9/24. Google's Larry Page, Alan Davidson, and Rick Whitt held meetings with each of the five Commissioners of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) on September 24, 2008.

The three met with FCC Chairman Kevin Martin, Dan Gonzales (Chief of Staff), and Julius Knapp (Chief of FCC Office of Engineering and Technology), and Charles Mathias (legal advisor). See notice of ex parte communication.

The Google trio also met with FCC Commissioners Robert McDowell (see, notice), Deborah Tate (see notice), Michael Copps (see notice), and Jonathan Adelstein (see notice).

Google's notices of ex parte communications state little about the content of the communications. The notices attach no further documents.

Google disclosed that "Page explained that Google sees tremendous potential in the white spaces spectrum as a means of providing ubiquitous, low-cost broadband Internet access to consumers, without interfering with other legitimate users of the spectrum bands."

It also stated that Page "discussed the feasibility of spectrum sensing as a proven technology, along with using other elements of Google's proposed ``enhanced protection´´ plan, including geolocation databases, beacons equipment, and safe harbor channels for wireless microphone users."

9/25. The New America Foundation (NAF) released a paper [31 pages in PDF] titled "There is No Windfall in the White Space: The Economics of Auctioning DTV White Space Spectrum".

The author is the NAF's Michael Calabrese. Eric Schmidt, Ch/CEO of Google, is Chairman of the NAF Board.

This paper argues that "A one-time auction of the guard band and other vacant channels in each local television market -- so-called ``spectrum white space´´ -- would provide minimal revenue to the Treasury, while simultaneously ensuring that most of this unused ``beachfront´´ spectrum will remain fallow, stifling the broadband services and innovation that could generate far more long-term economic activity."

It continues that "Unlike the recent 700 MHz auction, or the 2006 AWS-1 auction, TV white space spectrum is so fragmented and encumbered that an auction is likely to produce outcomes not unlike the recent failure of the 700 MHz ``D Block´´ auction. Alternatively, opening unlicensed access to the DTV white space for use by all American homes and businesses would do far more to promote opportunities for broadband deployment, innovation and efficient utilization of this spectrum."

This paper rebuts arguments of others that a white space auction would generate billions of dollars in revenue. See for example, comment [21 pages in PDF] submitted to the FCC by Charles Jackson, Dorothy Robyn and Coleman Bazelon on June 20, 2008.

The NAF paper argues that these arguments "dangle a pot of fool's gold in front of revenue-hungry legislators, hoping they will pressure the FCC to reverse course and spend the next two or three years designing an auction destined to fail." (Misspelled word corrected.)

9/25. Google launched a web site that contains limited information about the advertising agreement between Google and Yahoo. Google did not publish the text of the agreement.

The Department of Justice's (DOJ) Antitrust Division is conducting a review of Google and Yahoo's conduct for possible violation of federal antitrust law.

The Google web site states that Google and Yahoo "voluntarily agreed to delay implementation for up to three and a half months to give the U.S. Department of Justice time to review the arrangement", "voluntarily reached out to state attorneys general to explain the deal", and are "co-operating with the European Commission".

Google's description of the agreement is short.. Google states that "Yahoo! has the option to display Google ads alongside its own natural search results in the U.S. and Canada. In addition, Yahoo! can serve contextually targeted ads on its U.S. and Canadian web properties as well as on its current publisher partner sites. Yahoo! will continue to operate its own search engine, web properties and advertising services."

Google states also that "Yahoo! and Google agreed to enable interoperability between their respective instant messaging services bringing easier and broader communication to users."

And, it states that "The agreement has a term of up to ten years: a 4-year initial term and two 3-year renewals at Yahoo!'s option."

Google's argument regarding competition is also brief. It states that "Yahoo! will continue to operate its own search engine, and Google's share of search traffic will not increase. In addition, the agreement is non-exclusive, meaning Yahoo! could make a similar deal with another company."

It further argues that "this kind of arrangement is commonplace in many industries, and it doesn't foreclose robust competition. Toyota sells its hybrid technology to Ford, even though they compete against one another in selling cars. Canon provides laser printer engines for HP, despite also competing in the broader laser printer market. Google and Yahoo! will continue to be vigorous competitors, and that competition will help fuel innovation that is good for users."

