9/17. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) released an order [26 pages in PDF] that grants the National Cable & Telecommunications Association's (NCTA) petition for forbearance from the statutory ban on cable companies acquiring competitive local exchange carriers (CLECs) in the same markets.

The order concludes that "section 652(b) unambiguously prohibits a cable operator from acquiring any LEC providing telephone exchange service within the cable operator’s franchise area ...". However, the order also concludes that the "NCTA has demonstrated that the statutory criteria for forbearance are satisfied and justify granting, in part, its Petition for Forbearance. Specifically, we forbear from applying section 652(b) to acquisitions of competitive LECs."

FCC Commissioner Robert McDowell wrote in his statement that "this forbearance order promotes good public policy because it should spur competition in the telecommunications marketplace".

Section 652 of the Communications Act, which is codified at 47 U.S.C. § 572, provides in relevant part that "No cable operator or affiliate of a cable operator ... may purchase or otherwise acquire, directly or indirectly, more than a 10 percent financial interest, or any management interest, in any local exchange carrier providing telephone exchange service within such cable operator’s franchise area."

Section 10 of the Communications Act, which is codified at 47 U.S.C. § 160, provides in part that "the Commission shall forbear from applying any regulation or any provision of this chapter to a telecommunications carrier or telecommunications service, or class of telecommunications carriers or telecommunications services, in any or some of its or their geographic markets, if the Commission determines that -- (1) enforcement of such regulation or provision is not necessary to ensure that the charges, practices, classifications, or regulations by, for, or in connection with that telecommunications carrier or telecommunications service are just and reasonable and are not unjustly or unreasonably discriminatory; (2) enforcement of such regulation or provision is not necessary for the protection of consumers; and (3) forbearance from applying such provision or regulation is consistent with the public interest."

FCC Commissioner Ajit Pai wrote in his statement that "Today we take a modest but important step towards eliminating regulatory barriers to infrastructure investment. As I noted in Pittsburgh this past July, section 652 of the Communications Act places an unnecessary hurdle to transactions between cable operators and competitive local exchange carriers. When a cable operator purchases a competitive LEC, local competition is likely to increase and more infrastructure is likely to be deployed to serve the enterprise market. Congress entrusted the Commission with forbearance authority to eliminate counterproductive regulatory schemes just like this one, and I am glad we are exercising our authority today to do just that. The end result of our deregulatory action will be more robust, facilities-based competition."

Commissioner McDowell added that the "should undertake more forbearance actions on its own accord rather than waiting for outside parties to file costly petition".

Michael Powell, head of the NCTA, commended the FCC in a release "for removing outdated obstacles that have historically deterred pro-competitive transactions between cable operators and competitive local phone companies. The cable industry provides millions of American businesses and consumers with competitive digital voice services and today's decision will help ensure that more Americans can benefit from the savings and convenience that cable offers."

Matthew Polka, head of the American Cable Association (ACA), stated in a release that the "ACA is pleased with today's FCC decision sought by the National Cable & Telecommunications Association because Section 652 acted to inhibit transactions between cable operators and CLECs -- transactions which have the potential to bring substantial benefits to consumers and further the public interest, including in smaller markets served by smaller providers."

The FCC adopted this order on September 12, but did not release it until September 17. It is FCC 12-111 in WC Docket No. 11-118.

9/7. The Department of Justice (DOJ) and other supporters of the respondent filed amicus curiae briefs with the Supreme Court in Kirtsaeng v. John Wiley & Sons, a case regarding whether the first sale doctrine of the Copyright Act applies to goods made abroad.

The first sale doctrine, which is codified in the Copyright Act at 17 U.S.C. § 109, permits the owner of a lawfully purchased copyrighted work to resell it without limitations imposed by the copyright holder. However, another section of the Copyright Act, codified at 17 U.S.C. § 602, restricts importation into the U.S. of copies without the authority of the owner of copyright under the Copyright Act.

John Wiley & Sons, the plaintiff in the District Court and respondent in the Supreme Court, publishes academic, scientific, and educational journals and books, including textbooks, for sale in domestic and international markets. It makes outside of the US those copies for sale outside of the US. It makes in the US those copies for sale inside the US. Wiley's books for non-US sale include statements such as "Authorized for sale in Europe, Asia, Africa and the Middle East Only" and "This book ... may not be exported."

Supap Kirstsaeng, the defendant below and petitioner in the Supreme Court, imported into the US Wiley books published outside the US, and sold them on websites such as eBay. His revenues totaled about about one million dollars.

Wiley sued Kirstsaeng in the U.S. District Court (SDNY), and won. Kirtsaeng appealed. The U.S. Court of Appeals (2ndCir) affirmed. Kirtsaeng petitioned the Supreme Court for writ of certiorari. Oral argument is scheduled for October 29, 2012.

