court wrote "As to the portions of the Order that we vacate, we temporarily stay the vacatur (i.e., delay issue of the mandate) until no later than the later of (1) the denial of any petition for rehearing or rehearing en banc or (2) 60 days from today's date. This deadline is appropriate in light of the Commission's failure, after eight years, to develop lawful unbundling rules, and its apparent unwillingness to adhere to prior judicial rulings."

Powell (at right) stated that "there remains substantial room for meaningful cooperation, and I strongly endorse our continued partnership", but the FCC cannot recruit states to "do the job Congress specifically directed us to do."

He said that "having suffered our third court defeat in a row -- once at the hands of the Supreme Court and twice by the D.C. Circuit -- we find ourselves yet again in a regrettable place. And the question we are asked repeatedly is where do we go from here?"

"Beginning today, competitors and incumbents should enter into a 30 day negotiation period", said Powell. "If those negotiations fail, however, I will propose to my colleagues that the FCC adopt an interim set of rules to protect against precipitous disruptions that might result after day 60 because of the court's ruling."

Next, he stated that "I will work with my colleagues to craft an 18 month moratorium and transition to protect existing UNE-P customers from sudden changes in their service."

And "I will also instruct our staff to begin developing a framework and proposals for new rules that are judicially sustainable and faithful to our mandate to advance local competition."

BellSouth issued a release praising Powell's proposal. It stated that "Given competition from the alternate technologies like cable telephony, wireless service and voice over the Internet, BellSouth has every incentive to ensure the continued viability of its wholesale business with CLECs (competitive .local exchange carriers) by negotiating wholesale prices that keep CLEC traffic on BellSouth's network. BellSouth is ready to negotiate agreements with CLECs who are serious about offering consumers a sustainable competitive alternative." (Parentheses in original.)

BellSouth added that "BellSouth is seizing this opportunity by inviting its competitors (CLECs) to enter into serious negotiations of market-based commercial agreements aimed at benefiting the customer, establishing stability in the industry and allowing real competition to continue throughout its region."

In contrast, Russell Frisby of the CompTel/Ascent wrote in a release that "It is shocking that Chairman Powell will not defend Commission rules ..." He added that "The competitive industry has been trying to negotiate with the Bells for eight years, without success. Chairman Powell now proposes that we negotiate for 30 days."

Chairman Powell also used this speech to the NARUC to address his vision of FCC regulation of new technologies and services.

He said that "As regulators, we need to embrace the reality that the torrent of change from IP technologies has arrived, is unstoppable and will accelerate over the next year. And American citizens will be the richer for it."

"A global Internet necessarily means entrepreneurs can set up shop literally in any corner of the globe", said Powell. "If we do not create a regulatory climate that attracts and encourages investment in our states and in our Nation, we will face the rude reality that opportunity can and will go elsewhere. If the regulatory climate is hostile, the information age jobs go to India not Appalachia. If regulatory costs are excessive, email, voice and video servers will be set up in China not California. Unlike the earth-bound networks and businesses of the past, there is nothing I, or you, can do to keep economic activity in your state."

He argued that "we have to make economic regulation of the Internet a last resort, lest we chill the hot bed of IP-enabled services that are springing to life in a fast-changing environment. Therefore, the Commission should start from the premise that traditional monopoly economic regulation should not be spilled over to the Internet. The emerging universe of VOIP providers -- whether Pulver.Com, Vonage, 8x8, or one of the established, facilities-based providers rolling out new technology, such as Cox Communications -- differ fundamentally from the voice monopolists of the public switched telephone network."

But, Powell still left open the possibility of "economic regulation". He stated that "vertical integration of internet applications and distribution could tempt a provider to discriminate against the font of innovative choices made available by others."

Powell argued that "Consumers should have access to their choice of legal content; .. Consumers should be able to run applications of their choice; ... Consumers should be permitted to attach any devices they choose to the connection in their homes; and ... Consumers should receive meaningful information regarding their service plans."

Powell challenged industry to voluntarily adopt these principles. Hence, he labeled these as consumer "freedoms", rather than proposed government regulation.

