While We Were Out
While Technology Daily was on vacation last week, there was quite a bit of news… and I'm not just talking about Attorney General Alberto Gonzales's swan song. Here's an incomplete rundown of items that arrived in my inbox while I was lounging on a Caribbean beach, far, far away from Capitol Hill.
Napster Suit Settled
The National Music Publishers’ Association jointly announced with Bertelsmann a settlement of litigation arising out of claims asserted by certain members of the trade group relating to Bertelsmann’s relationship with Napster in 2000 and 2001.
The litigation was previously certified as a class action, and accordingly the settlement requires court approval, NMPA said. The settlement deal is expected to become final in several months' time. Bertelsmann, which financially backed Napster, admitted no liability in the settlement.
Bertelsmann's settlements set the company back millions of dollars, officials said. The German firm reported a $69.3 million loss in the first six months of 2007, largely attributable to the Napster suit.
ACLU Slams FBI Spying
The American Civil Liberties Union issued a call to change FBI spying guidelines after documents were released revealing that the FBI spied on Coretta Scott King after the death of her husband Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., in an attempt to stem the civil rights movement.
After the government was criticized for spying on Dr. King, the FBI was barred from spying on Americans but in 2002 former Attorney General John Ashcroft changed the rules to permit the agency to spy on individuals in public places, the ACLU said.
The watchdog group's top lobbyist, Caroline Fredrickson, said the spying on King was "despicable, but unfortunately it isn’t a surprise." "When government agencies are given free rein to spy on Americans, they will inevitably use their power to suppress free speech for political reasons instead of averting real threats," she said.
Hispanics Oppose Satellite Radio Merger
The U.S. Hispanic Chamber of Commerce's president, Michael Barrera, wrote to FCC Chairman Kevin Martin and Assistant Attorney General Thomas Barnett voicing opposition to the proposed merger of satellite radio giants Sirius and XM.
The chamber, which represents more than two million Hispanic-owned businesses, believes the proposed merger would be "even more egregious" than the failed DirecTV-EchoStar union, which was proposed in 2002. Allowing the two radio providers to merge "could have an expansive and negative affect on the Hispanic business community," Barrera wrote.
NAB Apologizes for Sirius-XM Statements
The National Association of Broadcasters filed apologies with the FCC, admitting they had misrepresented the positions of two members of Congress on the Sirius-XM merger. The satellite radio firms have employed a "do anything, say anything" campaign to block the merger, officials for the satellite radio firms said.
NAB had claimed in several letters to the FCC that House Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers, D-Mich., and Rep. Steve Chabot, R-Ohio, opposed the merger. The trade group told the FCC on August 23 that it was "inaccurate to characterize [Reps. Conyers and Chabot] as opposed to the merger."
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