For a more detailed explanation of this case, see stories titled "2nd Circuit Holds First Sale Doctrine Does Not Apply to Works Made Abroad" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,295, August 28, 2011, and "Supreme Court Grants Certiorari in Case Regarding First Sale Doctrine" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,372, April 16, 2012.

See also, brief of petitioner, Kirtsaeng, and brief of respondent, Wiley.

Amicus Brief in Support of Respondent. Copyright holders, and the DOJ, filed briefs in support of the respondent, and for affirming the judgment of the Court of Appeals.

The Office of the Solicitor General (OSG) wrote in its brief that "In the Copyright Act of 1976, Congress enacted Section 602(a)(1), which broadened protections against unauthorized importation of copyrighted works to encompass copies that are lawfully made. That provision was intended to facilitate market-segmentation measures of the sort at issue in this case."

The OSG rejected the policy arguments of Kirtsaeng. Instead, it argued that "This case exemplifies one potential benefit of allowing such market segmentation. Book publishers, like respondent, often offer cheaper editions of their works in other (particularly less-developed) countries to consumers who might otherwise be unable to afford them. ... Publishers' willingness to continue that practice might be reduced if the foreign editions could be imported into this country and resold in competition with the publisher’s U.S. editions." (Parentheses in original.)

The Software and Information Industry Association (SIIA) wrote in its brief that the "Second Circuit correctly concluded that the first sale doctrine, as codified in section 109, did not apply to foreign-made copies imported into the United States by Petitioner."

The SIIA added that "there are a variety of rational and widely beneficial reasons for a copyright owner to prevent copies made for sale abroad from entering the United States. Market segmentation has many salutary effects both for copyright owners and the consumer by providing incentives for the creation of new copyrighted works (made possible by foreign exploitation), lower domestic prices, expansion and investment in U.S. companies, and employment. In addition, the laws or economics of a particular foreign market may dictate the differences in the copies produced for that market."

The Business Software Alliance (BSA) wrote in its brief [28 pages in PDF] that "The vitality of the software industry depends in large part on strong copyright protections. One of those protections is the right to choose to either authorize or prohibit importation of software into the United States, as set forth in Section 602 of the Copyright Act. Petitioner, however, contends that the Section 602 right should be subsumed by the first sale doctrine, such that software creators would be unable to prevent the distribution of foreign versions of their software in this country. That approach threatens harmful consequences to the software industry that Congress could not have intended and that cannot be reconciled with the text, structure, or purpose of Section 602. Instead, the public good is best furthered by the innovation and creative expression that is fostered when authors are given exclusive control over authorizing or prohibiting the distribution of their works."

Amicus Briefs in Support of Petitioner. Amici in support of the petitioner filed their briefs on July 9.

Google, eBay, Center for Democracy and Technology (CDT), Computer and Communications Industry Association (CCIA), and other groups wrote in their brief that the Second Circuit should be reversed because it "imposed a place of manufacturing requirement on the first sale doctrine that is directly at odds with the text, structure, history, and purposes of the Copyright Act."

They argued that the Second Circuit's opinion could "have significant adverse con-sequences for trade, consumers, secondary markets, e-commerce, small businesses, and jobs in the United States". They wrote that "A place of manufacturing requirement will create incentives for off-shore manufacturing, stifle secondary markets, stifle e-commerce, harm small businesses and consumers, and further depress the job market in the United States."

The American Library Association (ALA) wrote in its brief that "By restricting the application of Section 109(a) to copies manufactured in the United States, the Second Circuit’s decision threatens the ability of libraries to continue to lend materials in their collections. Over 200 million books in U.S. libraries have foreign publishers. Moreover, many books published by U.S. publishers were actually manufactured by printers in other countries. Although some books indicate on their copyright page where they were printed, many do not. Libraries, therefore, have no way of knowing whether these books comply with the Second Circuit’s rule."

The Public Knowledge (PK), Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) and other groups wrote in their brief that "The Second Circuit’s interpretation of sections 109 and 602 is likely to have dangerous consequences for both consumers and businesses that operate in resale markets. The court’s reading of section 109 effectively removes a vast swath of copyright-protected goods from the well-established protections of the first sale doctrine. This precludes secondary markets for many goods entirely and creates substantial uncertainty for many other goods if the owner does not know where every copyrightable component of the product was manufactured. By extending liability for selling, lending, or otherwise disposing of lawfully purchased copies of copyright-protected works, the Second Circuit has exposed to legal risk a wide swath of activities, from holding a weekend garage sale, to selling a used car, to lending books to friends or patrons, to providing online platforms for reselling goods."