9/23. Thomas Barnett, Assistant Attorney General in charge of the Department of Justice's (DOJ) Antitrust Division, gave a speech on September 23, 2008, titled "Navigating Scylla and Charybdis: Three Stages in the Journey to Effective Section 2 Enforcement".

He spoke about single firm conduct at the Georgetown law school's Global Antitrust Enforcement Symposium in Washington DC.

See also, DOJ's September 8, 2008, report titled "Competition and Monopoly: Single-Firm Conduct Under Section 2 of the Sherman Act", and stories titled "Antitrust Division Releases Report on Single Firm Conduct" and "Three FTC Commissioners Criticize Single Firm Conduct Report" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,827, September 17, 2008. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Commissioners Pamela Harbour, Jonathan Leibowitz and Thomas Rosch wrote that the DOJ's report, "if adopted by the courts, would be a blueprint for radically weakened enforcement of Section 2 of the Sherman Act."

Scylla, the six headed monster described by the ancient Greek poet Homer in The Odyssey [Wikipedia], is antitrust law's formalistic prohibitions not based on competitive effects. Charybdis, Homer's giant whirlpool, is pure effects based analysis, said Barnett.

Barnett stated that "we strive to find a mid-channel course. We are likely to advance our goal of economic growth and increased consumer welfare most effectively if we avoid both the formalism of rigid prohibitions and the unstructured, open-ended vortex of a pure effects-based analysis. We should seek liability standards that are based on clear and objective criteria, that effectively identify conduct likely to harm the competitive process, and that take into account institutional limitations and costs of administration." (Footnote omitted.)

He then made five points. First, he stated that the DOJ "is committed to enforcing Section 2" of the Sherman Act, which is codified at 15 U.S.C. § 2.

Second, Barnett said the "the focus on efficiency and harm to the competitive process is an important step. While Section 2 advances economic growth by prohibiting certain conduct that leads to monopoly, it also advances economic growth by what it does not prohibit. It does not prohibit mere possession of monopoly power, which can be the consequence of the beneficial competitive process. Further, competition is an inherently dynamic -- and sometimes destructive -- process. We have learned better to avoid protecting firms from the rough and tumble of competition and to intervene only where the process itself has been undermined."

Third, he said that "we give greater consideration to the limits of institutions. Neither agencies nor courts nor private plaintiffs excel at traditional regulatory functions, such as setting rates or other terms of dealing. Thus, we avoid standards of liability and remedies that would require courts to set prices or other terms of dealing. Nor are courts always well equipped to discern the difference between aggressive competition on the merits and harm to the competitive process."

Fourth, he said that "we have greater appreciation for the beneficial effects of many kinds of conduct and for the harm that can be imposed by restricting such conduct. In addition to taking into account the costs of investigations and litigation, we better appreciate that low prices, exclusive dealing, tying, and other conduct can create efficiencies and benefit consumers."

Finally, he said that we "we seek to refine our analysis". He discussed the "no economic sense test", the "conduct-specific tests", and bundled discounts.

9/22. September 22, 2008, was the deadline to submit initial comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in response to its Notice of Inquiry and Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NOI/NPRM) regarding regulation of advertising sponsorship identification.

This item is FCC 08-155 in MB Docket No. 08-90. This FCC adopted this item on June 13, 2008, and released the text [22 pages in PDF] on June 26, 2008. See, notice in the Federal Register, July 24, 2008, Vol. 73, No. 143, at Pages 43194-43200.

The Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood submitted a comment [25 pages in PDF] urging the FCC to "explicitly ban embedded advertisements in all children’s programming as well as in all primetime broadcast programming when children are likely to be in the audience."

The Children's Media Policy Coalition submitted a comment [PDF] arguing that the FCC should "codify its tentative prohibition on the use of interactive commercial links in children’s programming provided via broadcast, cable, or satellite channels".

The Center for Media and Democracy submitted a comment [PDF] regarding the "the intrusion of embedded advertising into news programming". It urges the FCC to require that "disclosures for television news include an aural announcement and a text disclosure that remains on-screen for the entire duration of the embedded advertisement".

