CCIA Expresses Concerns over Intellectual Property Bill
12/6/2007
Washington, DC - Responding to yesterday's introduction of H.R. 4279, the "Prioritizing Resources and Organization for Intellectual Property Act of 2007" (PROIPA) in the House of Representatives, Computer & Communications Industry Association (CCIA) President & CEO Ed Black expressed concerns about the legislation. The following statement may be attributed to Mr. Black:
CCIA Sees Peru FTA Approval as Positive, but Unbalanced Intellectual Property Provisions a Growing Problem
12/4/2007
The Computer & Communications Industry Association (CCIA) welcomed the United States Senate’s bipartisan approval of H.R. 3688, the United States-Peru Trade Promotion Agreement Implementation Act, but expressed reservations about the continued inclusion of overly broad intellectual property protection provisions in the current free trade agreement template. The Peru agreement is the first of the four pending Free Trade Agreements to be voted on by this Congress, and would immediately make 80 percent of U.S. consumer and industrial exports to Peru duty-free.
Appeals Court Patent Ruling Could Hamstring Tech Markets, Cause Consumer Uncertainty, CCIA Tells Supreme Court
11/15/2007
Patent holders should not be able to demand royalties from all subsequent buyers once a product is sold into the stream of commerce, the Computer & Communications Industry Association argued in a friend-of-the-court brief before the Supreme Court.
In documents filed earlier this week, CCIA attorneys urged the high court to invalidate so-called “conditional sales” that would give patent rights holders the ability to seek for royalties long after a sale was otherwise complete. For example, under the rule adopted by the lower court, a patent holder can “conditionally” sell a patented component of a product, and then seek patent royalties from subsequent purchasers, such as the product vendor, retailer, and even the end-user. Such arrangements eviscerate long-standing legal precedent and threaten the well being of the high-tech sector, CCIA’s brief argued, which depends on predictable transactions and the recombination of technologies long after the initial sale
CCIA Praises House Passage of Broadband Bill
11/14/2007
WASHINGTON -- The Computer & Communications Industry Association praised passage of House legislation that promises to dramatically improve the nation’s ability to identify places unserved by high-speed Internet connections.
The “Broadband Census of America Act of 2007,” (H.R. 3919), sponsored by Chairman Edward J. Markey (D-MA), reflects growing bipartisan consensus on the need for universal availability of affordable broadband access, a basic infrastructure for the 21st century. A similar measure, The Broadband Data Improvement Act (S. 1492), awaits action on the Senate floor.
CCIA’s Black Tells Senate Panel That Wiretap Rules Must Protect the Internet and the Constitution
10/31/2007
No Blanket Immunity For Illegal Surveillance, Black Says
Washington, D.C. - Proposed reforms to the federal government’s wiretapping powers must protect the Constitution while providing industry with clear rules regarding under what circumstances it must aid government surveillance efforts, CCIA President & CEO Ed Black told a Senate panel this morning.
Black also testified against retroactive immunity for telecommunications companies who allegedly illegally spied on Americans at the government’s request, arguing that promises of immunity would allow government agents to coerce other companies into illegal acts in the future.
CCIA's Black to Testify Wednesday Oct. 31 on Senate FISA Amendments
10/30/2007
WASHINGTON -- Computer & Communications Industry Association President & CEO Ed Black will testify Wednesday morning Oct. 31 before the Senate Judiciary Committee on efforts to amend the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA). Among other things, Black is expected to ask the Committee to refrain from granting immunity to companies that may have participated in illegal, government requested wiretapping, especially before full disclosure has occurred.
CCIA Expresses Concerns over Intellectual Property Bill
9/5/2007
Washington, DC - Responding to yesterday's introduction of H.R. 4279, the "Prioritizing Resources and Organization for Intellectual Property Act of 2007" (PROIPA) in the House of Representatives, Computer & Communications Industry Association (CCIA) President & CEO Ed Black expressed concerns about the legislation. The following statement may be attributed to Mr. Black:
