April 2008

The waiting game continues. Sirius Satellite Radio and rival XM said Wednesday that they have agreed not to exercise their rights to terminate their merger agreement prior to May 15 and will extend the deal, as necessary, for rolling two-week periods as they await a decision on the pairing from the FCC.

The Justice Department ended its investigation of the deal in March and concluded that the combination of the two music companies would not be anticompetitive. FCC Chairman Kevin Martin said his agency would act after Justice released its findings but there's been no news thus far. Sirius and XM stakeholders blessed the deal last November.

Childnet International launched a global awareness campaign on Wednesday aimed at explaining the world of legal and illegal music downloading to teachers and parents. A new pocket-sized guide will be distributed at schools and colleges; libraries; record stores; and Web sites in 21 countries, the U.K.-based group said in a press release.

The booklet, "Young People, Music and the Internet," helps young people use the Internet and mobile phones safely and legally to acquire their favorite tunes. "There are so many wonderful online music services but there are risks to children including breach of copyright the threat of viruses, loss of privacy and security," Childnet's Stephen Carrick-Davies said. Read more about the effort here.

"Securing and Expanding Press Freedom Through New Media" was the topic du jour at a morning briefing on Wednesday hosted by the National Endowment for Democracy. The event preceded World Press Freedom Day, which is observed annually on May 3. This year's theme is "Freedom of Expression, Access, and Empowerment."

Participants included Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif.; John Palfrey, executive director of the Berkman Center on Internet and Society at Harvard Law School; Shanthi Kalathil, a consultant at the World Bank's Communication for Governance and Accountability Program; Aboubakr Jamai, a fellow at Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government; and Xiao Qiang of the China Internet Project at the University of California, Berkeley.

By engaging in the new information society, "netizens" are contributing to the free flow of information and participating in the democratic process, which is a vital prerequisite to an open society, the foundation said in a description of the event posted on its Web site. The group pointed out that authoritarian governments are increasing efforts censor content and citizens’ access to information while investing in greater surveillance efforts.

A New York Times story on Wednesday estimated that in 15 months, two dueling business coalitions have spent $4.3 million lobbying on legislation that would overhaul the U.S. patent system. Other than that little nugget, the story served as a pretty succinct look back at one of the biggest battles in the 110th Congress. The story introduces the players, examines the issues underpinning the call for reform and does a decent job of articulating the opposition. Of course, for the blow-by-blow, CongressDaily is a good place to turn -- but hey, we're a little biased. Read the full story here.

Tech Daily Dose - prime placement, above-the-fold, so to speak. Yippie.

Thought leaders on the topics of U.S. competitiveness and the science, math, engineering, technology workforce seemed to be pretty firm believers in a "tough love" strategy for preserving America's front-runner status in the global economy on Tuesday. A chorus of speakers at a National Academies symposium said the United States must do better in funding, training and supporting students who pursue those fields.

National Academy of Engineering President Charles Vest said stakeholders must ask themselves: "How can we garner the national will to take the essential step of funding the America Competes Act?" "The time for action is now," he warned, saying America faces numerous challenges and "the enemy I fear most is complacency." "If we ignore the obvious task at hand while others beat us at our own game, our children and grandchildren will pay the price," he said.

Lockheed Martin Chairman Emeritus Norm Augustine said the "cruel outcome" of the widely cited 2006 report on U.S. competitiveness that he and others authored called "Rising Above The Gathering Storm," was that other countries have been faster to implement its recommendations than his own. The paper "motivated others while we did very little." Meanwhile, businesses have found a solution to challenge they face -- moving factories and labs abroad. "That’s not a solution that anyone in American industry likes," Augustine said.

AT&T announced Tuesday that Apple's popular iPhone is now more accessible for Americans who are deaf or have a hearing or speech disability. The telecommunications giant unveiled a new $40 plan to give those customers the choice of unlimited text messaging, Web browsing and easy access to e-mail.

Under the service offering, "users can tap, flick and pinch the innovative multi-touch touch screen for a completely new world of functionality," AT&T Vice President Carlton Hill said in a press release. To qualify, customers must complete an application for eligibility through AT&T’s National Center for Customers with Disabilities, which can be found here.

Some creative (and computer-savvy) minds at the New York Post have unveiled a Web-based "2008 Democratic Fight Night" game that lets a reader toss his or her favorite candidate --- either Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., or Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y. -- into a virtual boxing ring to beat the living daylights out of the rival wannabe nominee.

A colleague who sent me the link pointed out that the game is "not quite Grand Theft Auto, but it still entertains." Well, he's right. It's a hoot. You can check it out here. Now, who will come up with the online game where presumptive Republican nominee Sen. John McCain of Arizona pummels himself? Any takers?

"The Kojo Nnamdi Show" on WAMU (88.5) in Washington will feature a segment Tuesday focused on cracking down on pirated goods. Nnamdi's interest in the issue comes on the heels of an annual report card on intellectual property protection released Friday by the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (Read CongressDaily's coverage here).

Guests (who will be on the air just after 12 p.m. ET) include: Assistant USTR Stan McCoy and Susan Sell, director of the Institute for Global and International Studies at George Washington University. Click here for more information about Kojo's show and to listen to the webcast.

Former astronaut Sally Ride, who in 1983 became the first American woman in outer space, was a panelist at a morning session at the National Academies' U.S. competitiveness convocation on Tuesday. She kicked off the day, alongside Intel Chairman Craig Barrett and Georgia Institute of Technology President Wayne Clough, by quoting late astronomer Carl Sagan: "We live in a society exquisitely dependent on science and technology, in which hardly anyone knows anything about science and technology."

(Photo Credit: Andrew Noyes)

Three years after the National Academies' landmark report on U.S. competitiveness -- titled "Rising Above The Gathering Storm" -- was released, leaders from government, business and the education community convened Tuesday to debate how much progress has been made since in bolstering math and science education and strengthening the nation's research enterprise. Read more in CongressDaily's PM edition.

The Democratic National Convention Committee on Monday announced that Microsoft has been named as the official software and HD Web content provider for the 2008 Democratic National Convention, to be held August 25-28 in Denver, Colo.

"From voting to nominate the next President of the United States to adopting a national platform, there is a significant amount of important party business that goes on at each and every convention," a hopeful DNCC CEO Leah Daughtry said. "Microsoft's pioneering technology will play an integral role in powering the business of the Party in Denver."

Microsoft will provide the DNCC with technologies to enhance engagement with Web viewers, delegates, members of the media and other convention guests and to support delegate tracking, management of credentials and voting -- a cornerstone of the massive gathering. During the nomination process, Microsoft will provide up-to-the-minute delegate vote totals electronically, allowing timely reporting of tallies as compiled by each delegation's chair.

Plus, in a first for a political convention, Silverlight, Microsoft's platform for interactive Web applications and HD video, in conjunction with the Level 3 Communications network, will bring live, gavel-to-gavel convention video coverage of the highest quality to a worldwide audience via the DNCC's Web site at DemConvention.com.