Moreover, Powell argued that regulation is appropriate in other areas. He listed these as "Local Competition; Consumer Protection; Universal Service; Disabilities Access; and Homeland Security."

3/10. The House passed HR 2391, the "Cooperative Research and Technology Enhancement (CREATE) Act", by a voice vote. This is a non-controversial bill to promote collaborative research.

The bill would amend Section 103(c) of the Patent Act, which is codified at 35 U.S.C. § 103, to address the August 8, 1997 opinion of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit in OddzOn Products, Inc. v. Just Toys, Inc., which ruled that derived prior art may serve as evidence of obviousness.

Section 103(c) currently provides a safe harbor for inventions that are the product of collaboration involving co-inventors within a single company. However, scientific research is increasingly being conducted jointly by multiple companies, universities, government labs, and/or other entities.

The holding in the OddsOn case threatens to discourage collaborative research, where the scientists involved are not employed by the same company or entity. Basically, the Court interpreted Section 103(c) to mean that prior art under Sections 102(f) or 102(g) could be used to determine the obviousness of an invention where there is no common ownership or assignment of the invention and information being shared among the collaborators, and the information exchanged is not publicly known. The bill amends Section 103 to provide that patentability is not precluded in the case of research conducted across entities pursuant to a joint research agreement.

The House Judiciary Committee's wrote in its report that "Many view the court's ruling as far-reaching. In essence, the court found that secret information that qualifies only under Sec. 102(f) could be combined with other information to make an invention obvious and nonpatentable where there was no common ownership or assignment of the invention and `subject matter' at issue. The court found this even though the information being exchanged was neither publicly known nor publicly available. The court's ruling was arguably required by the language of the statute. Nevertheless, Oddzon represents a significant potential threat to inventors who engage in collaborative research and development projects." See, House Report No. 108-425.

The Committee Report continues, "Put another way, the decision created a situation where an otherwise patentable invention may be rendered nonpatentable on the basis of confidential information routinely exchanged between research partners. Thus, parties who enter into a clearly defined and structured research relationship, but who do not (or cannot) elect to define a common ownership interest in or a common assignment of inventions jointly developed, can unwittingly create an obstacle to patent protection by simply exchanging secret information among themselves."

The Report elaborates that "In enacting the `Cooperative Research and Technology Enhancement (CREATE) Act of 2003,' Congress intends to enhance the effectiveness and security of patent protection for inventions that arise from collaborative arrangements between multiple organizations. Specifically, Congress intends that subject matter developed by another person, which qualifies as prior art only under one or more of subsections (e), (f), and (g) of section 102 of title 35, and a claimed invention shall be deemed to be owned by the same person, or subject to an obligation of assignment to the same person, where specific conditions are satisfied. The Act achieves this by eliminating the use of certain information and prior art in obviousness determinations in the circumstances addressed in the legislation."

Rep. Lamar Smith (R-TX), the Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee's Subcommittee on Courts, Internet and Intellectual Property (CIIP), introduced the bill on June 9, 2003. The CIIP Subcommittee held a hearing on the bill on June 10, 2003. The CIIP Subcommittee amended and approved the bill on July 22, 2003. The full Committee amended and approved the bill on January 21, 2004.

See, story titled "Representatives Introduce Patent Bill to Encourage Collaborative Research" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 680, June 13, 2003; and story titled "House Judiciary Committee Approves CREATE Act to Promote Collaborative Research" also published in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 821, January 22, 2004.

3/10. The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) and the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) continue to receive comments in response to their request for comments regarding Internet Protocol version 6 (IPv6). The Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC) submitted a comment [PDF] that addresses privacy related issues.

The EPIC wrote that "The predecessor to IPv6, IPv4, formed the foundation for the Internet as we know it today. However, weaknesses in security have allowed identity theft, third party surveillance, online fraud, and hacking, to become significant threats to Internet users. As the reach of the Internet extends with the capabilities of IPv6, further growth of the online community requires strong safeguards for the privacy and safety of persons online."

The EPIC argued that "it is absolutely vital that IPv6 incorporate strong privacy protections for end users".