9/6. The Motion Picture Association (MPA) announced in a release that the MPA and Taobao Marketplace "signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to promote a healthier online environment in China for the sale and distribution of legitimate audio-visual content".

Both the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) and the MPA have as members the large US based movie companies. Taobao is a web site in the People's Republic of China (PRC) that has features similar to both eBay and Amazon.

The MPA did not release the MOU. However, it stated in its release that "Both parties have reached a common understanding regarding the importance of strengthening existing standards, mechanisms, and mutual responsibilities concerning the identification and removal of copies of MPA member company content from Taobao.com’s consumer-targeted e-commerce platform that the members have identified as counterfeit or otherwise infringing."

The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (OUSTR) stated in its December 20, 2011 report [6 pages in PDF] titled "Out-of-Cycle Review of Notorious Markets" that "Several commenters reported that pirated and counterfeit goods continue to be widely available on China-based Taobao. While stakeholders report that Taobao continues to make significant efforts to address the problem, they recognize that much remains to be done. Taobao was recently listed as one of the top 16 most visited sites in the world, and one of the top three most visited sites in China, according to rankings published at Alexa.com."

The announcement of this MOU comes just before the comment deadlines in two OUSTR inquiries about the PRC's intellectual property record.

Friday September 14 was the deadline to submit comments to the OUSTR in response to its notice in the Federal Register (FR) requesting comments to assist it in preparing its 2012 Notorious Markets List, which identifies internet and physical notorious markets located outside of the US that make available intellectual property infringing products. See, FR, Vol. 77, No. 157, August 14, 2012, at Pages 48583-48584. See also, story titled "USTR Seeks Comments on Notorious Markets" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,431, August 17, 2012.

See, for example, comments [8 pages in PDF] submitted by the International Intellectual Property Alliance (IIPA). It lists many online markets around the world, including some in the PRC, such as Sohu/Sogou (which "continues to operate an unlicensed deeplinking service"), Xunlei (which operates "unlicensed P2P file sharing"), Gougou (which operates "an unlicensed deeplinking service"), and Xiami (which "continues to operate its multi-platform infringing service in music portal, P2P application ... and mobile applications that actively induce users to search for infringing music files hosted on Xiami’s servers for streaming and download"). However, the IIPA did not mention Taobao, as it did in its 2011 comments for the OUSTR.

Next Monday, September 24, is the deadline to submit comments to the OUSTR to assist it in preparing its annual report to the Congress on the PRC's compliance with its World Trade Organization (WTO) obligations. See, notice in the FR, Vol. 77, No. 161, August 20, 2012, at Pages 50206-50207. See also, story titled "OUSTR to Receive Comments and Hold Hearing on PRC Compliance with WTO Obligations" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,431, August 17, 2012.

9/12. The Copyright Office (CO) extended the deadline to submit reply comments in response to its notice in the Federal Register (FR) that requests comments on its proposed rules regarding the verification of Statements of Account and royalty payments that are deposited with the CO by cable operators and satellite carriers. The extended deadline to submit reply comments is 5:00 PM on October 3, 2012. See, original notice in the FR, Vol. 77, No. 115, June 14, 2012, at Pages 35643-35652, and extension notice in the FR, Vol. 77, No. 176, September 11, 2012, at Page 55783. See also, CO web page with initial comments submitted by the American Cable Association (ACA), National Cable & Telecommunications Association (NCTA), AT&T, Directv, Dish, and a collection of copyright owners.

9/12. The Copyright Office (CO) published a notice in the Federal Register (FR) that extends the comment deadlines for its proposed rules regarding reporting Monthly and Annual Statements of Account for the making and distribution of phonorecords under compulsory licenses obtained pursuant to 17 U.S.C. § 115. The extended deadline to submit initial comments is October 25, 2012. The extended deadline to submit reply comments is November 26, 2012. See, FR, Vol. 77, No. 176, September 11, 2012, at Pages 55783-55784. The CO published its original notice that announces, describes, and recites its proposed rules on July 27, 2012. See, Vol. 77, No. 145, July 27, 2012, at Pages 44179-4419. The original comment deadlines were September 25 and October 25.

9/17. The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (OUSTR) filed a complaint (nominally a request for consultations) with the World Trade Organization (WTO) alleging that the People's Republic of China (PRC) is in violation of its WTO obligations in connection with its "measures providing subsidies such as grants, loans, forgone government revenue, the provision of goods and services and other incentives contingent upon export performance to automobile and automobile-parts enterprises in China". See, WTO web page for this proceeding.

The nature and timing of this complaint are not inconsistent with the hypothesis that this is a political campaign event intended to boost President Obama's re-election prospects.

USTR Ron Kirk stated in a release that "The Obama Administration is committed to protecting the rights of nearly 800,000 American workers in our $350 billion auto and auto parts manufacturing sector. We insist upon having a level playing field on which our world-class manufacturers can compete. Today we are continuing to make it clear to our trading partners that we will fight to support each job here at home that this sector supports".