The National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) submitted a comment [30 pages in PDF] in which it argued against adopting new rules. It wrote that "the current rules already address the issues raised in the NOI/NPRM. For example, the current rules prevent broadcasters from embedding advertising in children's programming".

The National Public Radio (NPR) argued in its comment [PDF] that if the FCC adopts new rules, they should apply only to commercial broadcasters, and not NPR or any noncommercial educational (NCE) radio broadcasters.

It wrote that "if a station utilizes equipment, supplies, or services that have been donated or subsidized by a third party supplier or contributor, a concurrent disclosure obligation could require the station to broadcast a substantial number of additional sponsorship identification announcement".

See also, similar comment [3 pages in PDF] of the Association of Public Television Stations.

A collection of media companies and groups, including the American Advertising Federation, CBS, NBC Universal, Fox Entertainment Group, Walt Disney, Viacom, Motion Picture Association of American, and others, filed a comment [73 pages in PDF] arguing that there is no need for new regulation, and that excessive regulation would violate the free speech clause of the first amendment of the Constitution.

The National Cable and Telecommunications Association (NCTA) submitted a comment [9 pages in PDF] in which it argued that the current sponsorship identification requirements cannot be extended to cable programmers, because the FCC lacks statutory authority. Hence, the FCC cannot impose product placement disclosure regulation on cable programmers.

The Progress & Freedom Foundation (PFF) filed a comment [PDF] arguing that "the proposed remedies are worse than the purported disease. In the name of protecting consumers from ``hidden´´ advertisements, the FCC is contemplating rules that likely would destroy the financial health and well-being of the free broadcast medium and unfairly handicap cable services vis-à-vis new media platforms. Indeed, because of the steady progress of media technology, the very rationale for FCC content regulation of broadcast and cable programming has become superannuated. Advertisers and consumers have moved on and are adapting to the 21st Century media marketplace -- the Commission should, too."

The PFF adds that "the burdensome disclosure regulations posited in the Notice are targeted directly at traditional media platforms, while new media outlets over which the FCC has little or no authority would remain free to sell advertising in whatever form they choose."

9/25. The U.S. Court of Appeals (FedCir) issued its opinion [25 pages in PDF] in Lucent v. Gateway, several consolidated patent cases regarding methods for compressing digital audio files to reducing consumption of storage space -- MP3 technology.

Lucent (now Alcatel-Lucent) initially filed a complaint against Gateway alleging patent infringement. Microsoft, whose Media Player incorporates MP3 technology, then filed a complaint against Lucent seeking a declaratory judgment. Lucent also filed a complaint against Dell. These actions were consolidated in the U.S. District Court (SDCal).

A trial jury in 2007 rejected Microsoft's claims of invalidity, found that Microsoft infringed both U.S. Patent Nos. 5,341,457 and RE 39,080, and awarded Lucent damages in the amount of $1,538,056,702.

However, the District Court then granted Microsoft judgment as matter of law (JMOL) on the '457 patent, and dismissed the claims for infringement of the '080 patent. Its opinion is reported at 509 F. Supp. 2d 912.

The Court of Appeals affirmed the District Court's dismissal of the infringement claims with respect to the '080 patent for lack of standing. It affirmed the District Court' grant of JMOL of non-infringement with respect to the '457 patent.

This case is Lucent Technologies, Inc., et al. v. Gateway Inc., et al., U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, App. Ct. Nos. 2007-1546 and 2007-1580, an appeal from the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California, D.C. Nos. 02-CV-2060, 03-CV-0699, and 03-CV-1108, Judge Rudi Brewster presiding. Judge Sharon Prost wrote the opinion of the Court of Appeals, in which Judges Alan Lourie and William Bryson joined.

9/24. The U.S. Court of Appeals (FedCir) issued its opinion [37 pages in PDF] in Broadcom v. Qualcomm, a patent infringement case regarding chipsets for cell phones and other mobile devices.

Broadcom is the holder of U.S. Patents Nos. 6,847,686 , 5,657,317, and 6,389,010. Broadcom filed a complaint in U.S. District Court (CDCal) against Qualcomm. A trial jury returned a verdict of infringement of these three patents, and the District Court issued permanent injunction.

