2/26. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) held an event titled "Open Commission Meeting" at which it adopted, but did not release, a Report and Order on Remand, Declaratory Ruling, and Order reclassifying broadband internet access service (BIAS) as a Title II telecommunications service, and creating a regulatory regime for internet interconnection.

The FCC divided along partisan lines. Democrats Tom Wheeler, Mignon Clyburn and Jessica Rosenworcel voted for the item. Republicans Ajit Pai and Michael O'Rielly voted against the item.

The FCC issued a short release, and each of the five Commissioners wrote and read long statements. See, Wheeler's statement, Clyburn's statement, Rosenworcel's statement, Pai's statement, and O'Rielly's statement.

This item will be FCC 15-24 in Docket No. 14-18.

There will be more detailed coverage of this action in a forthcoming issue.

2/26. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) held an event titled "Open Commission Meeting" at which it adopted, but did not release, a Memorandum Opinion and Order (MOO) that asserts FCC authority to regulate state regulation of offerings of broadband internet access service (BIAS) by political subdivisions of the state.

The FCC divided along partisan lines. Democrats Tom Wheeler, Mignon Clyburn and Jessica Rosenworcel voted for the item. Ajit Pai and Michael O'Rielly voted against the item.

The FCC issued a short release, and each of the five Commissioners wrote and read long statements. See, Wheeler's statement, Clyburn's statement, Rosenworcel's statement, Pai's statement, and O'Rielly's statement.

This MOO will be FCC 15-25 in WC Docket Nos. 14-115 and 14-116.

There will be more detailed coverage of this action in a forthcoming issue.

2/26. The Senate Judiciary Committee (SJC) approved the nomination of Michelle Lee to be head of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

Lee (at right) is Deputy Director of the USPTO. She has been the acting head of the USPTO since January 14, 2014. The last confirmed head was David Kappos. He departed in February of 2013. Teresa Rae was acting head until she left the USPTO in November of 2013. Peggy Focarino was then the acting head until January 13, 2014.

President Obama did not nominate Lee to lead the USPTO until November 11, 2014. The SJC held a hearing on December 10, 2014. See, SJC web page for that hearing, which includes archived video. It held a second hearing on January 21, 2015. See, SJC web page. See also, her responses to the SJC's questionnaire.

She stated on January 21 that "the USPTO must remain focused on reducing backlog and pendency of its patent applications while maintaining the highest level of quality for both patent and trademark examination. Given the increasingly global economy, it is also imperative that American companies have access to efficient, cost-effective and strong intellectual property protection overseas." See, prepared testimony.

Lee was previously the first head of the USPTO's Silicon Valley office, appointed in November of 2012. Before that, Lee worked for Google, as Deputy General Counsel and Head of Patents and Patent Strategy. Before that, she worked at the law firm of Fenwick & West (1996-2003). Before that, she worked for the law firm of Keker & Van Nest (1994-1996).

She received undergraduate and masters degrees in electrical engineering and computer science from the Massachusetts School of Technology (MIT). She then went to law school at Stanford University.

There was no debate over Lee or patent policy at the SJC's February 26 meeting. She was approved, along with numerous judicial nominees, in a single unanimous en bloc voice vote.

2/5. The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) published a notice in the Federal Register (FR) requesting comments on "enhancing patent quality". The deadline to submit comments is May 6, 2015.

The USPTO also announced that it will host a related event titled "Quality Summit" on March 25 and 26, 2015 at the Madison Building, USPTO Headquarters, in Alexandria, Virginia. See, FR, Vol. 80, No. 24, February 5, 2015, at Pages 6475-6481.

This notice states that this initiative is "the first of many ... to enhance patent quality".

This notice states that "the USPTO is launching a new, wide-ranging initiative to enhance the quality of patents issued by the USPTO. High quality patents permit certainty and clarity of rights, which in turn fuels innovation and reduces needless litigation. Moreover and importantly, for the first time in recent history, the USPTO has the financial resources to consider longer-term and more expensive improvements to patent quality by leveraging the sustainable funding model provided by the fee setting provisions in the America Invents Act."

This notice propounds numerous questions. See also, USPTO release.

2/24. A trial jury of the U.S. District Court (EDTex) rendered its verdict in Smartflash v. Apple, a patent infringement case involving technology for accessing and storing downloaded songs, videos and games. The jury found willful infringement, and awarded Smartflash $532.9 Million in damages.

Gary Shapiro, head of the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA), stated in a release that "This case is Exhibit A for patent reform. The patent troll in this case doesn’t produce any products and services, has zero employees and operates from an office across the street from the courthouse in the notoriously troll-friendly Eastern District of Texas."