He added that "Export subsidies are prohibited under WTO rules because they are unfair and severely distort international trade. China expressly agreed to eliminate all export subsidies when it joined the WTO in 2001. China benefits from international trade rules and must in turn live up to its international obligations."

9/17.  The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (OUSTR) published a notice in the Federal Register (FR) that requests comments regarding the complaint (request for consultations) filed with the World Trade Organization (WTO) by the People's Republic of China (PRC) against the US alleging that US investigations, determinations and orders regarding countervailing duties violate WTO obligations. The deadline to submit comments is November 2, 2012. See, FR, Vol. 77, No. 180, September 17, 2012, at Pages 57181-57182.

9/17.  Simon Lester of the Cato Institute commented on the latest round of Trans Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPPA) negotiations that took place on September 6-15, 2012 in Leesburg, Virginia. He wrote in one piece that the free trade parts are not controversial. Rather, "It is the United States’ quest for ever stronger intellectual property protections, as well as the special provisions that allow foreign companies to sue governments in international tribunals for vaguely defined due process-type concerns, that have people upset. All in all, it is easy to come away from the experience thinking, what are we doing here and what happened to free trade?" He wrote in another piece that "There's too much protectionism" in the TPPA.

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The House will meet at 12:00 NOON in pro forma session. See, Rep. Cantor's schedule for the week.

10:00 AM - 12:00 NOON. The American Enterprise Institute (AEI) will host a panel discussion titled "Assange's Asylum in Correa's Ecuador: Last Refuge for Scoundrels?" The speakers will be Roger Noriega (AEI), Gustavo Palacio (Ecuador Democracy International), and Mark Weisbrot (Center for Economic and Policy Research). See, notice. This event will not be webcast live, but the AEI will publish video one day after the event. Location: AEI, top floor, 1150 17th St., NW.

12:00 NOON - 1:00 PM. The American Bar Association's (ABA) Section of Antitrust Law will host a teleconferenced panel discussion titled "July-August 2012 Antitrust Update". The speakers will be Dorothy Raymond and Francis Fryscak, Jackie Grise, Howard Morse, and Marc Schildkraut (all of Cooley). No CLE credits. Free. See, notice.

12:00 - 1:15 PM. The American Bar Association (ABA) will host a teleconferenced panel discussion titled "Locked Down: Keeping Confidential Information Confidential". CLE credits. Prices vary. See, notice.

1:30 - 5:00 PM. Melbourne IT will host a panel discussion titled "Trademarks and New gTLDs: Minimizing the Need for Defensive Registrations and the Second Level of New Generic Top Level Domains". The speakers will be Andrew Abrams (Google), James Bikoff (Silverberg Goldman & Bikoff), Steve DelBianco (NetChoice), Dan Jaffe (Association of National Advertisers), Jon Nevett (Donuts), Russell Pangborn (Microsoft), Craig Schwartz (fTLD Registry Services), and Brian Winterfeldt (Steptoe & Johnston). See, notice. Location: Capitol Hilton, 1001 16th St., NW.

The House will meet at 12:00 NOON for morning hour, and at 2:00 PM for legislative business. The House will consider numerous non-technology related items under suspension of the rules. Votes will be postponed until 6:30 PM. See, Rep. Cantor's schedule for the week.

12:00 MIDNIGHT - 1:30 AM ET. The American Bar Association (ABA) will host an on site and teleconferenced panel discussion titled "Migration and People Movement: Front-line Insights on Business Practices for India, China and the US". No CLE credits. Prices vary. See, notice. On site location: K&L Gates, Suite 3708, 1601 Nanjing Road West, Shanghai, People's Republic of China.

9:00 AM - 3:00 PM. The Department of Health and Human Services' (DHHS) Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology's (NCOHIT) HIT Standards Committee will meet. See, notice in the Federal Register, Vol. 77, No. 163, August 22, 2012, at Page 50690. Location: Washington Marriott, 1221 22nd St., NW.

CANCELLED. 9:30 AM - 4:00 PM. The Department of Commerce's (DOC) National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) will hold one in a series of meetings regarding consumer data privacy in the context of mobile applications. See, notice in the Federal Register, Vol. 77, No. 149, Thursday, August 2, 2012, Pages 46067-46068. Location: Auditorium, DOC, Hoover Building, 14th Street and Constitution Ave., NW.