Qualcomm brought the present appeal. The Court of Appeals reversed in part, affirmed in part, and remanded. It reversed the verdict of infringement of claim 3 of the '686 patent, and held it invalid. The Court of Appeals affirmed the verdict of infringement of the '317 and '010 patents, and the injunctions related to those two patents.

Broadcom stated in a release that "The two patents that the appeals court upheld are U.S. Patent No. 5,657,317, which the jury found infringed by Qualcomm's EV-DO technology, and U.S. Patent No. 6,389,010, which the jury found infringed by Qualcomm's QChat chips and software. The third patent, held invalid, is U.S. Patent No. 6,847,686, which relates to video processing technology."

It added that "is one of several cases in which Broadcom continues to pursue claims against Qualcomm regarding patent infringement, anti-competitive behavior and fraud issues".

This case is Broadcom Corporation v. Qualcomm, Inc., U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, App. Ct. Nos. 2008-1199, 2008-1271, and 2008-1272, an appeal from the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, D.C. No. 05-CV-467, James Selna presiding. Judge Richard Linn wrote the opinion of the Court of Appeals, in which Judges Daniel Friedman and Sharon Prost joined.

9/25. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) adopted and released a Third Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (3rdFNPRM) [237 pages in PDF] regarding its failed D block auction and its efforts to facilitate a nationwide interoperable broadband wireless network for public safety entities. See also, FCC release [PDF].

The FCC proposes to retain the public private partnership model. This item finds that "a public/private partnership condition on the D Block remains the best option".

FCC Chairman Kevin Martin wrote in his accompanying statement [PDF] that this is "not a final action". He said that "It is the next step in our effort to provide our Nation’s first responders with the broadband network they need and deserve. The proposals in the Third Further Notice provide substantial detail and specificity, including draft rules, which will allow potential bidders to fully assess what their obligations will be, and make fully informed determinations as to how the public-private partnership may fit their business plans."

This item states that "we tentatively conclude that we should continue to require, as a license condition, that the D Block licensee enter into a public/private partnership with the Public Safety Broadband Licensee for the purpose of constructing a wireless broadband network that will operate over both D Block spectrum and public safety broadband spectrum and provide broadband services to both commercial users and public safety entities (shared wireless broadband network)." (Parentheses in original. Footnote omitted.)

This item proposes "to retain those current rules that will support this relationship. For example, we propose to continue requiring the parties to enter into a Network Sharing Agreement (NSA), and to make the NSA a condition of the grant of the D Block license(s)."

The FCC proposes to change it rules to address "whether the D Block will be licensed on a nationwide or regional basis", among other things.

This states that "we tentatively conclude that we should resolve two critical issues through the use of competitive bidding: (1) the appropriate geographic license area for the D Block, and (2) the need for a common broadband technology platform nationwide. We tentatively conclude that we can resolve these issues through competitive bidding by offering alternative sets of D Block licenses with different license areas and broadband technology conditions. With regard to the appropriate geographic area, we propose to offer the D Block both as a single nationwide license and on a regional basis, using geographic areas that we will refer to as Public Safety Regions (PSRs). PSRs would be comprised of fifty-five regions that mirror the geographic boundaries of the fifty-five 700 MHz Regional Planning Committee (RPC) regions, and three additional areas (for a total of 58 PSRs) to cover the whole country and match the geographic area of the nationwide license. With regard to the broadband technology platform, we propose to establish rules that will ensure that a single broadband air interface is used nationwide regardless of whether there is a single licensee or multiple regional licensees, to ensure that public safety users may communicate when they roam outside their home regions." (Footnote omitted. Parentheses in original.)

This 3rdFNPRM continues that "we therefore propose to offer simultaneously three alternative sets of licenses that vary by geographic license area and by conditions regarding the technology platform that must be used by the licensee(s). Specifically, under this proposal, the Commission would offer (1) a single license for service nationwide with the technology platform to be determined by the licensee; (2) a nationwide set of PSR licenses conditioned on the use of Long Term Evolution (LTE) by the licensees; and (3) a nationwide set of PSR licenses conditioned on the use of Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX) by the licensees. The Commission will then award the D Block license(s) in the set that receives bids on licenses covering the greatest aggregate population, subject to the requirement that the license(s) must authorize service in areas covering at least half of the nation’s population."