Shapiro (at right) added that "This sort of blatant patent extortion is exactly the reason why Congress needs to act now on patent reform. This is yet another of example of the tsunami of bogus patent claims that drain $1.5 billion a week from the U.S. economy. The only atypical aspect of this case is the defendant -- the majority of patent troll victims are small firms without big legal budgets, who can easily be coerced into a settlement".

The Congress has been considering legislation for several years to address what Shapiro calls "trolls". However, neither the bill passed by the House in December of 2013, nor the bill given consideration by the Senate Judiciary Committee (SJC) early in 2014, would have helped Apple in this case.

In the 113th Congress, the House passed HR 3309 [LOC | WW], the "Innovation Act". Its key provision was fee shifting. The SJC considered, but did not pass, S 1720 [LOC | WW], the "Patent Transparency and Improvements Act of 2013". Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT), the then Chairman of the SJC, announced on May 14, 2014 that the SJC was abandoning its efforts to pass that bill. See, story titled "Sen. Leahy Announces Failure to Reach Consensus on Patent Bill" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,660, May 20, 2014.

The introduction of new legislation has already begun in the 114th Congress. See, for example, HR 9 [LOC | WW], the "Innovation Act", a reintroduction of HR 3309 (113th Congress).

One of the reasons that Sen. Leahy ceased efforts to pass a bill in the 113th Congress was opposition from the then Senate Majority Leader, Sen. Harry Reid (D-NV). Now, Democrats no longer hold the majority in the Senate, and Sen. Reid is no longer controlling the Senate agenda.

However, even the Congress had enacted enacted fee shifting legislation, such as HR 3309, it would not have helped Apple in the present litigation. HR 3309 (113th Congress) and HR 9 (114th Congress) contain other provisions, such has increased pleading requirements, and greater transparency in patent ownership. But, these would not have helped Apple.

Also, enactment of a bill such as S 1720, would not have helped Apple either.

That bill did not contain a fee shifting provision. It would have required disclosures regarding patent ownership, and financial interests in patents, both at the filing of a lawsuit by a patent owner for patent infringement, and to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). S 1720 would also have provided for a stay in certain patent litigation of that portion of the action directed at customers who purchased allegedly infringing products when the manufacturer is also a party, and the "customer agrees to be bound under the principles of collateral estoppel by any issues finally decided as to the covered manufacturer". S 1720 also contained a section that would amend the Patent Act to govern Section 5 of the Federal Trade Commission Act (15 U.S.C. § 45). It would have provided that certain bad faith demand letter practices constitute unfair or deceptive trade practices within the meaning of the FTC Act. But, none of this would have altered the outcome in Smartflash v. Apple.

See, Smartflash LLC, et al. v. Apple Inc., et al. and Smartflash, Inc. v. Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd., et al., D.C. Nos. 6:13cv447-JRG-KNM and 6:13cv448-JRG-KNM, U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas, Tyler Division, Judge Rodney Gilstrap presiding.

2/2. The Department of Justice's (DOJ) Antitrust Division (AD) issued a business review letter (BRL) to Michael Lindsay, outside counsel for the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), regarding a proposed update to the IEEE Standards Association’s (IEEE-SA) Patent Policy. See also, DOJ release.

The DOJ stated that this patent policy governs the incorporation of patented technology in IEEE standards and explains the terms under which holders of patents essential to IEEE standards commit to make licenses available for use in implementing IEEE standards.

It added that the policy update at issue revises the provisions regarding commitments from parties holding patent claims that are essential to IEEE-SA standards to license those claims on reasonable and non-discriminatory (RAND) terms. The update also addresses the availability of injunctive relief, the meaning of a reasonable licensing rate, permissible requests for reciprocal licensing, and the production levels to which the commitment applies.

The letter is signed by Renata Hesse (at right), acting Assistant Attorney General in charge of the DOJ's AD.

She stated in the DOJ release that the "IEEE's decision to update its policy, if adopted by the IEEE Board, has the potential to help patent holders and standards implementers to reach mutually beneficial licensing agreements and to facilitate the adoption of pro-competitive standards.  Where, as here, the department does not believe that adoption of a policy change is likely to result in harm to competition, IEEE and other standards setting organizations are free to adopt those modifications to their policies that they believe will benefit their standards setting activities."