10:00 AM. The Senate Judiciary Committee (SJC) will hold a hearing on the nominations of Katherine Failla (USDC/SDNY), Pamela Ki Mai Chen (USDC/EDNY), Troy Nunley (USDC/EDCal), Sheri Chappell (USDC/MDFl), Mark Barnett (U.S. Court of International Trade). See, notice. President Obama nominated Failla, Nunley and Chappell on June 25. See, White House news office release and release. He nominated Barnett on July 12. See, White House news office release and release. Location: Room 226, Dirksen Building.

10:00 AM - 12:00 NOON. The Department of State's (DOS) International Telecommunication Advisory Committee (ITAC) will meet to discuss preparations for the World Conference on International Telecommunication (WCIT-12) to be held in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, on December 3-14, 2012, and the World Telecommunication Standardization Assembly (WTSA-12), to be held in Dubai on November 20-29, 2012. See, notice in the Federal Register, Vol. 77, No. 170, August 31, 2012, at Page 53249. Location: DOS, 10th floor, 1120 20th St., NW.

11:00 AM. The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee (HOGRC) will hold a hearing titled "Trade Adjustment Assistance for U.S. Firms: Evaluating Program Effectiveness and Recommendations". See, notice. Location: Room 2247, Rayburn Building.

12:00 NOON. Deadline to submit comments to the Federal Election Commission (FEC) regarding its Draft Advisory Opinion 2012-31 [11 pages in PDF]. AT&T requested this AO. It pertains to political contributions via text messaging. See also, notice in the Federal Register, Vol. 77, No. 180, September 17, 2012, at Pages 57087-57088.

12:00 NOON. The World Wide Web Consortium's (W3C) Tracking Protection Working Group will meet by teleconference. The call in number is 1-617-761-6200. The passcode is TRACK (87225).

12:00 NOON - 1:00 PM. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) will hold an event titled "Inside the Wireline Competition Bureau". The speaker will be Julie Veach, Chief of the FCC's Wireline Competition Bureau. The FCBA states that this is an FCBA event. Location: Kelley Drye & Warren, Suite 400, 3050 K St., NW.

12:00 NOON - 1:30 PM. The American Bar Association (ABA) will host a telecast panel discussion titled "Private Antitrust Actions: EU and UK Initiatives and their Global Implications". The speakers will be Eddy De Smijter (Deputy Head of Unit A1 Private Enforcement Unit at the European Commission's Directorate General for Competition), Angela Nardella (Private Enforcement Unit at the EC's DGC), Tiffany Rider (Skadden), Ingrid Vandenborre (Skadden), and Gary MacDonald (Skadden). Free. No CLE credits. See, notice.

12:00 NOON. Deadline to submit requests to testify at the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative's (OUSTR) October 3 hearing regarding preparation of its annual report to the Congress on the People's Republic of China's (PRC) compliance with its World Trade Organization (WTO) obligations. See, notice in the Federal Register, Vol. 77, No. 161, August 20, 2012, at Pages 50206-50207. See also, story titled "OUSTR to Receive Comments and Hold Hearing on PRC Compliance with WTO Obligations" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,431, August 17, 2012.

12:15 - 1:30 PM. Andrew Weisman, General Counsel of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), will speak. The DC Bar Association asserts that this is a DC Bar event. See, notice. Reporters are barred. The price to attend ranges from $10 to $20. Lunch will not be served. Location: Wilmer Hale, 1875 Pennsylvania Ave., NW.

RESCHEDULED FROM SEPTEMBER 11. 2:15 PM. The Senate Foreign Relations Committee (SFRC) will hold an executive business meeting. The agenda includes numerous items, including consideration of SConRes 50, a resolution "Expressing the sense of Congress regarding actions to preserve and advance the multistakeholder governance model under which the Internet has thrived". See, notice. Location: Room S-116, Capitol Building.

2:30 PM. The Senate Commerce Committee (SCC) will hold a hearing titled "Five Years of the America COMPETES Act: Progress, Challenges, and Next Steps". See, notice. Location: Room 253, Russell Building.

6:00 - 8:00 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association's (FCBA) Young Lawyers Committee will host an event titled "Happy Hour". For more information, contact Justin Faulb at JFaulb at eckertseamans dot com or Brendan Carr at Brendan dot Carr at fcc dot gov. Location: District Chophouse, 509 7th St., NW.

The House will meet at 10:00 AM for morning hour, and at 12:00 NOON for legislative business. The agenda includes consideration of HR __, the "STEM Jobs Act of 2012". See, Rep. Cantor's schedule for the week.

9:00 - 11:00 AM. The Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF) will host a panel discussion titled "Unveiling an Advanced Manufacturing & Traded Sector Competitiveness Strategy for the United States". The speakers will be Rob Atkinson (ITIF), Roger Kilmer (NIST Manufacturing Extension Partnership), Theresa Kotanchek (Dow Chemical), and Martin Schmidt (Massachusetts Institute of Technology). See, notice. Location: Room 485, Russell Building, Capitol Hill.