Internet giant Google has joined the Family Online Safety Institute, an international nonprofit organization dedicated to identifying and promoting best practices, tools, and methods for Web safety. Google Policy Counsel Pablo Chavez was added to the group's board to help steer its strategic direction and initiatives. "Joining FOSI furthers Google's efforts to educate families about ways to use the Internet safely," Chavez said in a press release. Google joins a list of big name high-tech players involved in the effort, including AT&T, British Telecom, Comcast and Verizon.

Andrew Feinberg over at CapitolValley.net has an interesting take on the recently revived discussion on Capitol Hill over "orphan works," copyrighted materials whose owners cannot be found. He takes a look back at the Copyright Term Extension Act of 1998, which drastically extended copyright terms and then boils it down to how the change impacts John Q. Public.

Feinberg writes that one of his favorite television shows, "The Wonder Years," is unavailable on DVD because the nostalgic series featured so much copyrighted material from the 1960s era that obtaining permissions and arranging royalties has proved impossible. Some copyright holders won't give permission but others simply can't be found.

Free-market think tank iGrowthGlobal, which was launched last year by refugees from the Progress and Freedom Foundation, has changed its name to the Technology Policy Institute -- a little more generic, a little less new-agey. The firm, led by former PFF President Thomas Lenard, focuses on the economics of innovation, technological change, and related regulation in the United States and around the world. The group, which is guided by light-touch government and private sector driven policymaking, is also staffed by PFF alums Garland McCoy and Scott Wallsten. Lenard said the name change more accurately reflects the coming year's focus on communications and broadband policy, online privacy, and Internet governance. As part of the rebirth, TPI also launched a sleek, new Web site.

The National Press Club is getting tech-savvy with a Monday afternoon seminar titled "Reporting from Facebook." According to the notice, the session "will start by looking at what online social networks are and examining the differences between several of the most popular sites, including Facebook, MySpace and LinkedIn. From there we will move on to a more in-depth look at Facebook - navigating the site, using it to research stories, using it to identify and contact sources, and using it to connect with your audience."

The annual White House Correspondents' Association Dinner on Saturday night didn’t suffer from a lack of celebrity. Among those I spotted (and a few that I schmoozed) included former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger; actress Morgan Fairchild; actress-turned-autism activist Jenny McCarthy; actor Aaron Eckhart; Martha Stewart; and the legendary Larry King. Rupert Everett, Colin Firth, Ben Affleck, Pam Anderson, and Ashlee Simpson were also in attendance.

But the aspect that makes this post Tech Daily Dose-worthy was the presence of Mario Armando Lavandeira -- better known as gossip blogger Perez Hilton -- and Amber Lee Ettinger (a.k.a. Obama Girl from the "I Got A Crush On Obama" YouTube craze). I ran into Ettinger briefly before the dinner but Hilton, clad in a shiny suit jacket, showed up at the Capitol File after-party where big screen siren Rosario Dawson mingled and Fall Out Boy rocker Pete Wentz DJed. What a night it was!

Jennifer Urban, interim director of Stanford Law School's Cyberlaw Clinic, offered us insight on the introduction of House and Senate legislation last week that would change how the U.S. copyright regime deals with "orphan works" -- content whose owners cannot be easily identified. She said the bills set a balanced framework for allowing filmmakers, libraries and others to move forward when they cannot find the owner of a copyrighted work.

With today's lengthy copyright terms, corporations go defunct and heirs lose interest or are never aware of the work, Urban pointed out. Plus, works that owners never found economically valuable (old family film footage, photographs) are covered by copyright and are therefore too risky to use if the owner can't be found. Content that is not economically valuable can still be incredibly culturally valuable, she added.

Urban and her squad of cyberlaw students have been representing independent and documentary filmmakers for three years as they have weighed in and helped shape the reform effort. "There is still work to be done, but the introduction of these bills is a big step forward," she said.

Read CongressDaily's latest orphan works coverage here.

Advocates of continued protection for business process patents last week launched NewEconomyPatents.org. The informational Web site debuted three weeks before an appeals court hearing that stakeholders say could lead to a precedent-setting decision on what types of innovation can be patented in the future. [Read more from CongressDaily here]

The site provides resources on the business process patent debate including: a history of the case at hand, which involves a battle between inventor Bernard Bilski and the Patent and Trademark Office; a fact sheet; news articles; court filings; patent legislation; and other relevant information. The case will be heard May 8 by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.

The site is backed by global management consulting firm Accenture. The company's intellectual property chief Wayne Sobon warned in a press release that: "The new global economy is driven by services and information, and America is leading it. But efforts to curtail business process patenting threaten to undermine that leadership position."

Motion Picture Association of America chief Dan Glickman spoke on intellectual property theft in the digital age on Thursday. Here's what he said during comments at an Institute for Policy Innovation summit commemorating World IP Day, which is April 26:

"We want a world in which folks who are abusing the system know that they can't abuse the system forever and there is a limit to illegal infringement activity -- whether that’s in the form of notices and, where appropriate at the end of a legitimate process, termination [of the Internet service account]."

He added that his trade group wants to work with broadband network providers on technological and other solutions to curb the piracy problem. "There's no one answer here," Glickman said, noting that Web filtering techniques are part of the fix. "At least discussions are occurring now and that didn’t happen five years ago," he said.

Read more IPI summit coverage in CongressDaily's PM edition.

Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy announced this week that his panel will begin streaming live webcasts of its executive business meetings. The online offering, spearheaded by one of Capitol Hill's tech-savviest senators, begins Thursday when the committee is slated to consider a state secrets reform bill and a handful of other measures.

In accordance with government transparency legislation, which was signed into law last September, congressional committees are required to provide to the public video or audio recordings, or written transcripts. Leahy said the committee, which already provides video or audio webcasts of all legislative and oversight hearings, will also begin webcasting deliberations involving judicial and executive nominations.

Before passing 368-43 a bill to reauthorize a pair of federal small business assistance programs, the House Wednesday removed provisions that would have diverted $650 million per year from the research budgets of the Defense and Energy departments, National Institutes of Health and other agencies, according to CongressDaily's AM edition.

The change, accomplished by Small Business Chairwoman Nydia Velazquez’ acceptance of an amendment from Rep. Vernon Ehlers, R-Mich., to strike those increases from the bill, addressed White House objections to taking funds from other departments. A Statement of Administration Policy said the administration strongly opposed the bill, which it said goes too far in relaxing constraints on venture capital ownership of firms receiving SBIR and STTR monies.

The adoption of Ehlers' amendment happened quickly and without much fanfare, which made me wonder why supporters of the funding boost seemed to roll over so quickly. An aide for a lawmaker who supported the bill indicated that members wanted to pick their battles and pass a meaningful measure by a large margin during National Small Business Week. Some are holding out hope that language could be reinserted in a Senate version, which has not been introduced.

"The bill that goes through the House isn’t our last chance to get something through," the aide said. "There could be opportunities down the road to resolve that." The reauthorization has a two-year timeline so champions of the SBIR/STTR budget boost could revisit the issue a couple of years from now -- under a new administration, the aide said.

Senate Judiciary Committee ranking member Arlen Specter on Wednesday took Republican colleagues to task for not showing up for a key hearing on "national security letters," administrative subpoenas that let FBI agents collect telephone, computer and financial data on individuals suspected in antiterrorism cases without a court order.

"I wouldn’t be anywhere else," he said, joking that his presence really was not needed because of such a large showing of fellow GOP committee members. A half-hour into the hearing, none had shown up. "This is a prized committee, very keenly sought after by members of the U.S. Senate," Specter added. And if Republican members were in attendance, he'd tell them that too.

At last check, three Demcorats, in addition to Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy, attended the hearing. As I was finishing this post, Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Ala., showed up.

The Information Technology and Innovation Foundation and the Brookings Metropolitan Policy Program argue in a report released Wednesday that that a critical step toward a more robust, targeted and explicit federal innovation policy is the establishment of a National Innovation Foundation.

Such an organization would be "nimble, lean and collaborative," and would be devoted to supporting firms and others that innovate. The foundation would work to catalyze industry-university research partnerships, expand regional innovation-promotion by state governments, and encourage technology adoption, according to the paper.

By realigning and augmenting current diffuse efforts, the new body would help create better jobs in America, not just for highly educated "knowledge workers," but for all, including high school graduates in manufacturing and "low-tech services," the report said. The paper is available here.

"I believe I am the only panelist to have written a film about a robot poker tournament in Space Vegas in the year 3009 so I think my expertise in the area is unquestionable." -- Writers Guild of America, West President Patric Verrone during his Tuesday testimony before the Senate Commerce Committee on the future of the Internet.

And a follow-up, which was used as "The Final Word" in CongressDaily's PM:

“You’re not looking very cheerful right now … and you usually do. I want you to be glad that you’re here.” -- Sen. John (Jay) Rockefeller, D-W.Va., speaking to FCC Chairman Kevin Martin at the same hearing.

My reporting on Tuesday's Senate Commerce Committee "Future of the Internet" hearing, which appeared in CongressDaily's PM edition (and Wednesday's AM) was absent one component that has been on my mind all afternoon. So, I thought I'd address it here: the Christian Coalition of America's testimony in favor of "network neutrality" legislation.

The religious group, which relies on Web communications to spread its gospel (and has been an active member of the Save the Internet coalition), could have made a convincing argument in favor of legislation that would bar broadband providers from blocking or filtering legal content that travels on their networks -- but pesky pornography got in the way.

In her testimony, coalition spokeswoman Michelle Combs railed against the adult entertainment industry, alleging that XXX has stayed quiet on net neutrality because "any unsavory producer of content should be worried that its content could be disadvantaged in a non-neutral network." Then she suggested the porn biz "knows that it will be able to pay premium prices to be on the fast lane with exceptional quality of service provided by the cable industry." Huh?

I'm not rushing to porn's defense here nor am I coming out on either side of the net neutrality debate, but I would imagine that some legitimate adult content producers are a wee bit worried about a climate, regardless of its probability, where content that is deemed "inappropriate" could be blocked by the pipeline provider at the flip of a switch.

I don’t know whether the porn lobby has weighed in on net neutrality but I'll be sure to ask. In the meantime, maybe Combs should fine-tune her talking points.

Brittany Bohnet, of the Google Elections Team, posted this interesting item on the company's blog on Tuesday:

As you know, the Democratic primary is coming down to the wire, and American voters are following each set of state results more closely than ever before.

Jim helped us set up an embeddable Google Map comparing different essential factors for the Democratic primary in Pennsylvania. As you're watching the results from this race on April 22, Jim says there are five things to look for--and they have interesting implications for the general election in November.

Click here to read the full post with all the juicy details. The map is also on the new and improved NationalJournal.com.

I did a bit of YouTube searching and came up with this red carpet video from IFC's recent Independent Film Awards. In it, Justine Bateman, who will testify at the Senate Commerce Committee's "Future of the Internet" hearing on Tuesday, reveals that she and several others have launched the online production company FM78.tv.

The start-up is about to begin shooting its first sitcom that takes place in a candy factory. Bateman will have a starring role. All of the studio's work -- TV and film -- will be distributed over the Internet, she said, praising the online content distribution business. "It's not the future. It's already happening. It's already now."

The Senate Commerce Committee made a last minute addition to its witness line-up for Tuesday's "Future of the Internet" hearing. FCC Chairman Kevin Martin will join a diverse panel to discuss successes and challenges associated with the World Wide Web.

Other witnesses include actress Justine Bateman, best known for her work on the television show "Family Ties;" the Christian Coalition of America's Michele Combs; Stanford Law School's Lawrence Lessig; National Cable and Telecommunications Association President Kyle McSlarrow; Writers Guild of America, West President Patric Verrone; and the American Enterprise Institute's Robert Hahn.

Read CongressDaily's preview story for a taste of what to expect.

Popular social networking Web site MySpace will launch its Decision ‘08 center on Tuesday -- a clearinghouse for election-related news, analysis and discussion, in partnership with NBC News and msnbc.com. The site, which is owned by News Corp., will also feature RSS feeds, online voter registration, an interactive map with election statistics and more.

"The 2008 election is proving to be the most youth- and technology-driven race in history, and MySpace is a significant forum for political discussion today," Lee Brenner, director of the MySpace IMPACT Channel, said in a press release.

This blogger finds it odd/interesting that MySpace, whose overlords also own Fox News Channel and 35 Fox stations around the country, didn't pair up with its own properties for the venture. Looks like Murdoch's in bed with the Peacock.

Just in time for the Pennsylvania Democratic primary -- this YouTube video about presumptive Republican nominee John McCain is making the rounds in the blogosphere. What's younger than McCain? * FM radio [1937] * Color television [1940] * Plutonium [1940] * Velcro [1945] * Indonesia [1945]

The Supreme Court was scheduled to hear oral argument on Monday morning in Sprint Communications v. APCC Services, a case involving a dispute over pay phone fees. Last year, the court ruled in Global Crossing Telecommunications v. Metrophones Telecommunications that pay phone operators could sue for greater compensation. Yes! Pay phones. We might as well be talking about 8-track tapes or Johannes Gutenberg's printing press. For those of you who might have forgotten, since we now live in a mobile device-driven world, a pay phone is a coin-operated public telephone (see adjacent photo). A case preview written for the SCOTUS Blog by Akin Gump's Steven Wu is available here.

(Photo Credit: macroninja via Flickr)

In Monday's San Jose Mercury News -- some thoughts on free trade from the Computer and Communications Industry Association's Ed Black.

Editorial: U.S. political leaders must recognize importance of free trade

As the leading export industry of the nation, the high-tech sector is a strong supporter of free trade and open markets. That is why the current confrontation between Congress and the Bush administration is so alarming.

Global trade has been and remains vital to the U.S. economy. The extraordinary economic growth after World War II was, in large part, due to the fact that the United States opened itself up to the world. Thoughtful political leaders of both parties understood trade's importance, and chose to subordinate politics to trade. The challenge was always to mitigate harm to some impacted sectors while expanding trade.

Read the full editorial here.

Phoenix Police Department Sgt. Frank Kardasz, who heads up the Arizona Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, offers some fresh thoughts on the legal, systemic, societal and psychological hurdles related to Internet crimes against children in a new paper posted on his blog. He suggests a new law enforcement paradigm that better recognizes such crimes. The document comes on the heels of a recent Senate Judiciary Crime Subcommittee hearing on online child sexual exploitation.

A few of his recommendations:

(1) Citizen Internet users may be willing to designate a dollar from their monthly Internet service bill to be dedicated specifically towards the investigations of crimes against children.
(2) Law enforcement basic training academies need to recognize Internet threats by providing a block of instruction regarding Internet crimes against children for entry-level employees.
(3) Permanent funding sources specifically designated for the purpose of supporting proactive investigative (not citizen education) efforts should be designated. As of 2008, the ICAC program remained an optional congressional earmark with no guarantees of continuation.
(4) ISPs should be legislatively mandated to retain subscriber data and required to respond promptly to legal process from law enforcement.
(5) A small luxury tax on ISPs with the proceeds dedicated toward supporting investigative (not citizen education) efforts to apprehend Internet sex offenders.

From CongressDaily's AM edition on Monday:

A World Intellectual Property Day policy forum is slated for Thursday, hosted by the Institute for Policy Innovation. Various legislative proposals for emboldening IP enforcement in the United States and abroad are pending in the House and Senate. The IPI summit will feature Motion Picture Association of America CEO Dan Glickman; Recording Industry Association of America CEO Mitch Bainwol; Steve Largent, head of the wireless association CTIA; former Commerce Department undersecretary Robert Cresanti; and World Intellectual Property Organization adviser Lien Verbauwhede Koglin.

George Washington University Law School’s Creative and Innovative Economy Center will also commemorate World IP Day with a panel discussion on Monday evening. Acclaimed Indian filmmaker Bobby Bedi, whose country loses more than an estimated $4 billion per year to piracy, will discuss the impact of IP infringement.

Reps. Tom Feeney, R-Fla., and Robert Wexler, D-Fla., who co-chair the Congressional Caucus on Intellectual Property Promotion and Piracy Prevention, and Congressional Entertainment Caucus Chairwoman Rep. Diane Watson, D-Calif., are expected to attend.

[For the record, the official WIPO World IP Day is observed each year on April 26. Click here to see activities planned around the globe.]

BusinessWeek's Stephen Baker asks an interesting question on the Blogspotting blog: "Why does Hillary Clinton follow 0 people on Twitter?" Barack Obama, her rival for the Democratic presidential nomination "followed" more than 23,000 people's twitterings.

Could the twitterings of thousands of followers could be valuable data? Could analytics firms rake through the tweets and give the candidates charts about shifting attitudes and responses to speeches? Read on…

Democratic presidential contender Hillary Clinton fixes Stephen Colbert's technical glitch. She recommends toggling the input.

We hope you are enjoying the new and improved NationalJournal.com. We're still working out some kinks so please be patient with us. If you're a subscriber, you might have noticed that TechCentral, our one-stop shop for tech policy and related coverage is a bit hidden. To find it, visit the CongressDaily section of the Web site, click on the "hot topics" tab and scroll down -- or you can follow this link. As upgrades continue, there should be multiple, easy ways to get to TechCentral so stay tuned.

A key contingent of the House Homeland Security Committee will travel to Minneapolis/St. Paul, Minn., on Monday to visit the Mall of America, the nation's largest retail and entertainment complex. But members of the Subcommittee on Intelligence, Information Sharing and Terrorism Risk Assessment won't be there for a spring shopping spree or to ride the SpongeBob SquarePants Rock Bottom Plunge indoor rollercoaster -- they'll be meeting with the mall's top-notch security team.

SecuritySolutions.com reports that the massive center's security office keeps watch over a console with 14 monitors -- 12 that run in a quad view, displaying video from four cameras at once and sequencing through 125 cameras. Two of the monitors let officers call up any camera they want, using a joystick and buttons on the console to select monitor numbers.

Lawmakers will also discuss information sharing and critical infrastructure issues with the Minnesota Joint Analysis Center and will swing by the Xcel Energy Center, the site of the Republican National Convention, for a briefing with the U.S. Secret Service.

From the latest National Journal magazine:

Striking blondes have a way of getting attention in D.C. That’s a sure bet for adult-film starlet Stormy Daniels, who will represent the Association of Sites Advocating Child Protection at the National Press Club on May 29. The Los Angeles-based group of porn producers wants to keep adult Internet content away from kids. Online child safety has been a key issue for the Justice Department and has prompted hearings, legislation, and self-regulatory actions by industry, such as ASACP’s own online warning-label program. ASACP, whose inside-the-Beltway exposure has been scarce, has hired the Raben Group to raise its image in the public policy realm.

Check out ASACP's "Restricted to Adults" PSAs here and here.

Rep. Mike Doyle, D-Pa., will discuss a number of telecommunications policy issues on the next installment of C-SPAN's public affairs series "The Communicators." The half-hour interview with the vice chair of the House Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet will air Saturday at 6:30 p.m. on C-SPAN 1 and on Monday at 8 a.m. and 8 p.m. on C-SPAN 2. Topics include so-called "net neutrality" legislation; the digital television transition; the Skype petition for an open wireless Internet; and the 700 Mhz auction and the lack of bidders on the "D-block."

The recently launched ChangeCongress campaign, whose goal is to combat the influence of money in American politics, will kick into high gear this weekend when creator Larry Lessig and his supporters will begin what he calls the "wiki-work" of identifying and tagging candidates to show on an interactive, color-coded map where they stand on campaign finance issues.

Lessig, a law professor at Stanford University, unveiled the initiative in March after deciding not to run for the seat of the late Rep. Tom Lantos, D-Calif. He said his chances for winning were slim and he could better advance his agenda through an effort outside Congress. Lessig told Tech Daily Dose on Friday that the latest stage of his project should be finished in about month "and then we'll have a clear map of where commitment for reform is." Read CongressDaily's original story about Lessig's effort here.

Stop, wait! Don't open that grand jury summons e-mail. The FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center is alerting computer users about a spam message that contains a fraudulent court subpoena. At first glance, the e-mail appears authentic -- it contains a court case number, federal code, name and address of a California court, the court’s seal and other details.

The spammer directs recipients to click the link provided in order to download and print associated information for their records. If the recipient clicks the link, a malicious code is downloaded onto their computer. The e-mail also contains language threatening recipients with contempt of court charges if they fail to appear. Read the FBI's press release here.

National Journal Group's long-awaited Web site overhaul is complete and we hope you like the finished product. Here's a screenshot of a demo front page. Click here to visit the real thing and here to read a note to readers.

Web-savvy voters could have an impact on next Tuesday's Pennsylvania Democratic primary, according to polling data from Civic Science, a Pittsburgh-based software company. Responses and demographic data from thousands of Keystone State residents were collected over the Web sites of membership organizations and online media outlets to gauge the political leanings, demographic profiles, lifestyle preferences and trends of political consumers.