The DOJ concluded in this BRL that the update "has the potential to benefit competition and consumers by facilitating licensing negotiations, mitigating hold up and royalty stacking, and promoting competition among technologies for inclusion in standards. The Department cannot conclude that the Update is likely to harm competition. Further, to the extent that there are any potential competitive harms, the Department concludes that the Update's potential procompetitive benefits likely outweigh those harms. Accordingly, the Department has no present intention to take antitrust enforcement action against the conduct you have described. The Department’s analysis in this letter applies only to the Update’s impact on future LOAs; the Department offers no statement regarding its intentions concerning the application of the Update retroactively to previously submitted LOAs." ( LOA is Letter of Assurance.)

See also, the IEEE's September 30, 2014 letter requesting the BRL.

2/26. The European Patent Office (EPO) announced in a release that patent filings at the EPO "grew by 3.1% in 2014, hitting a new record high of over 274 000, with applications coming from the US growing by 6.8%". This release adds that "Last year US companies accounted for 71 700, or 26% (2013: 24.5%), of all European patent filings (2013: 67 200), which confirms the US as the No. 1 filing country at the EPO, ahead of Japan (48 700; -4.4%), Germany (31 600, -0.8%) and China (26 500, +18.2%)." (Parentheses in original.) The top four U.S. companies were Qualcomm (1459), Intel (1040), UTC (810), and Microsoft (708). Google (518) ranked 9th. Apple (294) ranked 17th. See, list of top U.S. applicants.

2/23. The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) published a notice in the Federal Register (FR) regarding online searching of its patent and trademark databases. The USPTO maintains a Public Search Facility to provide patent and trademark collections for searching and retrieval of information. The public can search on site in Alexandria, Virginia, or online. However, the USPTO requires that users apply on site for online access accounts. This FR pertains to applications for online accounts. See, FR, Vol. 80, No. 35, February 23, 2015, at Pages 9442-9443.

2/13. The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) announced in a release that the U.S. "has deposited its instrument of ratification to the Geneva Act of the Hague Agreement Concerning the International Registration of Industrial Designs (Hague Agreement) with the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO)". It added that "This marks the last step in the membership process for the United States to become a Member of the Hague Union. The treaty will go into effect for the United States on May 13, 2015."

2/13. The American Bar Association (ABA) submitted comments to the European Commission’s Consultation on Patents and Standards.

1/29. The American Bar Association (ABA) submitted comments to the Draft Template for Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) Policies in Industry Standards Organizations issued by the People's Republic of China's (PRC) Electronic Intellectual Property Center (EIPC) of Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT).

2/26. Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) announced that her Chief Counsel, Neil Quinter, is leaving her office. Sen. Feinstein, Sen. Charles Grassley (R-IA), and Sen. Charles Schumer (D-NY) praised Quinter at the February 26, 2015 executive business meeting of the Senate Judiciary Committee (SJC).

2/26. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Commissioner Ajit Pai announced the departure of Christine Kurth (at right) from the FCC. She has worked at the FCC for five years, including as Policy Director and Wireline Counsel to former FCC Commissioner Robert McDowell. Before that, she was Republican Staff Director and General Counsel for the Senate Commerce Committee (SCC). She held other Senate staff positions before that. She is a protégé of the late Sen. Ted Stevens (R-AK).

2/18. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) published a notice in the Federal Register (FR) in which it announced the appointment of members of its Disability Advisory Committee. See, FR, Vol. 80, No. 32, February 18, 2015, at Pages 8647-8.

2/12. The Department of Health and Human Services' (DHHS) Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology's (NCOHIT) published a notice in the Federal Register (FR) requesting nominations for membership on its Health Information Technology Standards Committee (HITSC). The deadline is March 6, 2015. See, FR, Vol. 80, No. 29, February 12, 2015, at Pages 7869-7870.

12/19. Mary Denison was named Commissioner for Trademarks at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), effective January 1, 2015. See, USPTO release.

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The House will meet at 10:00 AM for morning hour, and at 12:00 NOON for legislative business. It will continue its consideration of HR 5 [LOC | WW], the "Student Success Act". See, February 18 Rules Committee Print [625 pages in PDF] of HR 5. It will also consider S 227 [LOC | WW], the "Strengthening Education through Research Act", under suspension of the rules. See, Rep. McCarthy's schedule.

The Senate will meet at 11:00 AM. It will resume consideration of the motion to proceed to HR 240 [LOC | WW], the DHS appropriations bill.  The House passed this bill on January 14, 2015, with a section that provides that no funds may be used to implement certain orders by President Obama pertaining to immigration. Senate Democrats are filibustering this bill, and Senate Republicans lack the 60 votes necessary to end a filibuster.

9:00 AM. The House Intelligence Committee (HIC) will hold a closed hearing titled "NSA Overview". No webcast. See, notice. Location: Room HVC-304, Capitol Building.