This item also proposes to change the parties' obligations regarding the construction and operation of the shared wireless broadband network. It proposes to change the technical requirements of the network. It proposes to extend the license term to fifteen years and to adopt performance benchmarks. It also addresses auction rules.

It also proposes that eligible users of the public safety broadband spectrum capacity must be providers of public safety services. It also concludes that the Public Safety Broadband Licensee (PSBL) must be a non-profit entity. It also proposes restrictions on its business relationships to avoid the potential for conflicts of interest.

It also addresses funding of the PSBL, and proposes changes to its articles of incorporation and bylaws.

This 3rdFNPRM is FCC 08-230 in WT Docket No. 06-150 and PS Docket No. 06-229.

9/25. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) released a tentative agenda for its event scheduled for October 15, 2008, titled "Open Meeting".

9/24. Oracle announced that it will sell hardware -- "HP Oracle Database Machine, a system designed for extreme performance data warehouses". See, release.

9/23. T-Mobile announced in a release the "T-Mobile G1 with Google is the first commercially available phone to run on the 'Android' operating system". Google wrote in its web site that this marks "an important milestone in the young history of Android". Google added that "over the past year, we've released several early versions of the Software Developer Kit (SDK) and worked with developers from around the world to make it better and more complete. This has culminated in today's release of the Android 1.0 SDK R1." See also, story titled "Open Handset Alliance Announces Android and New Members" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 1,670, November 6, 2007.

9/22. Microsoft announced in a release that "its board of directors approved a new share repurchase program authorizing up to an additional $40 billion in share repurchases with an expiration of September 30, 2013."

9/22. Meredith Baker, acting head of the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) gave a speech at a Maximum Service Television (MSTV) at which she discussed transitioning to digital television.

The House will meet at 10:00 AM for legislative business. The agenda includes consideration of HR 3402 [LOC | WW], the "Calling Card Consumer Protection Act". See, Rep. Hoyer's schedule for week of September 22, and schedule for September 25.

The Senate will meet at 9:30 AM.

8:30 AM - 12:30 PM. The Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF) and Silicon Flatirons (SF) will host a half day conference titled "Innovation Economics for the Next Administration". See, notice. Location: Newseum, Knight Conference Center Room 706, 555 Pennsylvania Ave., NW (entrance is on 6th Street).

8:30 AM - 3:30 PM. The Technology Policy Institute (TPI) will host an event titled "Powering the Future Key Energy Issues for the Next Administration". At 2:00 PM there will be a panel titled "The Intersection of Telecommunications and Electricity Markets -- New Technologies for Meeting Energy Needs". The speakers for this panel will be Ray Gifford (TPI), Walter Curt (Power Monitors Inc.), and Pat Vincent-Collawn (PNM Resources). See, agenda. For more information, contact Ashley Creel at 202-828-4405. Location: National Press Club.

TIME? The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) may hold an event titled "Open Meeting". See, tentative agenda [PDF]. Location: FCC, Commission Meeting Room.

10:00 AM. The Senate Commerce Committee (SCC) will hold a hearing titled "Broadband Providers and Consumer Privacy". See, notice. Location: Room 253, Russell Building.

10:00 AM. The Senate Judiciary Committee (SJC) may hold an executive business meeting. The agenda includes consideration of an authorization for subpoenas relating to the Department of Justice's (DOJ) Office of Legal Counsel (OLC), and consideration of the nominations of Clark Waddoups (to be a Judge of the U.S. District Judge for the District of Utah), Michael Anello (U.S.D.C., Southern District of California), Mary Scriven (U.S.D.C., Middle District of Florida), Christine Arguello (U.S.D.C., District of Colorado), Philip Brimmer (U.S.D.C., District of Colorado), Anthony Trenga (U.S.D.C., Eastern District of Virginia), Darnell Jones (U.S.D.C., Eastern District of Pennsylvania), Mitchell Goldberg (U.S.D.C., Eastern District of Pennsylvania), Joel Slomsky (U.S.D.C., Eastern District of Pennsylvania), Eric Melgren (U.S.D.C., District of Kansas), and Gregory Garre (DOJ Solicitor General). See, notice. The SJC will webcast this meeting. The SJC rarely follows the agendas for its executive business meetings. Location: Room 216, Hart Building.