Of the 7,000 participants, 2,800 likely Democratic voters weighed in directly on the Democratic primary, favoring Barack Obama over Hillary Clinton by a margin of 61 percent to 37 percent. Obama led among all age, gender, and household income categories. Figures released by most professional phone polling firms have consistently shown Clinton leading, officials said.

"We are certainly not suggesting that Obama is going to win Pennsylvania by 24 points or that our data, by itself, is more accurate than traditional phone surveys," Civic Service CEO John Dick said. "We are in the business of measuring and understanding the opinions of Web-savvy voters and consumers. But, if these people turn out to vote next Tuesday, as they have indicated they will, we could see a very close race or even an Obama win in Pennsylvania."

Civic Science uses short, three-question polls to maximize response rates, building extensive profiles of individuals who take multiple polls over time, the firm said. The identities of respondents remain completely anonymous.

The FTC recently unveiled a series of light-hearted public service announcements (see above) dealing with online "phishing" scams. Commissioner Pamela Jones Harbour noted the clips, which are available on the agency's OnGuard Online Web site and on YouTube, at a Thursday morning Internet privacy event.

Wednesday's annual Radio & Television Correspondents' Association Dinner was a classy affair, as always, replete with political celebrities from both sides of the aisle; TV personalities; and a host of other D.C. power brokers. Comedian and blogger Mo Rocca was the featured entertainer and his observations about old and new media elicited a chuckle -- at least from those of us who like to straddle the line between the two worlds.

Rocca, who writes the blog Mo Rocca 180 (whose tagline is: "only half as tedious as the regular news"), riffed about the extent to which the radio and TV business is considered cutting-edge, mentioning the industry in the same breath as cave-painting. He also asked whether there were any bloggers in the audience (and made a joke about them courageously leaving their parents' basements).

In this reporter/blogger's humble opinion, Vice President Dick Cheney's shtick got more laughs. He started his speech by donning the wide-brimmed hat and sunglasses that created a buzz in the blogosphere last week. Read about that uproar here. More coverage of the dinner can be found at FishbowlDC here and the Washington Post here.

Cable and Internet giant Comcast and Pando Networks, a provider of managed peer-to-peer content delivery services, said Tuesday that they will lead an industry-wide effort to create a “P2P Bill of Rights and Responsibilities” for file-sharers and Internet service providers. The pair plan to collaborate with industry experts; other ISPs and P2P firms; content providers and others, to guide the popular high-tech platform.

The purpose of the initiative is to clarify what choices and controls consumers should have when using P2P applications as well as what processes and practices ISPs should use to manage P2P applications running on their networks, according to a Comcast press release. Comcast and Pando will also test Pando Network Aware™ P2P technology on Comcast’s fiber-optic network with the purpose of analyzing data flow.

The announcement builds on Comcast’s March 27 announcement to work with BitTorrent and the broader Internet and ISP community to more effectively address issues associated with rich media content and network capacity management. Comcast Chief Technology Officer Tony Werner said he hoped to gather stakeholders this spring and publish the P2P guidelines later this year.

Update: Marvin Ammori, general counsel of Free Press, said the Comcast and Pando have "declared themselves the arbiters of consumers' rights and responsibilities." Their announcement gives little information about the arrangement, "but Comcast's behavior tells us everything we need to know," he said, adding that the firm has been blocking P2P and doesn’t plan to stop.

Scott Cleland at the Precursor blog also weighed in, calling the partnership "a breakthrough agreement" that solves "multiple thorny problems." Read his full post here.

Senate Democrats unveiled a sleek but simplistic new Web site on Tuesday for their High Tech Task Force -- a group that coordinates activities with the chairmen and members of the Senate Commerce, Energy, Finance, and Judiciary Committees. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid used the occasion to point out his party's "long relationship with high technology researchers, developers, and manufacturers."

"We created the High Tech Task Force to underscore the importance of that relationship and to help foster its continued growth," Reid said. "The task force relies upon the knowledge and expertise of those in our caucus who are already doing important work on policy initiatives related to America’s leadership in technology."

Sen. Mark Pryor of Arkansas, who co-chairs the group with Sen. John Kerry of Massachusetts, noted in a press release that "an active dialogue and pro-growth agenda will help ensure America is at the forefront of innovation and competitive in the global marketplace." The task force serves as a vehicle for that communication, he said.

CongressDaily's AM edition on Tuesday included a mention of the Electronic Frontier Foundation's accusation overnight that the FBI delayed its probe of a former North Carolina State University student suspected of links to terrorism. The agency used an improper "national security letter" to seek information and failed to report the misuse for almost two years, according to the watchdog group.

EFF used documents obtained through a Freedom of Information Act and public records to piece together details of the case. The report came in anticipation of a House Judiciary Constitution Subcommittee hearing on the controversial administrative subpoenas. Read more about the EFF's report here and here.

The Patent and Trademark Office will initiate a six-month pilot program that will allow an applicant to have an interview with a patent examiner prior to the first office action on the merits in a new application, officials said Monday. The program, which begins April 28, is aimed at expediting patent processing by boosting applicant-examiner interaction.

"An interview between the applicant and examiner early in the review process can help resolve issues more quickly and expedite a final decision,” PTO Director Jon Dudas said in a press release. The information exchange will reduce patent pendency and improve patent quality, he said. The agency current has a backlog of more than 700,000 applications.

The pilot program will be limited to two technology areas -- electrical computers and digital processing systems/multi-computer data transferring and data processing/database and file management or data structures. For details regarding eligibility and criteria for participation, go here.

Just under 40 percent of time consumers spend listening to "radio" is via delivery modes other than terrestrial AM and FM broadcasts, according to a study released Monday at the Radio and Internet Newsletter's annual gathering in Las Vegas. That could be an indicator of the increasing prominence of satellite radio, cable radio, Internet-only webcasts, podcasts, and online simulcasts of AM/FM content.

The study, sponsored by Solutions Media Group, Web radio innovator Ando Media and RAIN, indicated all of online streaming (Internet-only webcasters plus AM/FM streams) accounts for 16 percent of total radio listening (split evenly between the two). Satellite radio and cable each account for 11 percent. Since the study was conducted online and was based on self-reporting, take it with a grain of salt.

RAIN's Kurt Hansen said the results were "certainly a bit more ‘ahead of the curve’" than a typical poll of the general population. Read more about the study and the summit here.

Internet innovator Google has partnered with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children to provide software tailored to help automate and streamline the technical side of the group's child pornography investigations through advancements in video and image search.

"Criminals are using cutting edge technology to commit their crimes of child sexual exploitation, and in fighting to solve those crimes and keep children safe, we must do the same," NCMEC President Ernie Allen said in a press release. Working in cooperation with federal law enforcers, NCMEC analysts have reviewed more than 13 million child porn images and videos and the Google offering will help expedite searches.

In August 2006, Google joined the Technology Coalition and the Financial Coalition Against Child Pornography, industry initiatives launched by NCMEC and its sister agency, the International Centre for Missing and Exploited Children, to develop solutions that disrupt the ability of predators to use the Internet to exploit children or swap child porn.