9:30 AM. The Senate Judiciary Committee (SJC) will hold an executive business meeting. The agenda includes consideration of the nominations of Michelle Lee (to be head of the USPTO) and Loretta Lynch (to be Attorney General). The agenda also includes consideration of four nominees for the U.S. District Court: Alfred Bennett (USDC/SDTex), George Hanks (USDC/SDTex), Jose Olvera (USDC/SDTex), and Jill Parrish (USDC/DUtah). The agenda also includes consideration of five nominees for the Court of Federal Claims: Nancy Firestone, Thomas Halkowski, Patricia McCarthy, Jeri Somers, and Armando Bonilla. The agenda also includes consideration of S 178 [LOC | WW], the "Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act of 2015", and S 166 [LOC | WW], the "Stop Exploitation Through Trafficking Act of 2015". Live and archived webcast. See, notice. Location: Room 226, Dirksen Building.

10:30 AM. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) will host an event titled "Open Commission Meeting". The tentative agenda includes adoption of the FCC's Report and Order on Remand, Declaratory Ruling, and Order reclassifying broadband internet access service (BIAS) as a Title II telecommunications service, and creating a regulatory regime for internet interconnection. Open to the public. Webcast. Location: FCC, Commission Meeting Room, 445 12th St., SW.

10:00 AM. The House Science Committee's (HSC) Subcommittee on Research and Technology will hold a hearing on the FY16 budget proposals for the National Science Foundation (NSF) and National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). The witnesses will be France Cordova (Director of the NSF), Daniel Arvizu (Chariman of the National Science Board), and Willie May (acting Director of the NIST). Webcast. See, notice. Location: Room 2318, Rayburn Building.

10:00 AM - 1:00 PM. The House Foreign Affairs Committee's (HFAC) Subcommittee on Asia and the Pacific will hold a hearing titled "Across the Other Pond: U.S. Opportunities and Challenges in the Asia Pacific". See, notice. Location: Room 2172, Rayburn Building.

10:00 AM. The Senate Commerce Committee (SCC) will meet in executive session to consider numerous bill and nominations. The agenda includes consideration of S 253 [LOC | WW], the "Federal Communications Commission Consolidated Reporting Act". Webcast. Location: Room 253, Russell Building.

10:15 AM. The House Commerce Committee's (HCC) Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing and Trade will hold a hearing titled "Update: Patent Demand Letter Practices and Solutions". The witnesses will be Paul Gugliuzza (Boston University School of Law), Vince Malta (National Association of Realtors), Vera Ranieri (Electronic Frontier Foundation), and Laurie Self (Qualcomm). Webcast. See, notice. Location: Room 2322, Rayburn Building.

10:30 AM. The Senate Appropriations Committee's (SAC) Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies will hold a hearing on the FY16 budget for the Department of Commerce (DOC). The witness will be Penny Pritzger (Secretary of Commerce). See, notice. Location: Room 192, Dirksen Building.

1:30 PM. The House Judiciary Committee (HJC) will hold a hearing titled "The U.S. Copyright Office: Its Functions and Resources". The witnesses will be Keith Kupferschmid (Software & Information Industry Association), Lisa Dunner (on behalf of the American Bar Association Nancy Mertzel (on behalf of the American Intellectual Property Law Association), and Bob Brauneis (George Washington University Law School). Webcast. See, notice. Location: Room 2141, Rayburn Building.

1:30 PM. The House Appropriations Committee's Subcommittee on the Legislative Branch will hold a hearing on the budget for the Library of Congress (LOC) and Architect of the Capitol. The witnesses will include James Billington. See, notice. Location: Room HT-2, Capitol Building.

2:30 PM. The Senate Intelligence Committee (SIC) will hold a closed hearing on undisclosed matters. No webcast. See, notice. Location: Room 219, Hart Building.

Deadline to submit oppositions to the Petitions for Reconsideration (PR) of the FCC's January 30, 2015 report in its proceeding regarding the 600 MHz broadcast television incentive auction (GN Docket No. 12-268 and ET Docket Nos. 13-26 and 14-14) which makes determinations regarding establishing its inter-service interference methodology and associated protection standards for any television stations and new 600 MHz Band wireless licensees. See, National Association of Broadcasters' (NAB) PR and Sprint's PR. See also, notice in the Federal Register, Vol. 80, No. 28, February 11, 2015, at Page 7562.

Extended deadline to submit reply comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in response to its Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) regarding competitive bidding. The FCC adopted this NPRM on October 1, 2014, and released it on October 10, 2014. It is FCC 14-146 in GN Docket No. 12-268 and WT Docket Nos. 14-170 and 05-211. See also, original notice in the Federal Register (FR), Vol. 79, No. 220, November 14, 2014, at Pages 68172-68202. The FCC's Wireless Telecommunications Bureau (WTB) adopted an Order (DA 15-52) extending deadlines on January 23, 2015. See also, extension notice in the FR, Vol. 80, No. 15, January 23, 2015, at Pages 3537-3538.

