Domains
Clinton Signs Cybersquatting Bill
     While President Clinton signed legislation into law aimed at curbing cybersquatting, there is still considerable debate on what type of impact the measure may have on ICANN's efforts to resolve disputes over Internet domain names. The legislation was formally enacted into law as part of a fiscal year 2000 omnibus spending bill, H.R. 3194, which Clinton signed during a ceremony at the White House. The cybersquatting measure would outlaw the practice of registering a trademark with the intent of selling it for a profit. Violators could face up to $100,000 in damages under the law.

E-commerce
VP Initiative To Study E-growth
     Democrat presidential candidate Vice President Al Gore unveiled a new working group to study ways to eliminate regulations that are acting as obstacles to further e-commerce growth. Under the initiative, the group will solicit comment from local, state and government agency officials, as well as the private sector, on what they see as regulations that need to be removed or reformed to ease the flow of online transactions. The group will be a subset of the Administration's Interagency Task Force on Internet Commerce, and will be headed by Commerce Secretary William Daley.

Campaigns
Let Money Do The Talking In Silicon Valley
     GOP senators led by Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott, R-MS, took their high-tech message — and their collection plate — to Silicon Valley, meeting with CEOs in an attempt to cement support from some of the area's major contributors for the Republican cause in next year's elections. With tech leaders at a fundraiser Wednesday night, and during company visits to firms including Cisco, Microsoft and 3Com Wednesday and Thursday, the lawmakers stressed their commitment to tort reform, tax cuts, intellectual property protection and education.

Trade
Tear Gas Stifles E-tariff Talks
     At the World Trade Organizaiton's ministerial meeting in Seattle, Rep. Jay Inslee, D-WA, said the WTO should take a "do no harm" approach to e-commerce, adding that the U.S. Congress had done a good job in that area. He reiterated the U.S. position to extend the current, duty free cyberspace. Earlier in the day, Commerce Secretary William Daley said he's confident the moratorium will get extended for at least 18 months. Also at the meeting, U.S. Trade Representative Charlene Barshefsky said she's "completely confident" that trade negotiators will extend the current duty-free cyberspace, although it is not clear just how long that extension will be. Inslee also sent a letter to Barshefsky during the meeting, urging her to make sure the United States does not agree to weaken intellectual property protections during World Trade Organization discussions.

Fraud
Things Are Fine Just As They Are
     Government and securities industry officials said at a meeting hosted by the Consumer Federation of America that despite some problems, they believe current regulations are adequate enough to deal with potential fraud and misleading advertising from online trading firms. SEC General Counsel Joseph Lombard said while there have been some "technical" problems such as firms exceeding margin rules, which deal with how much of a loan a brokerage can provide its customers, the agency has yet to see "wide spread" fraud by online trading firms. He said current rules are adequate to deal with such cases where online investors may be given misleading information about potential profits.

Privacy
The Whole Truth And Nothing But
     Internet entrepreneur Esther Dyson and some privacy advocates are urging the Securities and Exchange Commission to require publicly traded companies to disclose the potential risks to investors of their data privacy polices. In addition to providing information about how companies are handling personal data, Dyson said she would like the SEC to also require companies to detail their computer security policies. She said by forcing companies to outline the potential risks of unfair privacy practices and inadequate network security, investors and insurance companies will force firms to be more responsible.

Crime
ATF Gives Tracking System A Shot
     Putting database software on the beat, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms unveiled a national online system that will track crime weapons in an effort to crack down on illegal gun trafficking. Treasury Secretary Lawrence Summers said ATF's Online LEAD program puts technology to work for law enforcement by quickly compiling gun data so agents can identify trends more quickly. The online database is only available via a closed ATF intranet that federal agents can access through its 331 field offices.

Telecom
MA Sens. Fail To Get GTE Provision Into Approps
     In last-minute negotiations on the omnibus spending bill last month, Massachusetts' Democratic senators failed to attach a provision that would have prevented federal regulators from requiring GTE to sell part of its Internet business in their state. The provision, championed by Sens. John Kerry and Edward Kennedy, would have allowed GTE to place the Internet business in a blind trust as a condition of FCC approval for its $75 billion merger with Bell Atlantic.

Telecom
Trying To Advance To The Next Level
     Pointing to a growing digital divide of technology haves and have nots, the Bell-backed iAdvance Coalition pushed again for regulatory relief for the Bells as a way to speed the growth of rural high-speed Internet services in a new report. The study compiles data and forecasts made on broadband deployment, and concludes that the Bells are the best suited companies to offer advanced Internet services to rural areas that new competitors have been slow to expand into.

Domains
Web Site Launched In The NIC Of Time
     A new version of the InterNIC Web site providing information on domain name registration services was launched under a deal worked out between the Commerce Department and Network Solutions Inc., which had been operating the site for several years. The service provides contact information on all companies that have been accredited by the Internet Corporations for Assigned Names and Numbers to register top-level domain names, those ending in .com, .org and .net and allows users to search a database to determine whether a name already has been registered.

Campaigns
Click And Cast Your Vote
     Further establishing the increasing role of the Internet in the political process, two Internet companies are holding the first ever national online "presidential primary" Friday. The mock election, which is the product of collaborators Politics.com and Votation.com, will be held over a six-day period starting Dec. 3 and ending Dec. 8. With access to a computer and an e-mail account, eligible U.S. citizens can participate in the election by registering at the Politics.com Web site.

E-commerce
Rohde's Three Tiered Plan Of Attack Two weeks into the job, Greg Rohde, the newly appointed National Telecommunications and Information Administration chief, said he plans to focus on bridging the digital divide, helping the government and private industry develop innovative technologies and protecting consumers on the Internet.

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