Surf on over to CongressDaily's TechCentral for the latest on the pending merger between Sirius Satellite Radio and rival XM. Here's a taste of Monday's "Issue of the Week:"

When Sirius Satellite Radio Chief Executive Officer Mel Karmazin testified last year at congressional hearings on plans to combine his company with rival XM, he made several promises to win over regulators, including assurances that the millions of receivers in homes and cars wouldn’t become obsolete and that low-cost pricing would be available. Karmazin’s message apparently resonated with the Justice Department, which approved the $5 billion transaction on March 24 with no conditions.

Now, as the merger’s fate rests with the Republican-controlled FCC, industry analysts say the government’s review has shifted from whether the combination should win approval to how it should be conditioned.

The Internal Revenue Service should not invest in a so-called "I-File" tax preparation system because the proposed regime would be costly to implement and create little or no benefit for consumers compared to the existing system, according to an independent report released Monday by the Computer and Communications Industry Association.

"Competition in the industry obligates software companies to keep their products user-friendly and reasonably priced, and the IRS 'Free File' program already makes tax preparation software available to seven out of 10 taxpayers for free," study coauthor Robert Litan said. I-File would cost at least $132 million more than it would save over the next decade, the report [available here] predicted.

The study concluded that the goals of I-File – specifically, an increase in e-filing of tax returns – would be better achieved through other approaches, including improvements to the IRS' existing Free File program and the creation of meaningful incentives for e-filing, the study concluded. The I-File concept makes sense on the surface "but this study exposes the idea as simply that: a nice idea," CCIA President Ed Black said.

A federal court in New York on Monday will hear opening arguments over whether an independent book publisher has the right to publish the Harry Potter Lexicon, an unofficial reference guide to the Harry Potter series of books and movies. The trial is expected to last several days.

Attorneys from the Fair Use Project of Stanford Law School's Center for Internet and Society will argue that their client, RDR Books, has the right to publish the guidebook under the "fair use" doctrine, which safeguards the use of copyrighted material so long as it is used transformatively and does not damage the market value of the original work.

The suit began last October when Warner Bros., which owns the film rights to the Harry Potter books, and Harry Potter author J.K Rowling filed a lawsuit to block the Lexicon's publication. The 400-word book is a print counterpart to a fan-created Web site, which includes information on the series' characters, places, animals and magic spells. Read more here.

Legislation that would prohibit the Treasury Department and Federal Reserve from proposing, prescribing or implementing any regulations related to the current ban on Internet gambling was introduced late last week by House Financial Services Chairman Barney Frank, D-Mass., and Rep. Ron Paul, R-Texas.

Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act regulations "are impossible to implement without placing a significant burden on the payments system and financial institutions," Frank said. "While I do disagree with the underlying objective of the act, I believe that even those who agree with it ought to be concerned about the regulations’ impact.” The Domestic and International Monetary Policy Subcommittee held a hearing on the topic this month.

Safe and Secure Internet Gambling Initiative spokesman Jeff Sandman said the legislative move was bold but necessary in light of warnings from the Treasury and Federal Reserve that they did not know how to write regulations to solve problems the law created. Testimony at the hearing offered proof that financial services would also face serious regulatory burdens in attempting to enforce the ban, the group said.

Read CongressDaily's April 2 hearing story here.

Rep. Edward Markey, D-Mass., who heads the House telecommunications subcommittee, commended the FTC on Friday for appropriately recognizing "the pressing need for updated online privacy protections for children that reflect the sophisticated data collection and behavioral targeting practices now used widely across the Internet." Public comments on guidelines proposed by the agency were due at the end of the week.

"Without stronger protections, including a prohibition on collecting data on children’s and teens’ online activities, young Internet users may become unwitting targets of the ‘hidden persuaders’ of the digital age," Markey said. "The evolution of online behavioral advertising since the enactment of the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act requires a commensurate rejuvenation of privacy safeguards."

Read CongressDaily's preview story about the FTC's proposal here.

(Photo Credit: Andrew Noyes)

Friday marked the grand opening at the new Newseum in Washington. It was a massive, day-long affair that drew scores of tourists, locals and, of course, news enthusiasts. I've had a keen interest in the project as it has evolved because of the groundbreaking high-tech components featured inside the museum. This is just a snapshot of what's inside. It's a must-see! [Click here for more photos]

(Photo Credit: David Bohrer/White House)

The Internets are abuzz over the reflection in Vice President Dick Cheney's sunglasses. Yes kids, it must be Friday. Some have already shut off their brains for the weekend. The official White House photograph is of Cheney fly-fishing on the Snake River in Idaho and the image in his lenses is probably something outdoorsy. But a quick blog search shows that folks are taking their own wild guesses.

The Potomac Flacks blog points out the Facebook group "You Know You're A Political Staffer When…" The social network site's sub-community has a list of fun (and accurate) ways to know if you are, in fact, a political staffer.

A few examples:
• No one looks at you funny when you sleep at the office
• Your friends visit your office to make sure you’re still alive
• Therapy is something you wish you could get for free after the election
• Your track record, has nothing to do with sports
• Your best friend’s name is Blackberry
• Time is measured in cycles instead of years.
• Your desk kind of reminds you of the movie Twister, after the tornado hit

House Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers, D-Mich., and ranking member Lamar Smith, R-Texas, followed Sen. Herb Kohl's lead in weighing in on the recent announcement of a trial venture between rivals Yahoo and Google and news reports of a possible Yahoo/America Online merger.

"In February, the House Judiciary Committee announced plans to hold a hearing on the state of competition on the Internet," they wrote in a Thursday statement. The latest announcements "further underscore the need for a hearing on the state of competition on the Internet and online advertising." The committee's Task Force on competition and antitrust task force "will continue to explore these issues," they wrote.

From Thursday's CongressDaily AM edition:

Senate Judiciary Chairman Patrick Leahy does not have Judiciary ranking member Arlen Specter's support on legislation to overhaul the U.S. patent system -- at least for now. Specter issued a statement Wednesday saying the two have not come to an agreement on language that would address how damages are awarded in infringement lawsuits.

"We thought we had reached an agreement on this matter, but the language continued to shift, so we do not yet have a deal on the package," Specter said. "I am hopeful that we can reach an agreement, but more work has to be done to get it right." Read the full story here.

A Wednesday announcement that Internet search firm Yahoo would begin limited testing of rival Google's advertising delivery service got the attention of Senate Judiciary Antitrust Subcommittee Chairman Herb Kohl. The experiment, which will apply to no more than 3 percent of Yahoo's search traffic in the United States, will be watched closely by Kohl to ensure that it does not harm competition.

The project follows closely on the heels of Google's acquisition of online ad firm DoubleClick. A Google-Yahoo alliance "would represent even further consolidation in the Internet advertising market," he said. Yahoo previously said its board is exploring such partnerships for the benefit of shareholders. The company recently rebuffed an unsolicited buyout offer by Microsoft.

Stanford Group analysts also noted in an e-mail that there were reports late in the day of a Yahoo-America Online merger. As part of the proposal, AOL would contribute cash and receive about 20 percent of the combined company. Yahoo would apparently tender for billions of dollars of its stock. Meanwhile, rumors swirled of a Microsoft/News Corp. one-two punch to try to woo Yahoo.

