10/12. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) initiated seven administrative proceedings against real estate business entities that operated multiple listing services, alleging violation of Section 5, or other sections, of the FTC Act in connection with their restraining competition by limiting consumers' ability to obtain low cost real estate brokerage services. The FTC alleged that these businesses limited the publication of certain listing agreements on popular internet real estate web sites.

Section 5, which is codified at 15 U.S.C. § 45(a), provides, in part, that "Unfair methods of competition in or affecting commerce, and unfair or deceptive acts or practices in or affecting commerce, are hereby declared unlawful."

See for example, complaint [PDF] against Information and Real Estate Services, LLC (IRES), a Colorado company. This complaint alleges that "This case involves a local, private real estate association that operates a Multiple Listing Service, which is a joint venture among its member Boards of Realtors designed to foster real estate brokerage services. IRES had adopted a rule that limits the publication of certain listing agreements on popular internet real estate web sites, in a manner that limits the ability of real estate brokers to use Exclusive Agency Listings to offer unbundled brokerage services at a lower price compared to the full service package."

It continues that "This rule deprives such brokers and the home sellers they represent of a significant benefit afforded by the MLS. The rule discriminates on the basis of lawful contractual terms between the listing real estate broker and the seller of the property, and lacks any justification that such a rule improves competitive efficiency. Consumers will be harmed by this rule because it denies a lower cost option to sellers and increases search costs to buyers. As such, this rule constitutes a concerted refusal to deal except on specified terms with respect to a key input for the provision of real estate services."

The complaint alleges that IRES adopted a "Web Site Policy" in 2003, which it rescinded in July of 2006, that "prevented certain lawful residential property listings provided to IRES, including ``Exclusive Agency Listings,´´ from being transmitted to real estate web sites, based on the contractual relationship between the home seller and the real estate agent the seller employs to promote the property."

The FTC also entered into an Agreement Containing Consent Order [3 pages in PDF] with IRES. The FTC also issued a Decision and Order [6 pages in PDF] that restrains IRES from further practices in violation of the FTC Act.

The FTC reached consent agreements with four other real estate entities. It released copies of complaints against two others. For hyperlinks to relevant documents, see FTC release.

10/13. President Bush signed HR 4954, which has had several titles, including the "Security and Accountability For Every Port Act of 2006" and the "Port Security Improvement Act of 2006". Most of this bill does not relate to information technology. However, this bill includes the "Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006" (see, text), and the "Warning, Alert, and Response Network Act", or "WARN Act".

See also, story titled "House and Senate Approve Port Security Bill With Tech Provisions" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,461, October 4, 2006.

Also, an earlier version of the bill, but not the version approved by the Congress and signed by the President, included the "IP-Enabled Voice Communications and Public Safety Act of 2006". See, story titled "Summary of 911 VOIP Provisions in Senate's Port Security Bill" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,453, September 20, 2006.

See also, signing statement and speech by President Bush.

10/16. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) released a second public notice in its AT&T BellSouth merger review proceeding. This notice pertains to AT&T's revisions to its proposed conditions to be imposed in the FCC's forthcoming order approving its acquisition of BellSouth.

See, FCC's October 13 public notice [7 pages in PDF] and October 16 public notice [7 pages in PDF].

The FCC announced on October 5, 2006, that it would consider its order in its proceeding on the merger of AT&T and BellSouth at its event titled "Open Meeting", to be held on October 12. The FCC conducted this event, but did not take up this order.

The FCC announced that it would hold a second meeting on Friday, October 13. However, no Commissioners attended this event, and no business was conducted. However, Commissioners continued their secret negotiations.

On October 13, the two Democrats on the Commission, Michael Copps and Jonathan Adelstein, released a letter [PDF] to the Republican Chairman, Kevin Martin, requesting that the FCC further postpone this matter. They requested that the FCC "allow the applicants to put forth their best proposals, and solicit expeditious public comment so that we can receive a full record to inform the Commission's decision-making process."

Just before 2:00 PM, the Martin released a letter in response. He stated that he would postpone the matter, and had "instructed staff to place these proposals out for public comment for a period of ten days." The FCC then released the first public notice, late on Friday, October 13, with a comment deadline of October 24.

The first public notice disclosed, attached, and requested public comments upon, an AT&T letter proposal dated October 13, 2006. AT&T, in an effort to win support from the Democratic Commissioners, listed in this six page letter numerous proposed conditions to which it would agree.