The House will meet at 9:00 AM legislative business. It is scheduled to complete its consideration of HR 5 [LOC | WW], the "Student Success Act". See, February 18 Rules Committee Print [625 pages in PDF] of HR 5. It is also scheduled to consider HJRes 35, regarding further continuing appropriations for FY 15, and a motion to go to conference on HR 240 [LOC | WW], the DHS appropriations bill. See, Rep. McCarthy's schedule.

The Senate will meet at 9:00 AM. It will resume consideration of the motion to proceed to HR 240 [LOC | WW], the DHS appropriations bill. The House passed this bill on January 14, 2015, with a section that provides that no funds may be used to implement certain orders by President Obama pertaining to immigration. Senate Democrats are filibustering this bill, and Senate Republicans lack the 60 votes necessary to end a filibuster.

Supreme Court conference day. See, 2014-2015 calendar. Closed to the public.

9:00 AM - 4:00 PM. The Federal Aviation Administration's (FAA) Radio Technical Commission for Aeronautics' (RTCA) Special Committee 222, Inmarsat AMS(R)S, will meet, both on site, and by teleconference. The agenda includes consideration of (1) the draft Change 4 to DO-210D, (2) a work plan to progress development of Iridium NEXT material for DO-343, and (3) a work plan to progress cooperation with Eurocae WG-82. Free. Open to the public. The dial in information is in the notice in the Federal Register, Vol. 80, No. 23, February 4, 2015, at Page 6158. Location: RTCA, Suite 910, 1150 18th St., NW.

9:00 AM - 12:00 NOON. The Brookings Institution (BI) will host an event titled "China's Security and Foreign Policies: Comparing American and Japanese Perspectives". See, notice. Location: BI, 1775 Massachusetts Ave., NW.

11:00 AM - 1:30 PM. The Tech Freedom will host an event titled "Fireside Chat with FCC Commissioners Ajit Pai and Mike O’Rielly". The topic will be the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) February 26 Report and Order on Remand, Declaratory Ruling, and Order reclassifying broadband internet access service (BIAS) as a Title II telecommunications service, and creating a regulatory regime for internet interconnection. Free. Open to the pubic. Lunch will be served. Webcast. No CLE credits. No fireplace. See, notice. Location: Reserve Officers Association, Ballroom, 1 Constitution Ave., NE.

1:30 PM. The House Judiciary Committee's (HJC) Subcommittee on the Constitution and Civil Justice will hold a hearing titled "The State of Class Action Ten Years after the Enactment of the Class Action Fairness Act". The witnesses will be Andrew Pincus (Mayer Brown), John Sweeney (DRI Voice of the Defense Bar), Patricia Moore (St. Thomas University School of Law), and Jessica Miller (Skadden Arps). Webcast. See, notice. Location: Room 2141, Rayburn Building.

3:30 - 4:30 PM. The Net Caucus will host an event titled "FCC Net Neutrality Rules Briefing". The speakers will be Anna-Maria Kovacs (Georgetown University), Geoffrey Manne (International Center for Law and Economics), Sarah Morris (New America Foundation), and Melanie Wyne (National Association of Realtors). Free. Open to the public. No webcast. Location: Room 2237, Rayburn Building.

Deadline for businesses with fewer that 1,500 employees to comply with the administrative subpoena, directed at all providers of special access service, to produce of special access data. The Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) Wireline Competition Bureau (WCB) issued this Public Notice (PN) and attached subpoena on January 16, 2015. It is DA 15-66 in Docket No. WC Docket No. 05-25. See also, notice in the Federal Register, Vol. 80, No. 29, February 12, 2015, at Pages 7865-7866.

Deadline to submit to the Government Accountability Office (GAO) nominations for membership on the Health Information Technology Policy Committee. See, notice in the Federal Register, Vol. 80, No. 22, February 3, 2015, at Page 5759.

EXTENDED TO MARCH 13. Deadline to submit applications to the Department of Commerce's (DOC) International Trade Administration (ITA) to participate in the Cyber Security Business Development Mission to Poland and Romania scheduled for May 11-15, 2015. See, original notice in the Federal Register (FR), Vol. 79, No. 189, September 30, 2014, at Pages 58746-58749, and extension notice in the FR, Vol. 80, No. 32, February 18, 2015, at Pages 8607-8608, February 18, 2015.