9:30 AM. The U.S. Court of Appeals (DCCir) will hear oral argument in Cellco Partnership v. FCC, App. Ct. No. 11-1135. This is a petition for review of the FCC's data roaming order. See, FCC's Second Report and Order [79 pages in PDF], and story titled "FCC Adopts Data Roaming Rules" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,219, April 7, 2011. See also, FCC brief [136 pages in PDF], and story titled "FCC Files Brief with Court of Appeals in Challenge to Its Data Roaming Rules" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,329, January 16, 2012. Judges Tatel, Garland, and Griffith will preside. This is the third item on the Court's agenda. Location: Courtroom 11, 4th floor, Prettyman Courthouse, 333 Constitution Ave., NW.

9:30 AM - 2:00 PM. The Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) North American Numbering Council (NANC) will meet. Location: FCC, 445 12th St., SW.

9:45 AM - 12:00 NOON. The Constitution Project and Georgetown University School of Law (GUSL) will host a panel discussion titled "Plugging National Security Leaks While Preserving Free Speech". The speakers will be Lucy Dalglish (University of Maryland), Dana Priest (Washington Post), Harvey Rishikof, Kenneth Wainstein (Cadwalader Wickersham & Taft), and Laura Donohue (GULS). See, notice. Location: GULS, Gewirz Student Center, 12th Floor, 120 F St., NW.

10:00 AM. The House Judiciary Committee (HJC) will hold a hearing titled "Regulation Nation: The Obama Administration's Regulatory Expansion vs. Jobs and Economic Recovery". See, notice. Location: Room 2141, Rayburn Building.

10:00 AM. The Senate Judiciary Committee (SJC) will hold an executive business meeting. The agenda again includes consideration of HR 2471 [LOC | WW], a bill to amend 18 U.S.C. § 2710, S 3486 [LOC | WW], the "Patent Law Treaties Implementation Act", and S 3523 [LOC | WW], the "Innovative Design Protection Act of 2012". The agenda also includes consideration of the nomination of William Baer to be Assistant Attorney General in charge of the Department of Justice's (DOJ) Antitrust Division. See, SJC notice. Location: Room 226, Dirksen Building.

10:00 AM - 12:00 NOON. The Senate Banking Committee's (SBC) Subcommittee on Securities, Insurance and Investment will hold a hearing titled "Computerized Trading: What Should the Rules of the Road Be?". The witnesses will be David Lauer, Andrew Brooks (T. Rowe Price), Chris Concannon (Virtu Financial), and Larry Tabb (TABB Group). See, notice. Location: Room 538, Dirksen Building.

10:00 AM. The Federal Election Commission (FEC) will hold a public meeting. The agenda includes consideration of its Draft Advisory Opinion 2012-31 [11 pages in PDF]. AT&T requested this AO. It pertains to political contributions via text messaging. See also, notice in the Federal Register, Vol. 77, No. 180, September 17, 2012, at Pages 57087-57088. Location: FEC, 9th Floor, 999 E St.,  NW.

10:00 AM - 12:00 NOON. The American Enterprise Institute (AEI) will host a panel discussion titled "US Trade Policy and the Presidential Election". The speakers will be Grant Aldonas (Center for Strategic and International Studies), Jared Bernstein (Center on Budget and Policy Priorities), and Claude Barfield (AEI). See, notice. Location: AEI, 1150 17th St., NW.

12:00 NOON - 1:15 PM. Ruth Milkman, Chief of the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) Wireless Telecommunications Bureau (WCT) will speak, answer questions, and receive comments regarding wireless issues. The FCBA states that this is a brown bag lunch hosted by its Wireless Telecommunications Committee. Location: Arnold & Porter, Conference Room 213, 555 12th St., NW.

12:15 - 1:00 PM. The Executive Office of the President's (EOP) Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) will host a webcast event to discuss the National Nanotechnology Initiative's (NNI) web site. See, notice in the Federal Register, Vol. 77, No. 178, September 13, 2012, at Page 56681.

12:45 - 1:45 PM. The Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF) will host a panel discussion titled "The Sequestration and the Innovation Landscape". The speakers will be Rob Atkinson (ITIF), Edward Pesicka (Thermo Fisher) and Ronnie Andrews (Life Technologies). See, notice. Location: Russell Building, Capitol Hill.

2:00 PM. The House Judiciary Committee's (HJC) Subcommittee on Intellectual Property, Competition, and the Internet will hold a hearing titled "International IP Enforcement: Opening Markets Abroad and Protecting Innovation". See, notice. Location: Room 2141, Rayburn Building.