On October 16, the FCC issued a second public notice, which is similar to the first. It attached a different letter from AT&T, also dated October 13.

The FCC titled its second public notice "ERRATUM". This is a mischaracterization. First, erratum is the singular form of a noun meaning error. Errata is the plural form. The FCC's second public notice contains at least two major changes from the first.

Second, errata normally signifies inadvertent errors of a typographical nature. The changes in the second notice affect the substance of AT&T's proposal. The proposal attached to the first notice included no reference to "network neutrality" or "net neutrality". The second version adds a new section titled "Net Neutrality". It proposes that "Effective on the Merger Closing Date, and continuing for thirty months thereafter, AT&T/BellSouth will conduct business in a manner that comports with the principles set forth in the FCC’s Policy Statement, issued September 23, 2005 (FCC 05-151)."

See, the FCC's 2005 policy statement [3 pages in PDF].

The second public notice also changes a proposal in the first public notice to apply certain conditions from a previous merger order. The first referenced the SBC Ameritech merger order. The second references the SBC AT&T merger order.

The condition, as recited in the second public notice, provides as follows: "AT&T/BellSouth affiliates that meet the definition of a Bell operating company in section 3(4)(A) of the Act (``AT&T/BellSouth BOCs´´) will implement, in the AT&T and BellSouth Service Areas, the Service Quality Measurement Plan for Interstate Special Access Services (“the Plan”), similar to that set forth in the SBC/AT&T Merger Conditions." (Footnotes omitted.)

See also, story titled "FCC Releases Public Notice Seeking Comments on AT&T's Proposed Conditions" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,468, October 13, 2006.

10/16. John Dugan was named Associate District Administrator for Enforcement in the Securities and Exchange Commission's (SEC) Boston District Office (BDO). He replaces David Bergers, who was previously named BDO District Administrator. Dugan has worked for the SEC since 1999. See, SEC release.

10/13. Friday, October 13, 2006, was Chad Boudreaux's last day as Deputy Chief of Staff at the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). See, statement by Michael Chertoff.

10/13. Friday, October 13, 2006, was Cresencio Arcos' last day as Assistant Secretary for International Affairs at the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). See, statement by Michael Chertoff.

10/16. The Department of State (DOS) announced in a release that it "will provide $3 million for a combined 13 bilateral and multilateral training and technical assistance projects aimed at protecting intellectual property rights (IPR)." The DOS added that "The largest project -– with nearly $727,000 in funding -- will target the economies of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) -- Brunei Darussalam, Burma (Myanmar), Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. The two-year effort will provide training to border and customs officials at key offices and ports."

10/13. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) released its Order [23 pages in PDF] regarding Qualcomm's request for declaratory ruling (DR) regarding the interference protection requirements applicable to the 700 MHz Band. The FCC declined to issue the DR requested by Qualcomm, but granted Qualcomm a limited waiver. See also, story titled "FCC Adopts Order Affecting Qualcomm's Mediaflo Service" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,467, October 12, 2006. The FCC adopted this item on October 12, 2006. It is FCC 06-155 in WT Docket No. 05-7.

10/11. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) published a notice in the Federal Register that states that the "Secretary of Homeland Security announces the designation of the Under Secretary for Preparedness, Directorate for Preparedness, as the Manager, National Communications System (NCS)." See, Federal Register, October 11, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 196, at  Pages 59803-59804.

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10/16. The story titled "FCC Adopts Order Affecting Qualcomm's Mediaflo Service" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,467, October 12, 2006, incorrectly identified the title of the item as "First Report and Order and Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking". The correct title of this item is "Order". It contains no notice of proposed rulemaking. This order is FCC 06-155 in WT Docket No. 05-7.

The House will not meet. It may return from it elections recess on Monday, November 13, 2006. The adjournment resolution, HConRes 483, provides for returning on Thursday, November 9, at 2:00 PM.

The Senate will not meet. See, HConRes 483.

6:00 - 8:15 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association (FCBA) will host a continuing legal education (CLE) seminar titled "Client Creation, Conflicts and Confidentiality in the Administrative Process". The price to attend ranges from $50 to $125. See, registration form [PDF]. The deadline to register is 5:00 PM on October 12. Location: Wiley Rein & Fielding, 1776 K St., NW.