First, wrote the EPIC, the Department of Commerce (DOC) "should join the EC IPv6 Task Force in strongly encouraging that the technical privacy protections in the IPv6 standard are implemented by default by all vendors, and used regularly to protect end users. Specifically, the DOC should strongly encourage that all IPv6 implementations meet the requirements of RFC 3041, allowing users to generate a random IPv6 address to prevent tracking the network activity of a user across multiple networks. Further, RFC 3041 and other privacy enhancing technologies should be made readily available and accessible to consumers. Further, the DOC should recommend that vendors implement technologies that automatically change IPv6 addresses, as specified by RFC 3041, on a regular basis to prevent third party surveillance or monitoring."

"Secondly, the DOC should encourage commercial developers writing software for IPv6 to take advantage of the IPsec services, such as end-to-end encryption."

Third, the EPIC argued that "the DOC should ensure that IPv6’s built-in security and other technical privacy safeguards are not compromised by an expansion of CALEA requirements to create security holes for law enforcement surveillance in the IPv6 data network. Extending CALEA surveillance capabilities from dedicated voice communications networks to information services such as IPv6 goes far beyond the intent of Congress and would pose significant threats to Internet security and stability."

See, NTIA/NIST notice in the Federal Register, January 21, 2004, Vol. 69, No. 13, at Pages 2890 - 2899. See also, story titled "NTIA and NIST Request Comments on IPv6" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 819, January 20, 2004; and story titled "NTIA/NIST Publish Public Comments on IPv6" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 853, March 10, 2004.

3/10. America Online, EarthLink, Microsoft, and Yahoo announced that they have filed complaints in various U.S. District Courts against spammers, alleging violation of the recently enacted Controlling the Assault of Non-Solicited Pornography and Marketing (CAN SPAM) Act. See, AOL release, Yahoo release, and Earthlink release. See, for example, complaint [PDF] filed by Earthlink in U.S. District Court (NDGa). This case is Earthlink v. Joe Does 1-25, et al., U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia, D.C. No. 1 04 CV-0667.

3/10. Microsoft announced in a release that it has entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the People's Republic of China's (PRC) Ministry of Information Industry (MII) under which the PRC government will guide Microsoft's development of software. Microsoft stated that it, "under the guidance of MII and in cooperation with its partners, will establish the Windows.NET-based technology labs, as part of the National Software and Integrated Circuits Public Service Platform. Microsoft will work with both the Chinese and international IT companies to build the labs and serve a large number of small and medium-sized Chinese software companies and the computer users in China." Microsoft added that "The Public Service Platform is an institution through which the government guides the development of the software and IC industries ..."

3/10. The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced in a release that "electronic filing continues to show a strong increase, with e-filed tax returns running more than 10 percent ahead of last year. The biggest increase is being seen in home computer use, which is up 23 percent." The IRS added that "Through March 5, 37.1 million returns were e-filed, more than 3.4 million ahead of last year's pace."

3/8. The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) submitted its report [74 pages in PDF] titled "FY 2003 Report to Congress on Implementation of The E-Government Act". Sen. Joe Lieberman (D-CT), the ranking Democrat on the Senate Government Affairs Committee, issued a release commenting on the report.

3/10. The House Rules Committee adopted a rule for the consideration of HR 3717, the "Broadcast Decency Enforcement Act of 2004". This rule makes in order a managers amendment [PDF] offered by Rep. Fred Upton (R-MI), the sponsor of the bill. This rule also make in order an amendment [PDF] offered by Rep. Pete Sessions (R-TX), and an amendment [PDF] offered by Rep. Janice Schakowsky (D-IL).

3/10. Microsoft, Nokia, Vodafone, 3, GSM Association, HP, Orange, Samsung Electronics, and Sun Microsystems signed a memorandum of understanding to apply to the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) for a mobile Top Level Domain. See, ICANN request for proposals. Vodaphone wrote in a release that the parties "have agreed to form a new joint venture to manage the mobile TLD. A mobile TLD would be a key step in bridging the world of mobility and the Internet to the benefit of customers and the entire mobile industry."

The House will meet at 10:00 AM for legislative business. The House may take up HR 3717, the "Broadcast Decency Enforcement Act of 2004", subject to a rule. See, Republican Whip Notice.