10:00 AM. The U.S. Court of Appeals (FedCir) will hear oral argument in Allvoice Developments v. Microsoft, App. Ct. No. 14-1258. This is an appeal from the U.S. District Court (WDWash) in a patent infringement case involving speech recognition technology. See, December 23, 2013 order. Panel A. This case is the third of four on the schedule. See, oral arguments schedule. No live webcast. Archived audio webcast. Location: Courtroom 201, 717 Madison Place, NW.

10:00 AM. The U.S. Court of Appeals (FedCir) will hear oral argument in SynQor v. Artesyn Technologies, App. Ct. No. 14-1459. This is an appeal from the U.S. District Court (EDTex) in a patent infringement case involving power converter systems used to power circuitry in large computer systems and telecommunication and data communication equipment. Panel B. This is the second of four cases on the schedule. See, oral arguments schedule. No live webcast. Archived audio webcast. Location: Courtroom 402, 717 Madison Place, NW.

10:00 AM. The U.S. Court of Appeals (FedCir) will hear oral argument in Mayfair Wireless v. Cellco Partnership, App. Ct. No. 14-1587. This is an appeal from the U.S. District Court (DDel) in a patent infringement case. Panel B. This case is the third of four on the schedule. See, oral arguments schedule. No live webcast. Archived audio webcast. Location: Courtroom 402, 717 Madison Place, NW.

10:00 AM. The U.S. Court of Appeals (FedCir) will hear oral argument in Fuzzysharp Technologies v. Intel, App. Ct. No. 14-1261. This is an appeal from the U.S. District Court (NDCal) in a patent infringement case. Panel B. This case is the fourth of four on the schedule. See, oral arguments schedule. No live webcast. Archived audio webcast. Location: Courtroom 402, 717 Madison Place, NW.

10:00 AM. The U.S. Court of Appeals (FedCir) will hear oral argument in Medtrica Solutions v. Steris, App. Ct. No. 14-1400. This is an appeal from the U.S. District Court (WDWash) in a patent infringement case. The patent in suit is not ICT related. However, there is a post Octane Fitness attorneys fees issue. Panel C. This is the second of four cases on the schedule. See, oral arguments schedule. No live webcast. Archived audio webcast. Location: Courtroom 203, 717 Madison Place, NW.

10:00 AM. The U.S. Court of Appeals (FedCir) will hear oral argument in Gametek v. Zynga, App. Ct. No. 14-1620. Panel E. This case is the second of four on the schedule. See, oral arguments schedule. No live webcast. Archived audio webcast. Location: Courtroom 402, 717 Madison Place, NW.

10:00 AM. The U.S. Court of Appeals (FedCir) will hear oral argument in eTAGZ v. Flambeau, App. Ct. No. 14-1285, an appeal from the U.S. District Court (DUtah). Panel E. This case is the third of four on the schedule. See, oral arguments schedule. No live webcast. Archived audio webcast. Location: Courtroom 402, 717 Madison Place, NW.

2:00 - 2:45 PM. The American Enterprise Institute (AEI) will host an event titled "The Path Ahead for US Internet Policy: A Conversation with Representative Greg Walden". Free. Open to the public. Live and archived webcast. See, notice. Location: AEI, 12th floor, 1150 17th St., NW.

4:00 PM. The House Judiciary Committee's (HJC) Subcommittee on the Regulatory Reform, Commercial and Antitrust Law will hold a hearing three bills: HR 348 [LOC | WW], the "Responsibly And Professionally Invigorating Development Act of 2015", or "RAPID Act"; HR 712 [LOC | WW], the "Sunshine for Regulatory Decrees and Settlements Act of 2015"; and HR __, a yet to be introduced bill titled the "Searching for and Cutting Regulations that are Unnecessarily Burdensome Act of 2015", or "SCRUB Act". The RAPID Act, which would amend the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), is primarily directed at regulation of the oil and gas industry, but may also impact bird based regulation of communications. This is a reintroduction. See, HR 2641 [LOC | WW] (113th Congress) and HR 4377 [LOC | WW] (112th Congress). The witnesses will be __. Webcast. See, notice. Location: Room 2141, Rayburn Building.

Deadline to submit comments to the Securities and Exchange Commission's (SEC) Advisory Committee on Small and Emerging Companies in advance of its March 4, 2015 meeting to discuss "rules and regulations affecting small and emerging companies under the federal securities laws". See, notice in the Federal Register, Vol. 80, No. 31, February 17, 2015, at Pages 8374-8375.