10:00 AM. The House Small Business Committee will hold a hearing titled "Small Business Competition Policy: Are Markets Open for Entrepreneurs?" Location: Room 1539, Longworth Building.

10:00 AM - 4:00 PM. The U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission will hold a public meeting to work on its 2008 Annual Report to Congress. See, notice in the Federal Register, July 29, 2008, Vol. 73, No. 146, at Pages 43978-43979, and notice in the Federal Register, September 18, 2008, Vol. 73, No. 182, at Page 54205. Location: Conference Room 231, Hall of the States, 444 North Capitol St., NW.

10:30 AM. The U.S. District Court (DC) will hold a periodic status conference in US v. Microsoft, D.C. No. 98-cv-1232, and the associated states' action, D.C. No. 98-cv-1233. Location: Courtroom 28A, 333 Constitution Ave., NW.

2:00 PM. The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee's (HOGRC) Subcommittee on Domestic Policy will hold a hearing titled "Tumors and Cell Phone Use: What the Science Says". Location: Room 2154, Rayburn Building.

Deadline to submit initial comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in response to its Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (FNPRM) regarding assessment and collection of regulatory fees for Fiscal Year 2008. This item is FCC 08-182 in MD Docket No. 08-65. This FCC adopted this item on on August 1, 2008 and released the text [90 pages in PDF] on August 8, 2008. See, notice in the Federal Register, August 26, 2008, Vol. 73, No. 166, at Pages 50285-50296.

Effective date of the order portion of the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) Report and Order and Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking regarding assessment and collection of regulatory fees for Fiscal Year 2008. This item is FCC 08-182 in MD Docket No. 08-65. This FCC adopted this item on on August 1, 2008 and released the text [90 pages in PDF] on August 8, 2008. See, notice in the Federal Register, August 26, 2008, Vol. 73, No. 166, at Pages 50285-50296.

Deadline to pay annual fees to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). See, FCC Public Notice [8 pages in PDF] (DA-08-1973) and Public Notice [2 pages in PDF] (DA-08-1974).

The House will at 9:00 AM for legislative business. The agenda includes consideration of S 3325 [LOC | WW], the "Prioritizing Resources and Organization for Intellectual Property (PRO-IP) Act of 2008", S 1738 [LOC | WW], the "Combating Child Exploitation Act of 2008", and HR 7084 [ LOC | WW], the "Webcaster Settlement Act". See, Rep. Hoyer's schedule for week of September 22, and schedule for September 26.

The Senate will meet at 9:30 AM.

8:30 AM - 1:00 PM. There will be an event titled "Broadband Census for America Conference". Prices vary. Location: American Association for the Advancement of Science, 1200 New York Ave., NW.

9:00 AM - 12:00 NOON. The U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission will hold a public meeting to work on its 2008 Annual Report to Congress. See, notice in the Federal Register, July 29, 2008, Vol. 73, No. 146, at Pages 43978-43979, and notice in the Federal Register, September 18, 2008, Vol. 73, No. 182, at Page 54205. Location: Conference Room 333, Hall of the States, 444 North Capitol St., NW.

11:45 AM - 1:45 PM. The Free State Foundation (FSF) will host an event titled "Delivering Media Content in a New Technological Environment: An Exploration of Policy Implications". The speakers will be Steven Wildman (Michigan State University) and Robert McDowell (FCC Commissioner). Lunch will be served. Location: National Academy of Public Administration, 7th and I Streets, NW.

12:15 - 1:30 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association's (FCBA) FCC Enforcement Practice Committee will host a brown bag lunch titled "FCC Enforcement Actions Relating to the DTV Transition". The speakers will be David Solomon (Wilkinson Barker Knauer) and Mitch Stoltz (Constantine Cannon). Location: Akin Gump, 1333 New Hampshire Ave., NW.