2:00 - 4:00 PM. The House Science Committee's (HSC) Subcommittee on Investigations and Oversight will hold a hearing titled "The Impact of International Technology Transfer on American Research and Development". The witnesses will be Rob Atkinson (Information Technology & Innovation Foundation), Dennis Shea (U.S. China Economic and Security Review Commission), and Robert Holleyman (Business Software Alliance). See, notice. Location: Room 2318, Rayburn Building.

2:00 PM. The House Ways and Means Committee's (HWMC) Subcommittee on Trade will hold a hearing titled "Benefits of Expanding U.S. Services Trade Through an International Services Agreement". See, notice. Ongoing negotiations cover trade in computer, information technology, telecommunications, financial, legal, and other services. Location: Room 1100, Longworth Building.

2:30 PM. The Senate Intelligence Committee (SIC) will hold a closed hearing on undisclosed matters. See, notice. Location: Room 219, Hart Building.

5:30 - 7:30 PM. The 463 Communications will host a book event for Robert Atkinson (head of the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation) and Stephen Ezell (ITIF) to talk about their just published book titled "Innovation Economics: The Race for Global Advantage". Location: 300 New Jersey Ave., NW.

The House will meet at 9:00 AM for legislative business. See, Rep. Cantor's schedule for the week.

TIME? The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) will hold its mock auction in advance of Auction 901, which begins on September 27. This will auction high cost universal service subsidies through reverse competitive bidding. It is also titled "Mobility Fund Phase I Auction". See, September 14 Public Notice (DA 12-1456), and notice in the Federal Register, Vol. 77, No. 180, September 17, 2012, at Pages 57085-57086.

TIME? The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (OUSTR) will hold a hearing regarding Mexico's participation in the negotiation of a Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade agreement. The OUSTR seeks comments on numerous issues, including "electronic commerce issues" and "trade-related intellectual property rights issues". The deadline to submit written requests to present oral testimony is September 4. The deadline to submit written comments is 12:00 NOON on September 4. See, notice in the Federal Register Vol. 77, No. 141, July 23, 2012, at Pages 43131-43133. Location: OUSTR, Rooms 1, and 2, 1724 F St., NW.

The House Commerce Committee (HCC) will hold a hearing titled "The LightSquared Network: An Investigation of the FCC's Role". See, notice. Location: Room 2123, Rayburn Building.

9:30 - 11:00 AM. The Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF) will host a panel discussion titled "Does the PCAST Report Move Spectrum Policy in the Right Direction?". The speakers will be Richard Bennett (ITIF), Michael Calabrese (New America Foundation), and Preston Marshall (University of Southern California). See, notice. Location: ITIF/ITIC, Suite 610A, 1101 K St., NW.

12:00 NOON - 1:30 PM. The Net Caucus will host an panel discussion titled "Internet TV: What Must Congress Do About It? Television Regulations Coming To Your Laptop Soon?" Free. Lunch will be served. Register by contacting rsvp at netcaucus dot org or 202-638-4370. Location: Room B-338, Rayburn Building.

12:00 NOON - 1:30 PM. The Computer and Communications Industry Association (CCIA) and George Washington University (GWU) will host a brown bag lunch titled "Can Trade Agreements Facilitate the Free Flow of Information?: The Trans-Pacific Partnership as a Case Study". The speakers will be Jonathan McHale (Deputy Assistant U.S. Trade Representative for Telecommunications and Electronic Commerce Policy), Jayme White (staff, Senate Finance Committee's Subcommittee on International Trade), Usman Ahmed (eBay), Rashmi Rangnath (Public Knowledge), and Susan Aaronson (GWU). See, notice. Location: GWU, Elliot School of International Affairs, 6th Floor, 1957 E St., NW.

12:15 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association's (FCBA) Young Lawyers Committee will host a brown bag lunch titled "Meet the FCBA President -- A Mentoring Event with Laura Phillips". The speaker will be Laura Phillips (Drinker Biddle). She will address career development, professional growth opportunities, mentoring, and other topics. For more information contact Justin Faulb at faulbjl at gmail dot com or Brendan Carr at BrendanTCarr at gmail dot com. Location: __.

1:00 - 2:30 PM. The American Bar Association (ABA) will host a webcast and teleconferenced panel discussion titled "Patent Litigation: Strategies and Techniques". CLE credits. Prices vary. See, notice.

2:00 - 4:00 PM. The Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) Consumer Advisory Committee will meet. See, notice in the Federal Register, Vol. 77, No. 174, September 7, 2012, Page 55214. Location: FCC, Commission Meeting Room, TW-C305, 445 12th St., NW.

Deadline to submit initial comments to the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) Media Bureau (MB) regarding TiVo's petition [15 pages in PDF] for waiver and clarification of the FCC's rules regarding set top boxes, codified at 47 C.F.R. § 76.640(b)(4)(iii). See, notice in the Federal Register, Vol. 77, No. 173, September 6, 2012, at Pages 54910-54911.