10:00 AM. The U.S. Court of Appeals (FedCir) will hear oral argument in Automated Merchandising v. Lee, App. Ct. No. 14-1728. This is an appeal from the U.S. District Court (EDVa). Panel D. This cased is the third of four on the schedule. See, oral arguments schedule. No live webcast. Archived audio webcast. Location: Courtroom 201, 717 Madison Place, NW.

10:00 AM. The U.S. Court of Appeals (FedCir) will hear oral argument in Sealant Systems International v. TEK Global, App. Ct. No. 14-1405, an appeal from the U.S. District Court (NDCal) in a patent infringement case. The patent in suit is not ICT related. However, the District court granted injunctive relief to a patent owner who is not practicing or licensing the patent in suit. See, the Supreme Court's 2006 opinion in eBay v. MercExchange. Panel F. This case is the second of two on the schedule. See, oral arguments schedule. No live webcast. Archived audio webcast. Location: Courtroom 203, 717 Madison Place, NW.

12:00 NOON - 1:00 PM. The Proskauer law firm will host a webcast seminar titled "Managing the Risk of Cyber Liabilities and Operations Disruption: Responsibilities of the Board of Directors". The speakers will be Margaret Dale, John Failla, Steven Gilford, and Kristen Mathews (all of Proskauer). CLE credits.

12:30 - 2:00 PM. The American Intellectual Property Law Association (AIPLA) will host a webcast panel discussion titled "Best Practices to Secure Allowance of Patent Application Claims Using Evidence". The speakers will be Courtenay Brinckerhoff (Foley & Lardner), Mary Till (USPTO), and Anthony Son (Andrews Kurth). CLE credits. The price ranges from $95 to $135. See, notice.

2:00 PM. The House Commerce Committee's (HCC) Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations will hold a hearing titled "Understanding the Cyber Threat and Implications for the 21st Century Economy". The witnesses will be __. Webcast. See, notice. Location: Room 2322, Rayburn Building.

8:00 AM. The Economic Club of Washington will host an event at which Michael Dell will speak. Breakfast will be served at 8:00 AM. The program will begin at 8:25 AM. Location: Fairmont Washington DC Georgetown Hotel, Grand Ballroom, 2401 M St., NW.

8:45 AM - 12:30 PM. The Brookings Institution (BI) will host an event titled "Can Forces Align to Use Health IT to Improve Care and Lower Costs?". Free. Open to the public. Webcast. See, notice. Location: BI, 1775 Massachusetts Ave., NW.

9:30 AM. The Securities and Exchange Commission's (SEC) Advisory Committee on Small and Emerging Companies will meet to discuss "rules and regulations affecting small and emerging companies under the federal securities laws". See, notice in the Federal Register, Vol. 80, No. 31, February 17, 2015, at Pages 8374-8375. Location: SEC, Multi-Purpose Room LL-006, 100 F St., NE.

10:00 AM. The U.S. Court of Appeals (FedCir) will hear oral argument in Board of Trustees v. Micron Technology, App. Ct. Nos. 14-1509, 14-1509 and 14-1509. This is an appeal from the USPTO. Panel G. See, oral arguments schedule. No live webcast. Archived audio webcast. Location: Courtroom 201, 717 Madison Place, NW.

10:00 AM. The U.S. Court of Appeals (FedCir) will hear oral argument in Apple v. Samsung Electronics, App. Ct. No. 14-1802. Panel G. See, oral arguments schedule. No live webcast. Archived audio webcast. Location: Courtroom 201, 717 Madison Place, NW.

10:00 AM. The U.S. Court of Appeals (FedCir) will hear oral argument in Barron v. SCVNGR, App. Ct. No. 14-1708, an appeal from the U.S. District Court (DMass) in a patent infringement case involving U.S. Patent No. 7,499,873 titled "Communication Through a Financial Services Network". See, July 7, 2014 summary judgment memorandum. This case is the third or four on the schedule. Panel I. This case is the third of four on the schedule. See, oral arguments schedule. No live webcast. Archived audio webcast. Location: Courtroom 402, 717 Madison Place, NW.

10:30 AM. The House Commerce Committee's (HCC) Subcommittee on Communications and Technology will hold a hearing titled "Reauthorization of the Federal Communications Commission: The FCC’s FY 2016 Budget Request". The witness will be Jon Wilkins (FCC). Webcast. See, notice. Location: Room 2322, Rayburn Building.

12:00 NOON - 2:15 PM. The New America Foundation (NAF) will host a panel discussion titled "Will Technology Put an End to Disability?". The speakers will be Jennifer French, Larry Jasinksi, Will Oremus, Gregor Wolbring, Julia Bascom, Teresa Burke, and Lawrence Long. Free. Open to the public. See, notice. Location: NAF, Suite 400, 1899 L St., NW.