6:00 - 9:15 PM. The DC Bar Association will host a continuing legal education (CLE) seminar titled "How to Protect and Enforce Trademark Rights: A Primer". The speakers will include Shauna Wertheim (Roberts Mardula & Wertheim) and Steven Hollman (Hogan & Hartson). The price to attend ranges from $90-$135. For more information, call 202-626-3488. See, notice. Location: D.C. Bar Conference Center, 1250 H Street NW, B-1 Level.

9:30 AM - 4:30 PM. Day one of a two day meeting of the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission. It will consider drafts of material for its 2006 annual report to the Congress. The agenda includes, among other topics, a discussion of "China's Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights and Its Production of Counterfeit Goods" and "China's WTO Compliance". See, notice in the Federal Register, October 11, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 196, at Pages 59858-59859. Location: Conference Room 333, Hall of The States, 444 North Capitol Street, NW.

Deadline to submit comments to the European Commission (EC) in response to its public consultation regarding possible regulation of "the use of mobile phones by children and young people". The EC seeks comments "linked to content and behaviour, such as access to harmful or illegal content, bullying (e.g. distribution of abusive or compromising messages and photos amongst children), grooming (e.g. strangers “making friends” with children with a view to meeting them), risks to the privacy of children, and the risk of unexpectedly high expense." See, EC release.

9:30 AM - 4:30 PM. Day two of a two day meeting of the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission. It will consider drafts of material for its 2006 annual report to the Congress. The agenda includes, among other topics, a discussion of "China's Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights and Its Production of Counterfeit Goods" and "China's WTO Compliance". See, notice in the Federal Register, October 11, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 196, at Pages 59858-59859. Location: Conference Room 235, Hall of The States, 444 North Capitol Street, NW.

12:15 PM. There will be a brown bag lunch titled "Deploying IP-based Services in Rural Areas". The Federal Communications Bar Association (FCBA) states that this event is hosted by its Common Carrier Committee and IP-Based Communications Practice Committee. For more information, contact Andy Morentz at amorentz at gci dot com. Location: Federal Communications Commission (FCC), 6th Floor South Conference Room, 445 12th St., SW.

6:00 - 8:15 PM. The DC Bar Association will host a continuing legal education (CLE) seminar titled "Introduction to Export Controls". The speakers will include Thomas Scott (Weadon & Associates) and Carol Kalinoski (Kalinoski & Associates). The price to attend ranges from $90-$135. For more information, call 202-626-3488. See, notice and notice. Location: D.C. Bar Conference Center, 1250 H Street NW, B-1 Level.

Day one of a two day meeting of the Department of Labor's (DOL) Bureau of Labor Statistics' (BLS) Business Research Advisory Council (BRAC). See, notice in the Federal Register, October 2, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 190, at Pages 58013-58014. Location: Conference Center, Postal Square Building, 2 Massachusetts Ave., NE.

Day one of a two day conference hosted by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) titled "Moving Towards Interoperability -- Technologies for Affordable, Accessible Healthcare". See, notice. The price to attend is $195. Location: NIST, Red Auditorium, 100 Bureau Drive, Gaithersburg, MD.

12:30 - 2:00 PM. The DC Bar Association will host a panel discussion titled "Universal Service: What is on the Horizon?". The speakers will include James Reid (assistant to Sen. John Rockefeller (D-WV)), Paul Garnett (CTIA-The Wireless Association), Eric Einhorn (AT&T), Lisa Zaina (Exec. Dir. of the Independent Telephone and Telecommunications Alliance), and Kathleen Grillo (Verizon). The price to attend ranges from $15 to $20. For more information, call 202-626-3463. See, notice. Location: D.C. Bar Conference Center, 1250 H Street, NW, B-1 Level.

Day one of a two day event hosted by the Information Technology Association of America (ITAA) titled "ITAA Identity Management Conference 2006". See, notice. The speakers will include Rep. Tom Davis (R-VA), Robert Cresanti (Under Secretary of Commerce for Technology), and Frank Moss (Deputy Assistant Secretary Passport Services, Department of State). For more information, contact Jennifer Kerber at jkerber at itaa dot org. Location: Sheraton Premiere Tysons Corner, VA.

Day one of a three day convention of the American Intellectual Property Law Association (AIPLA) titled "2006 Annual Meeting". See, convention web site. Location: Marriott Wardman Park, 2660 Woodley Park Road, NW.