7:45 AM. The Federal Communications Bar Association (FCBA) will host a breakfast. The speaker will be Steve Largent, P/CEO of the Cellular Telecommunications and Internet Association (CTIA). Prices range for $30 to $55. See, registration form. Location: J.W. Marriott Hotel, 1331 Pennsylvania Ave. NW.

9:30 AM. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) will hold a meeting. The event will be webcast. Location: FCC, 445 12th Street, SW, Room TW-C05 (Commission Meeting Room).

9:30 AM. The Senate Judiciary Committee will hold a business meeting. The agenda, which the Committee is not likely to follow in its entirety, includes consideration of several pending judicial nominees, including Henry Saad (to be a Judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit), William James Haynes (4th Circuit), Diane Sykes (7th Circuit), William Gerry Myers (9th Circuit), James Robart (Western District of Washington), Juan Sanchez (Eastern District of Pennsylvania), and Lawrence Stengel (Eastern District of Pennsylvania). Location: Room 226, Dirksen Building.

9:30 AM. The U.S. Court Appeals (DCCir) will hear oral argument in City and County of San Francisco v. FCC, No. 03-1186. See, FCC brief [31 pages in PDF]. Judges Ginsburg, Randolph and Roberts will preside. Location: 333 Constitution Ave.

10:00 AM. The House Ways and Means Committee will hold a hearing titled "President Bush's Trade Agenda". The sole witness will be U.S. Trade Representative Robert Zoellick. See notice. Location: Room 1100, Longworth Building.

10:00 AM. The House Education and Workforce Committee will hold a hearing titled "The Changing Nature of the Economy: The Critical Roles of Education and Innovation in Creating Jobs & Opportunity in a Knowledge Economy". The witnesses will include Alan Greenspan (Chairman of the Federal Reserve Board) and John Castellani (Business Roundtable), and Robert Grady (Carlyle Group and National Venture Capital Association). The hearing will be webcast by the Committee. Location: Room 2175, Rayburn Building.

10:00 AM. The House Appropriations Committee's Subcommittee on Homeland Security will hold a hearing on the proposed budget for the Transportation Security Administration (TSA). The Homeland Security Act transferred the TSA from the Department of Transportation to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). The Computer Assisted Passenger Prescreening System (CAPPS) II program is run by the TSA. Under Secretary for Border and Transportation Security Asa Hutchinson is scheduled to testify. Location: Room 2359, Rayburn Building.

11:00 AM. The Senate Appropriations Committee's Subcommittee on the legislative branch will hold a hearing on the proposed budget for fiscal year 2005 for the Library of Congress. Location: Room 138, Dirksen Building.

12:00 NOON. The House Judiciary Committee's Subcommittee on Courts, the Internet, and Intellectual Property will hold a hearing titled "Section 115 of the Copyright Act: In Need of Update?". 17 U.S.C. § 115 pertains to compulsory licensing. The hearing will be webcast. Press contact: Jeff Lungren or Terry Shawn at 202 225-2492. Location: Room 2141, Rayburn Building.

Day three of a three day conference hosted by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and the Federal Information Systems Security Educators' Association (FISSEA) titled "Awareness, Training and Education: The Driving Force Behind Information Security". The price to attend is $365. See, notice. Location: Inn and Conference Center, University of Maryland University College (UMUC), 3501 University Boulevard East, Adelphi, MD.

Deadline to submit comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) regarding its Third Report and Order and Second Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking pertaining to the administration of the FCC's e-rate subsidy program for schools and libraries. See, notice in the Federal Register, February 10, 2004, Vol. 69, No. 27, at Pages 6229 - 6238. This item is FCC 03-323 in Docket No. 02-6. The FCC adopted this item at its December 17, 2003 meeting. See, FCC release [PDF] describing this item. The FCC released the text of this item on December 23, 2003.

12:15 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association's (FCBA) Diversity Committee will host a brown bag lunch. The topic will be "Balancing Work Life & Family Life". The speakers will be FCC Commissioner Kathleen Abernathy, Debra Lee (BET), and Michele Farquhar (Hogan & Hartson). RSVP to Monica Desai at 202 418-7419 or mdesai@fcc.gov by Wednesday, March 10. Location: FCC, 445 12th St., SW, 8th Floor, Conference Room 1.

The Senate will not meet from March 15 through March 19.

9:30 AM. The U.S. Court Appeals (DCCir) will hear oral argument in AT&T Wireless Services v. FCC, No. 03-1043. Judges Sentelle, Rogers and Garland will preside. Location: 333 Constitution Ave.

Extended deadline to submit reply comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in response to its Report and Order Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking [72 pages in PDF] in its proceeding titled "In the Matter of Digital Broadcast Content Protection". This item is FCC 03-273 in MB Docket 02-230. This FNPRM seeks comment regarding a permanent approval mechanism for content protection and recording technologies to be used in conjunction with device outputs. For more information, contact Rick Chessen rchessen@fcc.gov or Susan Mort at smort@fcc.gov or 202-418-7200. See, notice [PDF] extending deadlines.

Extended deadline to submit reply comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in response to its Second Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking regarding digital plug and play compatibility. The FCC announced its Second Report and Order and Second Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking at its September 10, 2003 meeting. See, story titled "FCC Adopts Digital Plug and Play Cable Compatibility Rules" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 737, September 11, 2003. The notice in the Federal Register states that the NPRM seeks public comments "on the mechanisms and standards by which new connectors and associated content protection technologies can be approved for use with unidirectional digital cable products". It further seeks comments on "the potential extension of digital cable system transmission requirements to digital cable systems with an activated channel capacity of 550 MHz or higher; whether it is necessary to require consumer electronics manufacturers to provide pre-sale information to consumers regarding the functionalities of unidirectional digital cable televisions; and whether the Commission should ban or permit the down-resolution of non-broadcast MVPD programming." This item is FCC 03-225 in CS Docket 97-80 and PP Docket 00-67. See, notice in the Federal Register, November 28, 2003, Vol. 68, No. 229, at Pages 66776 - 66781. See also, order [PDF] extending deadlines.

Deadline to submit comments to the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) regarding its proposed rule implementing provisions in the E-Government Act of 2002 that authorize the temporary assignment of employees in the field of information technology management (IT) between the federal government and private sector organizations. See, notice in the Federal Register January 15, 2004, Vol. 69, No. 10, at Pages 2308 - 2311.

Deadline to submit comments to the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) regarding its draft document [58 pages PDF] numbered "NIST Special Publication 800-63" and titled "Recommendation for Electronic Authentication". This publication supplements the December 16, 2003 Office of Management and Budget (OMB) memorandum [PDF] titled "E-Authentication Guidance for Federal Agencies" that defines four levels of authentication in terms of the likely consequences of an authentication error. This NIST publication states that it "provides technical guidance to Federal agencies implementing electronic authentication. The recommendation covers remote authentication of users over open networks. It defines technical requirements for each of four levels of assurance in the areas of identity proofing, registration, tokens, authentication protocols and related assertions." E-Mail comments to eauth-comments@nist.gov.

8:30 AM - 5:00 PM. Day one of a three day meeting of the National Institute of Standards and Technology's (NIST) Information Security and Privacy Advisory Board (ISPAB). See, notice in the Federal Register, March 8, 2004, Vol. 69, No. 45, at Pages 10677 - 10678. Location: Hyatt Regency Hotel Bethesda, 7400 Wisconsin Avenue, Bethesda, MD.

9:00 AM - 1:00 PM. The DC Bar Association will host a continuing legal education (CLE) program titled "Electronic Discovery and Evidence in Government Contract Litigation". Prices vary. For more information, call 202 626-3488. Location: DC Bar Conference Center, 1250 H St., NW, B-1 Level.

9:00 AM. The Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) North American Numbering Council will meet. See, notice in the Federal Register, February 13, 2004, Vol. 69, No. 30, at Pages 7224 - 7225. Location: FCC, 445 12th Street, SW, Commission Meeting Room (Room TW-C305).

8:30 AM - 3:30 PM. The Information Technology Association of America (ITAA) will host a conference titled "National Software Summit: Workshop on the Software Workforce". See, notice. For more information, contact Eerik Kreek at ekreek@itaa.org. Location: George Mason University, Arlington Campus.