12:30 - 1:30 PM. The American Intellectual Property Law Association (AIPLA) will host a webcast panel discussion titled "Look out! The States Are Watching Your Patent Demand Letters!". The speakers will be Sharon Israel (Mayer Brown), Dennis Skarvan (Caterpillar), Erik Jones (Illinois Attorney General's Office), and Vince Garlock (AIPLA). No CLE credits. Prices vary. See, notice.

2:00 PM. The House Homeland Security Committee's (HHSC) Subcommittee on Cybersecurity, Infrastructure Protection, and Security Technologies will hold a hearing titled "Industry Perspectives on the President’s Cybersecurity Information Sharing Proposal". The witnesses will be __. See, notice. Location: Room 311, Cannon Building.

6:00 - 9:15 PM. The DC Bar Association will host a program titled "Introduction to Export Controls". The speakers will be Carol Kalinoski and Thomas Scott (Ladner & Associates). The price to attend ranges from $89 to $129. CLE credits. No webcast. For more information, call 202-626-3488. The DC Bar has a history of barring reporters from its events. See, notice. Location: DC Bar Conference Center, 1101 K St., NW.

9:00 AM - 4:00 PM. The Federal Aviation Administration's (FAA) Radio Technical Commission for Aeronautics' (RTCA) Special Committee 224, Airport Security Access Control Systems, will meet. See, notice in the Federal Register, Vol. 80, No. 29, February 12, 2015, at Page 7907-7908. Location: RTCA, Suite 910, 1150 18th St., NW.

9:30 AM. The Senate Judiciary Committee (SJC) will hold an executive business meeting. Live and archived webcast. See, notice. Location: Room 226, Dirksen Building.

10:00 AM. The U.S. Court of Appeals (FedCir) will hear oral argument in Belden v. Berk-Tek, App. Ct. Nos. 14-1676 and 14-1677, appeals from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office's (USPTO) Patent and Trial Appeal Board (PTAB) in an inter partes review of a patent regarding data cable technology. Panel K. See, oral arguments schedule. No live webcast. Archived audio webcast. Location: Courtroom 402, 717 Madison Place, NW.

10:00 AM. The Department of Commerce's (DOC) Bureau of Industry and Security's (BIS) Materials Technical Advisory Committee will hold an on site and teleconferenced meeting. Open to the public. See, notice in the Federal Register, Vol. 80, No. 32, February 18, 2015, at Pages 8591-2. Location: Room 3884, Hoover Building, 14th Street between Pennsylvania and Constitution Avenues, NW.

10:00 AM. The Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) North American Numbering Council (NANC) will meet. See, notice in the Federal Register, Vol. 80, No. 32, February 18, 2015, at Pages 8646-8647. Location: FCC, Commission Meeting Room, 445 12th St., SW.

12:15 - 1:30 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association's (FCBA) International Telecommunications Committee will host a brown bag lunch titled "A Globally Neutral Net: Discussion and Comparison of International Approaches and Global Norms for Net Neutrality". The speakers will be Sheba Chacko (BT), Andrea Glorioso (EU Delegation), Christopher Libertelli (Netflix), Matthew Del Nero (FCC), Erik Stallman (CDT), and Praveen Goyal (Hogan Lovells). Free. Bring your own lunch. No CLE credits. No webcast. See, notice. Location: Hogan Lovells, Conference Room C406, 555 13th St., NW.

2:00 - 3:00 PM. Day one of a two day meeting of the Department of Commerce's (DOC) National Advisory Council on Innovation and Entrepreneurship Meeting. Open to the public. See, notice in the Federal Register, Vol. 80, No. 30, February 13, 2015, at Pages 8058-9. Location: Room 4830, Hoover Building, 14th Street between Pennsylvania and Constitution Avenues, NW.

Deadline to submit petitions for exemption to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in response to its Public Notice (PN) announcing the top five nonbroadcast networks for the purposes of the FCC's video description rules (VDR). The VDRs mandate that multichannel video programming distributor (MVPD) systems that serve 50,000 or more subscribers must provide 50 hours of video description per calendar quarter during prime time or children's programming on each of the top five national nonbroadcast networks. This PN announces that the top five are USA, Disney Channel, TNT, Nickelodeon, and TBS. Any program network that believes it should not be in this top five may file a petition for exemption. The FCC's Media Bureau (MB) released this PN on January 7, 2015. It is DA 15-18 in MB Docket No. 11-43. See also, notice in the Federal Register, Federal Register, Vol. 80, No. 22, February 3, 2015, at Pages 5749-5750.