The Supreme Court will hold its opening conference for the October Term 2012.

TIME? The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (OUSTR) will hold a hearing regarding Canada's participation in the negotiation of a Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade agreement. The OUSTR seeks comments on numerous issues, including "electronic commerce issues" and "trade-related intellectual property rights issues". The deadline to submit written requests to present oral testimony is September 4. The deadline to submit written comments is 12:00 NOON on September 4. See, notice in the Federal Register Vol. 77, No. 141, July 23, 2012, at Pages 43131-43133. Location: OUSTR, Rooms 1, and 2, 1724 F St., NW.

12:00 NOON. The American Bar Association (ABA) will host a webcast panel discussion titled "Making the Most of Your IPad/Tablet -- Tools and Tips for Bar Staff". The speaker will be Tom Mighell. Prices vary. No CLE credits. See, notice.

12:00 NOON. Deadline to submit comments to the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (OUSTR) to assist it in preparing its annual report to the Congress on the People's Republic of China's (PRC) compliance with its World Trade Organization (WTO) obligations. See, notice in the Federal Register, Vol. 77, No. 161, August 20, 2012, at Pages 50206-50207. See also, story titled "OUSTR to Receive Comments and Hold Hearing on PRC Compliance with WTO Obligations" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,431, August 17, 2012.

1:00 - 4:00 The Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) Technological Advisory Council will meet. See, notice in the Federal Register, Vol. 77, No. 168, August 29, 2012, at Pages 52332-52333. Location: FCC, Commission Meeting Room, 445 12th St., SW.

10:00 AM - 12:00 NOON. The Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF) will host a panel discussion titled "Recommendations from the mHealth Task Force". The speakers will include Julius Genachowski (FCC Chairman), Robert Jarrin (Qualcomm), Julian Goldman (Partners Healthcare System), Douglas Trauner (TheCarrot.com), and Robert Atkinson (ITIF). See, notice. Location: ITIF/ITIC, Suite 610A, 1101 K St., NW.

Yom Kippur begins at sundown.

9:00 AM - 12:30 PM. The Department of Commerce's (DOC) National Telecommunications and Information Administration's (NTIA) First Responder Network Authority Board will meet. See, notice in the Federal Register, Vol. 77, No. 178, September 13, 2012, at Pages 56622-56623. Location: DOC, Secretary's Conference Room, 14th and Constitution Ave.,  NW.

12:00 NOON - 1:00 PM. The Heritage Foundation will host an event titled "Supreme Court Preview: 2012 Term". The speakers will be Paul Clement (Bancroft) and Thomas Goldstein (Goldstein & Russell), and Todd Gaziano (Heritage). See, notice. Location: Heritage, 214 Massachusetts Ave., NE.

2:00 - 4:15 PM. The DC Bar Association will host a panel discussion titled "The Ethics of Outsourcing E-Discovery". The speakers will be Conrad Jacoby (efficientEDD), Thomas Mason (Zuckerman Spaeder), and Ashish Prasad (Discovery Services). The price to attend ranges from $89 to $129.  CLE credits. See, notice. For more information, call 202-626-3488. The DC Bar has a history of barring reporters from its events. Location: DC Bar Conference Center, 1101 K St., NW.

2:00 - 3:30 PM. The Department of Justice's (DOJ) Antitrust Division's (AD) Economic Analysis Group (EAG) will host a presentation titled "Promotional Reviews: An Empirical Investigation of Online Review Manipulation". The speaker will be Judy Chevalier (Yale School of Management and NBER). See, paper with the same title by Chevalier, Yaniv Dover (Dartmouth) and Dina Mayzlin (USC). For more information, contact Gloria Sheu at gloria dot sheu at usdoj dot gov or 202-532-4932 or Nathan Miller at nathan dot miller at usdoj dot gov or 202-307-3773. Location: Liberty Square Building, EAG conference room, LSB 9429, 450 5th St., NW.

4:00 - 5:30 PM. The George Mason University School of Law's Information Economy Project will host a lecture by Bronwyn Howell titled "Regulating Broadband Networks". Free. See, notice. Location: GMU law school, Founder's Hall, Room 111, 3301 Fairfax Drive, Arlington, VA.

EXTENDED TO OCTOBER 25. Deadline to submit initial comments to the Copyright Office (CO) regarding proposed changes to CO regulations for reporting Monthly and Annual Statements of Account for the making and distribution of phonorecords under the compulsory license. See, original notice in the Federal Register (FR), Vol. 77, No. 145, Friday, July 27, 2012, at Pages 44179-44197, and extension notice in the FR, Vol. 77, No. 176, September 11, 2012, at Pages 55783-55784.