Day two of a two day meeting of the Department of Labor's (DOL) Bureau of Labor Statistics' (BLS) Business Research Advisory Council (BRAC). Some of the many items on the agenda may be technology related. On October 19, from 8:30 - 10:00 AM, the Committee on Productivity and Foreign Labor Statistics will meet. Its agenda includes "Update on manufacturing compensation costs in China and India", "Cross-Country Comparisons of Consumer Price Indexes", "Update on International Technical Cooperation", and "Are Those Who Bring Work Home Really Working Longer Hours?" See, notice in the Federal Register, October 2, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 190, at Pages 58013-58014. Location: Conference Center, Postal Square Building, 2 Massachusetts Ave., NE.

Day two of a two day conference hosted by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) titled "Moving Towards Interoperability -- Technologies for Affordable, Accessible Healthcare". See, notice. The price to attend is $195. Location: NIST, Red Auditorium, 100 Bureau Drive, Gaithersburg, MD.

12:00 NOON - 2:00 PM. The Progress and Freedom Foundation (PFF) will host a panel discussion titled "Copyright 'Modernization': What is the Agenda on Capitol Hill?" The speakers will included Patrick Ross (PFF), Joe Keeley (Counsel to the House Judiciary Committee's Subcommittee on Courts, the Internet and Intellectual Property), David Jones (Counsel for the Senate Judiciary Committee's Subcommittee on Intellectual Property, and other Congressional staff. See, notice and registration page. Lunch will be served. Location: Room B-354, Rayburn Building.

1:30 PM. The U.S. District Court (DC) will hold a status conference in Cisco Systems v. Teles AG Informationstechnologien, D.C. No. 1:2005-cv-02048-RBW, a patent case. Judge Reggie Walton will preside. Location: Courtroom 5.

Day two of a two day event hosted by the Information Technology Association of America (ITAA) titled "ITAA Identity Management Conference 2006". See, notice. The speakers will include Rep. Tom Davis (R-VA), Robert Cresanti (Under Secretary of Commerce for Technology), and Frank Moss (Deputy Assistant Secretary Passport Services, Department of State). For more information, contact Jennifer Kerber at jkerber at itaa dot org. Location: Sheraton Premiere Tysons Corner, VA.

Day two of a three day convention of the American Intellectual Property Law Association (AIPLA) titled "2006 Annual Meeting". Location: Marriott Wardman Park, 2660 Woodley Park Road, NW.

Deadline to submit reply comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in response to its notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) [77 pages in PDF] regarding the service rules that primarily govern wireless licenses in the 698-746, 747-762, and 777-792 MHz bands (700 MHz Band) currently occupied by television broadcasters and being made available for new services as a result of the DTV transition. This NPRM is FCC 06-114 in WT Docket No. 06-150, CC Docket No. 94-102, and WT Docket No. 01-309. The FCC adopted this NPRM on August 3, 2006, released it on August 10, 2006. See, notice in the Federal Register, August 21, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 161, at Pages 48506-48527, and notice in the Federal Register, September 29, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 189, at Pages 57455-57456. See also, FCC release [PDF] that describes this NPRM.

Deadline to submit comments to the National Institute of Standards and Technology's (NIST) Computer Security Division regarding its Draft Special Publication 800-94 [123 pages in PDF], titled "Guide to Intrusion Detection and Prevention (IDP) Systems".

Day three of a three day convention of the American Intellectual Property Law Association (AIPLA) titled "2006 Annual Meeting". Location: Marriott Wardman Park, 2660 Woodley Park Road, NW.

6:00 - 8:15 PM. The DC Bar Association will host a continuing legal education (CLE) seminar titled "How to Handle Opposition and Cancellation Actions Before the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board". The speakers will include Judges Karen Kuhlke and Jeffrey Quinn (Trademark Trial and Appeal Board) and Gary Krugman (Sughrue Mion). The price to attend ranges from $90-$115. For more information, call 202-626-3488. See, notice. Location: D.C. Bar Conference Center, 1250 H Street NW, B-1 Level.

Extended deadline to submit initial comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in response to its Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (FNPRM) regarding its media ownership rules. The FCC adopted this FNPRM on July 21, 2006, and released the text [36 pages in PDF] on July 24, 2006. See also, story titled "FCC Adopts FNPRM on Rules Regulating Ownership of Media" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,397, June 22, 2006. This FNPRM is FCC 06-93 in MB Docket No. 02-277, MM Docket No. 01-235, MM Docket No. 01-317, MM Docket No. 00-244, and MB Docket Nos. 06-121. See also, original notice in the Federal Register, August 9, 2006, Vol. 71, No. 153, at Pages 45511-45515, and order [PDF] extending deadlines.