Antitrust
European Court's Microsoft Ruling Riles U.S. Officials
     The European Union Court of First Instance this week ruled that Microsoft abused its dominant position in the computer market by refusing to disclose information about its products to competing companies. The decision prompted a backlash from some U.S. officials. The office of Florida Democrat Robert Wexler, who chairs the House Foreign Affairs Europe Subcommittee, said he plans to hold a hearing on the "troubling decision" and "the European Union's use of antitrust laws as a new form of protectionism." The ruling "sets a dangerous precedent and will have a dramatic impact on U.S.-EU economic relations," Wexler said in a release. According to the European Commission, U.S. antitrust official Thomas Barnett said the decision may harm consumers "by chilling innovation and discouraging competition." Democratic Rep. Jay Inslee, whose Washington district is home to Microsoft, said "we cannot have other governments and regions of the world using antitrust laws to disadvantage American technologies."

Taxes
Backers Rally For Permanent Ban On Internet Taxes
     Senate supporters of a permanent ban on taxing Internet access are mobilizing behind legislation before a temporary moratorium expires Nov. 1. Senate Republican High-Tech Task Force Chairman Gordon Smith, R-Ore., and Sen. Wayne Allard, R-Colo., held a teleconference to promote a measure that would make the exemption permanent. Republican presidential contender John McCain of Arizona and two other senators held a briefing the same day. "Americans will be forced to pay a lot more" if the Democratic leadership fails to act, McCain warned. "We all know what taxes do to innovation." In a statement, Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Daniel Inouye, D-Hawaii, said his panel will vote on "reasonable legislation" to extend the moratorium. Senate bill sponsor Ron Wyden, D-Ore., said in a statement that he has received a commitment from Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., to extend the ban.

Security
Surveillance Law Prompts Clashes In Two Panels
     National Intelligence Director Michael McConnell told the House Judiciary Committee that recent changes to a decades-old surveillance law were badly needed -- and need to be made permanent -- in light of technological evolution. The Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act's definition of electronic surveillance did not foresee cellular telephones, e-mail and the Internet, McConnell said. When the 1978 law was enacted, he added, "almost all local calls were on a wire and almost all international communications were in the air," and FISA distinguished between the two. Today "the situation is completely reversed." The House Intelligence Committee also held a hearing on the law, with Democrats and Republicans on both panels clashing over how to change it. Committee Chairman John Conyers, D-Mich., complained that the recent FISA modifications were made without proper vetting. But Republicans on both panels said some Democrats and privacy advocates are overstating the effects of the changes.

Television
Digital Switch May Catch Older Viewers Unaware
     Government officials and watchdogs warned that the nation's switch from analog to digital television could leave many elderly citizens with unworkable television sets. "Seniors are particularly vulnerable to slipping through the cracks," Wisconsin Democrat Herb Kohl, chairman of the Senate Special Aging Committee, said during a hearing on the switchover's impact. The hearing highlighted a loophole in a government program that will issue coupons to Americans needing converter boxes to keep their analog sets functioning after the move to digital signals on Feb. 17, 2009. Residents of nursing homes and assisted-living centers are ineligible for the coupons because of how "household" is defined. AARP board member Nelda Barnett warned that seniors also face hurdles with installing the boxes and will be vulnerable to fraud and "upselling" by retailers. A National Association of Broadcasters official said broadcasters will announce a fresh round of educational efforts next week.

Executive Branch
Quiet End To Technology Administration Lamented
     A provision in the competitiveness legislation that President Bush signed in August deletes the Commerce Department agency charged with bringing U.S. innovation from laboratories to the marketplace. The law does not specifically outline the closing of the Technology Administration as of Sept. 30, so it passed under the radar of many people who closely follow competitiveness issues. Clues can be found in language transferring some issues from the undersecretary leading TA back to the Commerce secretary, and in a section creating the President's Council on Competitiveness, which was mentioned in the president's budget as a replacement to TA. Since the 1980s, TA has served as one-stop shopping for tech companies dealing with federal agencies on competitiveness issues. "I'm very sorry to see the Technology Administration being phased out," said Deborah Wince-Smith, who once headed the agency. "I think it's a mistake."

Lobbying
ITI Will Acquire EIA's Environmental Council
     The Information Technology Industry Council has made plans to acquire the Electronic Industries Alliance's Environmental Issues Council. ITI said the merger will help expand its portfolio on energy and environmental issues. Specifically, the goal is to combine the council's strong record on e-recycling issues with ITI's lobbying power. EIA is in the process of closing and selling its assets, including the council, in the wake of a board vote in July. The council maintains a Web site for businesses and consumers to learn about e-recycling by state and has been an advocate for uniform environmental rules across state and national borders. The body also promotes industry-led initiatives on energy rating systems for high-tech and electronics products. "The board looked at this as the missing piece of the puzzle," ITI chief Rhett Dawson said of the acquisition plan.

E-Commerce
Internet Progress Will Make Cars 'Smart,' Official Says
     When the world transitions to the next generation of the Internet, cars will become "smart as heck," the head technology official at the Transportation Department said Thursday. Vehicles will be alerting ambulances when cars are in accidents -- and alerting house thermostats to turn up the heat when passengers are two miles from home, Transportation Chief Technology Officer Tim Schmidt said. "Many, many planes will be talking to each other," and there will be fewer car crashes and less traffic, he added. Federal agencies must have a backbone network capable of running on Internet protocol version 6, by June 30, 2008. What IPv6 will mean is "more communication," said Peter Tseronis, co-chairman of the Federal CIO Council's IPv6 working group. More devices will be connected wirelessly. Every moving vehicle and many of their internal parts will have embedded sensors that can talk to each other and to remote systems.