Comedy Central's "The Daily Show" put its unique (and hilarious) spin on the recent House Energy and Commerce Telecommunications and the Internet Subcommittee hearing on virtual worlds like Second Life. Jon Stewart's take: "It's official: Congress has given up on the actual world."

David Oxenford's Broadcast Law Blog pointed out on Tuesday that while U.S. webcasters may think they have legal issues -- the Internet radio music royalties that have been such a concern or the copyright and other liability issues that surround user-generated content -- they face nothing like new administrative rules that were enacted on Jan. 31 for webcasters in China.

According to Oxenford, an attorney at Davis Wright Tremaine who represented small U.S. webcasters in royalty setting proceedings, the new rules require government permits from two separate Chinese government agencies before webcasting operations can begin. In addition, the rules appear to require ownership and control of webcasting operations by state-owned companies. A memo on the rules, prepared by attorneys from his firm's Shanghai office, can be found here.

(Photo Credit: Eschlaik via Flickr)

CongressDaily's AM edition on Tuesday reported that the Coalition for Patent Fairness, which has championed the congressional effort to overhaul the U.S. patent system, hired former Sens. Trent Lott, R-Miss., and John Breaux, D-La., to help lobby on behalf of the group. Tech Daily Dose has now learned that the coalition added another power player to its roster -- former House Minority Leader Richard Gephardt, D-Mo. The prominent policymaker, who ended his three-decade political career in 2005, is now senior counsel at the law firm of DLA Piper.

Technology nonprofit One Economy launched its "Bring IT Home America" campaign on Tuesday -- a program geared toward combining the resources of government, business, and the nonprofit sector to extend innovative technologies to those who need them most. Companies like AT&T, Intel, Verizon and Wells Fargo have signed onto the two-year project.

According to the group, 21 percent of people earning less than $30,000 per year have broadband and the applications it makes possible in their homes; three times as many affluent households have high-speed access. One Economy believes in the need to inspire a "profound and urgent national commitment to bring the power of information to all Americans -- regardless of income, race, age, or geography."

By the end of the campaign, One Economy and campaign members will have engaged 5,000 youth to provide technology training in their neighborhoods, brought broadband into the homes of half a million Americans, and reached millions more with the next generation of public-purpose media, the Public Internet Channel, officials said.

West Virginia Gov. Joe Manchin, a champion of the initiative, issued a statement saying broadband access is as important as water and sewer infrastructure for the Mountain State and other rural localities to prosper in the new economy. As a proud West Virginian who grew up with lackluster technology in school and even less at home, I couldn’t agree more.

As I reported in Monday's CongressDaily PM edition, some biotechnology and pharmaceutical industry executives are rallying around a proposal by Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, to change "inequitable conduct" language in the Senate's pending patent reform bill. Read the full story (with details about Hatch's proposal) here.

Hatch, a longtime follower of intellectual property issues, told me in an e-mail after deadline that his proposal also enjoys the support of the American Bar Association's IP section and he believes current inequitable conduct law is "unworkable." "The punishment for what is deemed inequitable too often doesn’t fit the 'crime.' We need to change it," he said.

Inequitable conduct is a "central piece of the patent reform puzzle" but legislation is a collaborative process, he said, adding that he is confident that Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy "is working to get all the necessary pieces together." Updates to the patent bill, which Leahy and Hatch introduced last year, are on the way. Expect to read more on that in CongressDaily soon.

While some are on board with various proposals floated to change the system, others prefer the status quo. Apotex Corporation, Barr Pharmaceuticals, the Generic Pharmaceutical Association, Teva Pharmaceuticals and others wrote to Senate leaders last month asking for them to preserve the inequitable conduct doctrine, which they called "one of the most basic of defenses against gaming the system."

"In the context of pharmaceuticals, the defense enables a fair and timely resolution to litigation and a competitive marketplace, not to mention the removal of improperly obtained patents from our system," they explained. Without the defense, the patent system "could become more vulnerable, patent quality could decrease, and affordable generics could be kept off the market," they warned.

During a speech in London on Monday, FBI Director Robert Mueller likened his agency's counterterrorism work to panning for gold. "First, we have to determine in which streams we are likely to find gold. Which suspected networks? Which human sources? Which Web sites?" hje said. "Then, agents and analysts must take their pans and wade through the waters of intelligence, carefully searching for nuggets of gold amid streams of repetitive or irrelevant information."

The gold might be a phone number, or name, or bank receipt, Mueller said, and it is often hidden among thousands of other scraps of information. "With deft, methodical sifting, we can separate the gold from the dross," he added, quoting Dame Eliza Manningham-Buller, former head of the U.K.'s MI5 intelligence agency. Upon their first meeting in 2001, Mueller asked her what she thought was the key to MI5's success. She said, "Two things: sources and wires" and that is as true today as it was the day he heard it, he said. Read Mueller's full speech at Chatham House here.

Actor-screenwriter-director-producer Tim Robbins will deliver the opening keynote at the National Association of Broadcasters' annual convention in Las Vegas next Monday. Robbins will speak about the changing face of entertainment and how new distribution and content creation opportunities impact Hollywood, according to the trade group.

Other notables include Carlton Cuse and Damon Lindelof, executive producers of ABC's "Lost;" DreamWorks CEO Jeffrey Katzenberg; DreamWorks Chairman Roger Enrico; Hewlett-Packard's Todd Bradley; and Jason Kilar, CEO of Web-based video service Hulu. Last year's show drew more than 100,000 attendees and more than 1,600 exhibitors.

A couple of high-tech executives will meet with President Bush on Monday afternoon to discuss the short and long-term benefits of the recently enacted economic stimulus package. The CEOs will offer specific anecdotes of how the plan will stimulate their businesses -- particularly how its tax incentives let them spend money on new equipment, thereby improving productivity, efficiency, and capacity.

Raymond Pinard of 48HourPrint.com, a Boston-based business-to-business online printing firm, and Thomas Sawner of Educational Options, an Arlington, Va.-headquartered provider of Web-based educational products, are among the invitees. Other executives hail from Signal Metal Industries of Irving, Texas, and Permac Industries of Burnsville, Minn.

(Photo Credit: Office of Sen. Patrick Leahy)

"We will get that patent bill done," Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy vowed Wednesday night at the Consumer Electronics Association's Washington Forum. The Vermont Democrat, who was honored as a CEA Digital Patriot, spoke about the controversial reform measure he sponsored during his award acceptance speech. The bill is awaiting floor debate and a companion measure has already passed the House.

Commonly referred to as the "cyber senator," Leahy also reaffirmed his belief in the power of high-tech innovation. "Access to technology protects the rights and freedoms of American consumers," he said. A video tribute to him featured praise from Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah; House Oversight and Government Reform Chairman Henry Waxman, D-Calif.; Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif.; and others.