Extended deadline to submit to the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) applications for membership on the NTIA's Commerce Spectrum Management Advisory Committee (CSMAC). The applicable positions have two year terms that commence in December of 2008. See, original notice in the Federal Register, August 1, 2008, Vol. 73, No. 149, at Pages 44972-44973, second notice in the Federal Register, September 10, 2008, Vol. 73, No. 176, at Pages 52646-52647, and third notice in the Federal Register, September 18, 2008, Vol. 73, No. 182, at Page 54139.

9:30 - 11:30 AM. The National Archives and Records Administration's (NARA) Public Interest Declassification Board (PIDB) will meet to "discuss declassification program issues". See, notice in the Federal Register, September 17, 2008, Vol. 73, No. 181, at Page 53905. Location: NARA, Room 105, 700 Pennsylvania Ave., NW.

Rosh Hashana begins at sundown.

The Supreme Court will hold the opening conference of its October 2008 term.

12:00 NOON - 2:00 PM. The American Enterprise Institute (AEI) will host a panel discussion titled "The Millennials: The Dumbest Generation or the Next Great Generation?". The speakers will be Mark Bauerlein, author of the book titled "The Dumbest Generation: How the Digital Age Stupefies Young Americans and Threatens Our Future", Neil Howe, and Frederick Hess (AEI). See, notice. Location: AEI, 12th floor, 1150 17th St., NW.

2:00 - 4:00 PM. The Department of State's (DOS) Advisory Committee on International Economic Policy will hold a meeting titled "Policies, Programs and Total Economic Engagement with China". See, notice in the Federal Register, September 15, 2008, Vol. 73, No. 179, at Page 53317. Location: DOS, Room 1107, 2201 C St., NW.

Day one of a three day event hosted by the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) titled "NAB Satellite Uplink Operators Training Seminar". Location: NAB, 1771 N St, NW.

Deadline to submit reply comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in response to its Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) regarding telecommunications relay services and speech to speech services for individuals with hearing and speech disabilities, and speech to speech services and internet protocol speech to speech telecommunications relay service. The FCC adopted this NPRM on June 11, 2008, and released the text [19 pages in PDF] on June 24, 2008. It is FCC 08-149 in CG Docket Nos. 03-123 and 08-15. See, notice in the Federal Register, August 13, 2008, Vol. 73, No. 157, at Pages 47120-47122.

Rosh Hashana.

9:00 - 11:00 AM. The Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF) will host an event. The speaker will be Gregory Tassey, Senior Economist at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), and author of the book [Amazon] titled "The Technology Imperative", and the book [Amazon] titled "The Economics of R&D Policy". See, notice. Coffee and parties will be served. Location: ITIF, Suite 200, 1250 Eye St., NW.

Day two of a three day event hosted by the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) titled "NAB Satellite Uplink Operators Training Seminar". Location: NAB, 1771 N St, NW.

Second of three deadlines for the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) to comply with the request of Rep. John Dingell (D-MI), Chairman of the House Commerce Committee (HCC), and Rep. Ed Markey (D-MA), Chairman of the HCC's Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet, for a series of three written status reports on whether the FCC and NTIA anticipate that additional funds will be needed for the DTV transition converter box coupon program. See, March 5, 2008, letter [3 pages in PDF].

Deadline for repeat manufacturers of digital to analog converter boxes to submit to the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) notices of intent to participate with addition converter boxes in the NTIA's TV Converter Box Coupon Program. See, notice in the Federal Register, July 24, 2008, Vol. 73, No. 143, at Pages 43211-43212.

Deadline to submit comments to the National Institute of Standards and Technology's (NIST) Computer Security Division (CSD) regarding its draft SP 800-37, Revision 1 [81 pages in PDF] titled "Guide for Security Authorization of Federal Information Systems: A Security Lifecycle Approach".

Deadline to submit reply comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in response to the CTIA's Petition for Declaratory Ruling [44 pages in PDF] regarding 47 U.S.C. § 332(c)(7)(B), ensuring timely siting review, and preemption under 47 U.S.C. § 253 of state and local ordinances that classify all wireless siting proposals as requiring a variance. This is WT Docket No. 08-165. See, August 14, 2008, Public Notice (DA 08-1913) and notice in the Federal Register, August 29, 2008, Vol. 73, No. 169, at Pages 50972-50973.