8:30 AM - 5:00 PM. Day two of a three day meeting of the National Institute of Standards and Technology's (NIST) Information Security and Privacy Advisory Board (ISPAB). See, notice in the Federal Register, March 8, 2004, Vol. 69, No. 45, at Pages 10677 - 10678. Location: Hyatt Regency Hotel Bethesda, 7400 Wisconsin Avenue, Bethesda, MD.

9:00 AM - 5:00 PM. The Cellular Telecom and Internet Association (CTIA) and the Rural Cellular Association (RCA) will host a day long conference titled "Local Number Portability: Small Carrier Best Practices Forum". See, agenda and registration form. Prices vary. For more information contact Vanessa Ortiz at vortiz@ctia.org or 202 736-3677, or Lori Messing at lmessing@ctia.org. Location: St. Regis Hotel.

RESCHEDULED FROM MARCH 10. 10:00 AM. The House Government Reform Committee's Subcommittee on Technology, Information Policy, Intergovernmental Relations and the Census will hold an oversight hearing titled "Information Security in the Federal Government: One Year Into the Federal Information Security Management Act". The witnesses will be Paul Corts (Assistant Attorney General for Administration, Department of Justice), Karen Evans (Administrator for E-Government and IT, Office of Management and Budget), Robert Dacey (General Accounting Office), Ellis Merschoff (CIO, Nuclear Regulatory Commission), Patrick Pizzella (Department of Labor), Jeffrey Rush (Department of the Treasury), and Hratch Semerjian (National Institute of Standards and Technology). Press contact: Box Dix at 202 225-6751. Location: Room 2203, Rayburn Building.

1:00 PM. The House Appropriations Committee's Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, and State, the Judiciary, and Related Agencies will hold a hearing on the proposed budget for the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). FBI Director Robert Mueller is scheduled to testify. Location: Room 2359, Rayburn Building.

1:30 - 3:30 PM. The WRC-07 Advisory Committee's Informal Working Group 2: Satellite Services and HAPS will meet. See, notice [PDF]. Location: Leventhal Senter & Lerman, 7th Floor Conference Room, 2000 K Street, NW.

The U.S. Trade Representative's (USTR) Trade Policy Staff Committee (TPSC) will hold a hearing regarding negotiating objectives for the proposed free trade agreement (FTA) between the U.S. and four Andean countries (Colombia, Peru, Ecuador, and Bolivia). See, notice in the Federal Register, February 17, 2004, Vol. 69, No. 31, at Pages 7532 - 7534. Location: unannounced.

3/8. Oracle, the Department of Justice, and state plaintiffs submitted a Joint Case Management Statement and Proposed Order to the District Court in the governments' action to block Oracle's proposed acquisition of PeopleSoft.

On February 26, 2004, the U.S. and seven states filed a complaint in U.S. District Court (NDCal) against the Oracle Corporation alleging that Oracle's proposed acquisition of PeopleSoft, Inc. would lessen competition substantially in interstate trade and commerce in violation of Section 7 of the Clayton Act, which is codified at 15 U.S.C. § 18. The plaintiffs seek an injunction of the proposed acquisition.

See, story titled "Antitrust Division Sues Oracle to Enjoin Its Proposed Acquisition of PeopleSoft" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 846, March 1, 2004.

The joint filing states that "The parties request a trial date of June 21, 2004, or as soon thereafter as the Court calendar permits. The parties anticipate that each side shall need approximately 10 days to submit its respective case."

See also, Plaintiffs' Statement Regarding Disputed Issues, Defendant Oracle Corporation’s Statement re Disputed Issues, proposed Protective Order, and proposed Stipulated Protective Order.

This case is U.S., et al. v. Oracle, U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, D.C. No: C 04-00807 VRW.

3/10. President Bush announced his intent to nominate Stuart Levey to be Under Secretary of the Treasury for Enforcement in charge of overseeing the new Office of Terrorism and Financial Intelligence. He is currently the Principal Associate Deputy Attorney General at the Department of Justice. See, White House release.

3/10. President Bush announced his intent to nominate Juan Carlos Zarate to be an Assistant Secretary of the Treasury (Terrorist Finance). See, White House release.