Retiring Rep. Tom Davis, R-Va., who is ranking member of the Oversight and Government Reform Committee, was also named a Digital Patriot. CEA President Gary Shapiro said Davis "will be missed by both sides of the aisle" and begged him not to leave Capitol Hill. "There are three ways to leave public office and two of them aren’t very pleasant. I'm opting for the third," Davis joked.

Verizon CEO Ivan Seidenberg was also honored at the banquet. Leahy and Davis both noted that they had Verizon "in their pocket" and at home. I'm sure that was music to Seidenberg's ears.

U.S. Chamber of Commerce President Tom Donohue called on governments, businesses, and consumers around the world to join the fight in protecting intellectual property at the Tuesday night premiere of the National Geographic film, "Illicit: The Dark Trade." The film is based on a best-selling book that exposes criminal networks that fuel the multi-billion dollar global trade of illicit goods.

Donohue said the ability to protect innovation and creativity "is at the very core of U.S. economic competitiveness" and IP theft is "wreaking havoc on legitimate commerce at the expense of human safety and jobs." He said the film should "sound an alarm bell… that the time to act is now."

The trade group chief challenged consumers to do three things to aid in the fight -- commit to only purchasing legitimate goods from legitimate vendors; encourage the U.S. Congress to pass pending IP enforcement legislation; and join the chamber's global IP protection campaign.

One last April Fool's Day joke -- even though it's now April 2.

ZDNet reported that the main domain servers and related infrastructure controlling the Internet would be powered down for one hour on Tuesday, according to the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers. The body responsible for maintaining the registry of domain names and IP addresses announced that it would effectively turn off the Internet in order to gauge the ecological impact of such a move. The decision follows the success of the recently observed "Earth Hour," in which people around the globe turned off their lights for one hour in a gesture towards saving energy. Read the full story here.

From CongressDaily's TechCentral

In the wake of a recent threat by the European Union to lodge a World Trade Organization complaint against the United States, members of Congress this week will wade into the heated debate over Internet gambling. At issue is whether proposed U.S. policies banning the transfer of funds from banks and credit unions to Internet gambling Web sites yield more burdens than benefits.

Rep. Luis Gutierrez, D-Ill., said he hopes that a Wednesday hearing before the House Financial Services Domestic and International Monetary Policy, Trade and Technology Subcommittee - which he chairs -- will clarify regulations under the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act before those rules become final.

Read the entire "Issue Of The Week" feature here and look for coverage of the hearing in Wednesday's CongressDaily.

The American Antitrust Institute sent out a press release on Tuesday from the American Anti-Rust Institute -- the imaginary nonprofit research arm of the domestic anti-rust industry. The fake trade group reportedly threatened to sue the American Bar Association antitrust section and others "who include in their name the word antitrust, claiming trademark, copyright, and various other intellectual property violations."

Washington attorney Timothy J. Muris, speaking at a gathering of the ABA antirust section, declared that confusion between rust and trust is easy to explain, in that the recent evaporation of the nation's secretarial pool has left communications dependent on people who cannot type accurately.

The press release ended with this blurb: "We offer this editor's note at our liability insurer's request in recognition that the media not only occasionally drops a 't' or adds a hyphen but from time to time fails to deduce that an AAI April 1 offering may not be altogether straightforward."

Here's an April Fool's Day hoax courtesy of the funnymen (and women) at 463 Communications. Enjoy…

WASHINGTON -- After years of controversy and uncertainty, DNA testing has finally proven the real father of the Internet. It’s a gas station attendant in Norman, Oklahoma. Given the obvious promiscuity of the Internet’s mother, the real father has long been in doubt.

Robert Kahn, Tim Berners-Lee and Vint Cerf were all known to have dated the woman, Mildred Pollymokker, in the mid 1960s and 1970s. Others, including JCR Licklider, Paul Baran and Robert Taylor were all known to have “spent time” with Ms. Pollymokker around that time. “Let’s face it, the mother of the Internet got around,” said Cerf. Read the full release here.

The intellectual property pranksters over at Public Knowledge got us good this time. The group's president, Gigi Sohn, put out a statement commenting on supposed new IP enforcement legislation that is "a tragedy wrapped in a travesty" and "a travesty wrapped in a tragedy." At first blush, I thought it was authentic because she's never been shy about creatively informing the press about her feelings on a particular measure.

Under the fabricated bill, new government agencies, including a Department of Intellectual Property Security, would be created and given extraordinary powers. Copyright protection would be extended to new types of works and with even longer terms of protection in force. “This bill should be read very carefully. Anyone would have to be a fool to vote for this bill," Sohn said. To read the full text of the spoof legislation, click here (see commentary from PK in the margins).

R.E.M. rocked NBC's "Today Show" on Tuesday morning and chatted with Matt Lauer about their new album, how they have embraced high-tech distribution methods and the state of the American music industry.

Mike Mills on tech: "The technology is out there and the best thing you can do is break down the barriers between yourself and your fans. We streamed it on iLike and we have a Web site -- SupernaturalSuperserious.com -- where you can build your own video out of clips we've provided. It's just a way to remove the middle man and connected directly with the people who like you."

Michael Stipe on the music business: "I think the music is doing great right now, I think the industry is sort of suffering. But musicians continue writing good songs and there are fans out there that support them."

Watch "Today Show" clips here. I can't wait to get my hands on the new album. And yes, this was blogworthy because I love them and it's my birthday week so I'm entitled.

April Fool's Day is upon us and Google's annual "gotcha" is a so-called Custom Time feature for Gmail that supposedly lets users send e-mails that are time-stamped with the date of the sender's choosing. The e-mails can be marked read or unread in the recipient's inbox. The tagline: "Be on time. Every time." Read more about the fake application here.

Some of the user testimonials, like this one, are a hoot:
"I used to be an honest person; but now I don't have to be. It's just so much easier this way. I've gained a lot of productivity by not having to think about doing the 'right' thing." -- Todd J., Investment Banker

Update: Oh, and there's more. Another April Fool's Day gift from Google -- introducing Virgle. Here's a snippet from the press release:

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. -- Google and Virgin Group today announced the launch of Virgle Inc., a jointly owned and operated venture dedicated to the establishment of a human settlement on Mars.

"Some people are calling Virgle an 'interplanetary Noah's Ark,'" said Virgin Group President and Founder Sir Richard Branson, who conceived the new venture. "I'm one of them. It's a potentially remarkable business, but more than that, it's a glorious adventure." Read the full release here.

From The Transportation Security Administration Evolution Of Security blog:

In TSA's checkpoint of the future, passengers will approach the security kiosk, carry-on in hand, and put a biometric on the scanner. While the scanning system clears you after it confirms your identity and flight information, the technology in the kiosk will verify that there are no truly dangerous items on you or in your bag. Total elapsed time: about 1.75 seconds. Version Two will add a Teleporter so that you will not need to get on an airplane. Your grandchildren will love it.

Technology is a wonderful thing but it's not an overnight process - it must be invented, funded, built, tested, bought, and deployed. Unfortunately, the security technology field has not sufficiently fired the imagination of scientists or the private capital markets to the point where truly breakthrough technology will soon transform the checkpoint experience. Yet the current security threat environment requires that we get smarter and more nimble, now. Read the full post here.