12:00 NOON - 1:30 PM. The DC Bar Association will host a program titled "An Election Year Round-up of International Trade and Customs Issues". The speakers will be Warren Maruyama (General Counsel, OUSTR), Alice Kipel (Steptoe & Johnson), Timothy Reif (Chief Democratic Trade Counsel, House Ways and Means Committee), Demetrios Marantis (Chief International Trade Counsel, Senate Finance Committee), Jonathan Stoel (Hogan & Hartson), Daniel Pearson (Vice Chair, International Trade Commission), David Spooner (Department of Commerce). The price to attend ranges from $10 to $35. For more information, contact 202-626-3463. See, notice. Location: Hogan & Hartson, 13th floor, 555 13th St., NW.

6:00 - 9:15 PM. The DC Bar Association will host a program titled "How to Protect and Enforce Trademark Rights: A Primer". The speakers will be Steven Hollman (Hogan & Hartson) and Shauna Wertheim (Roberts Mardula & Wertheim). The price to attend ranges from $80 to $115. For more information, contact 202-626-3488. See, notice. This event qualifies for continuing legal education (CLE) credits. Location: DC Bar Conference Center, B-1 Level, 1250 H St., NW.

Day three of a three day event hosted by the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) titled "NAB Satellite Uplink Operators Training Seminar". Location: NAB, 1771 N St, NW.

TIME? The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative's (OUSTR) Trade Policy Staff Committee (TPSC) hold a public hearing to hear testimony to assist it in preparing its annual report to the Congress on the People's Republic of China's compliance with the commitments made in connection with its accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO). This report is requires by Section 421 of the Trade Act of 1974, the relevant portion of which section is codified at 22U.S.C. § 6951. See, notice in the Federal Register, July 31, 2008, Vol. 73, No. 148, at Pages 44783-44785. Location?

9:30 AM - 12:00 NOON. The American Enterprise Institute (AEI) will host an event titled "Trade Tsunami: Will U.S.-Japanese Trade Stay Afloat in a Global Crisis". The speakers will be Wendy Cutler (Office of the U.S. Trade Representative), Kenji Goto (Embassy of Japan), Matthew Goodman (Stonebridge International), Claude Barfield (AEI), and Michael Auslin (AEI). See, notice. Location: 12th floor, 1150 17th St., NW.

12:00 NOON - 1:30 PM. The DC Bar Association will host a program titled "50 Hot Technology Tips, Tricks & Web Sites For Lawyers". The price to attend ranges from $15 to $35. For more information, contact 202-626-3463. See, notice. Location: DC Bar Conference Center, B-1 level, 1250 H St., NW.

8:00 AM - 12:30 PM. The National Institutes of Health's (NIH) Biomedical Computing and Health Informatics Study Section will hold a closed meeting. See, notice in the Federal Register, September 3, 2008, Vol. 73, No. 171, at Page 51493. Location: Hilton Washington DC/Rockville, 1750 Rockville Pike, Rockville, MD.

12:30 - 2:00 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association's (FCBA) International Telecommunications Committee will host a brown bag lunch titled "Discussion on the interplay between Team Telecom, CFIUS, and the FCC, and how to make the review process faster and easier". For more information, contact Troy Tanner at troy dot tanner at bingham dot com or 202-373-6560. Location: Bingham McCutchen, 11th floor, 2020 K St., NW.

1:00 - 2:30 PM. The Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF) will host an event titled "Understanding Our Digital Quality of Life". The ITIF will release a report titled "Digital Quality of Life: Understanding the Personal and Social Benefits of the Information Technology Revolution". The speakers will be Craig Mundie (Chief Research and Strategy Officer for Microsoft) and Rob Atkinson (ITIF). Light refreshments will be served. See, notice and r egistration page. Location: Room LJ 162, Library of Congress, Thomas Jefferson Building.

6:00 - 8:00 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association (FCBA) will host an event titled "FCBA Fall Reception with the FCC and NTIA Bureau and Office Chiefs". Prices vary. See, registration form [PDF]. Location: Mayflower Hotel, 1127 Connecticut Ave., NW.

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