Backers of the Register of Copyrights Selection and Accountability Act (HR-1695) are pushing for swift House passage. Some lobbyists expect the measure to at least clear the House Judiciary Committee before the House adjourns for its April 10-21 Easter/Passover recess. The legislation, introduced as expected (see 1703230068), would make the register a presidentially appointed, Senate-confirmed position with a 10-year term of office. The push by House Judiciary Chairman Bob Goodlatte, R-Va., ranking member John Conyers, D-Mich., and other lawmakers to quickly advance HR-1695 led even some opponents to tell us they believe it will easily pass.
Jimm Phillips
Jimm Phillips, Associate Editor, covers telecommunications policymaking in Congress for Communications Daily. He joined Warren Communications News in 2012 after stints at the Washington Post and the American Independent News Network. Phillips is a Maryland native who graduated from American University. You can follow him on Twitter: @JLPhillipsDC
House Judiciary Committee leaders' legislation to make the register of copyrights a presidentially appointed, Senate-confirmed position faces an uncertain prognosis for passage, copyright-centric lobbyists said in interviews. The deep divisions among members of the copyright community were again evident Thursday as officials reacted to a draft of the Register of Copyrights Selection and Accountability Act. Content-side interests praised the bill. Library and tech groups criticized it.
IoT and other emerging technologies are a double-edged sword for U.S. cybersecurity, industry experts told the Senate Commerce Committee Wednesday. Such technologies, if not properly secured, can be a significant cyber vulnerability for U.S. companies, particularly given the growing cyber capabilities of China and Russia, the experts said. Blockchain and other emerging technologies also could be a major boon in enhancing the U.S.' overall cybersecurity, they said. The Senate Commerce hearing, one of two Wednesday (see 1703210064), was part of committee Chairman John Thune's, R-S.D., ongoing series exploring aspects of emerging technologies, said a Senate Commerce aide.
The federal government should maintain existing foundations of its cybersecurity strategy even as President Donald Trump's administration looks to reinvent parts, experts are to tell the House Homeland Security Committee Wednesday. Both that committee and the Senate Commerce Committee are to hold cybersecurity-related hearings at 10 a.m., though the topics don't overlap. The House Homeland Security hearing focuses on DHS' civilian cyber defense mission and the cyberthreat landscape, and the Senate Commerce hearing deals with cybersecurity issues for IoT, blockchain, artificial intelligence and other emerging technologies (see 1703170051).
The Department of Homeland Security will continue to advance on some areas of cybersecurity policy begun during President Barack Obama's administration, even as the department begins to implement President Donald Trump's nascent cyber strategy, current and former federal officials said Monday during a New America event. Administration officials are developing contours of cybersecurity policy priorities, including via Trump's anticipated cyber executive order (see 1701310066 and 1703060048). Congress' main cybersecurity role in the 115th Congress is likely to be exercising its oversight role over recently passed cybersecurity bills, said Congressional Cybersecurity Caucus Co-Chairman Jim Langevin, D-R.I. Meanwhile, National Governors Association Chairman Terry McAuliffe, D-Va., touted state governments' growing role in cybersecurity.
ICANN's Governmental Advisory Committee urged the organization's board Wednesday to “take into account the serious concerns expressed by some GAC members” about ICANN's policy to allow domain registries to sell two-letter domain names that match county code top-level domains (ccTLDs). The board in November agreed to release all two-letter names while requiring registrants not to claim they are affiliated with the country whose ccTLD corresponds with a registered domain name. The board also required registries to investigate governments' complaints about registered two-letter names. The ICANN board should “engage with concerned governments” before the organization's planned June 26-29 meeting in Johannesburg “to resolve these concerns” and “immediately explore measures to find a satisfactory solution of the matter to meet the concerns of these countries before being further aggravated,” GAC said in its communique. The board also should “provide clarification of the decision-making process and of the rationale” for its November release of the two-letter domain names, GAC said. Brazil, China, the EU and Iran are among countries that raised concerns about ICANN's decision. Governments don't have a legal right to second-level domains that correspond to their ccTLD strings, said ICANN board member Chris Disspain during a Wednesday meeting with GAC during the organization's conference in Copenhagen. Some GAC members disagreed. Iranian GAC member Kavouss Arasteh said that “the multistakeholder process was not easily accepted by many countries. Still, people have difficulty with that.” Arasteh threatened to seek ITU involvement in the issue at its 2018 Plenipotentiary Conference “if the matter is not resolved.” It's “not always commercial; government also has some powers, and we exercise our powers,” Arasteh said.
The Congressional Blockchain Caucus is aiming to raise awareness on Capitol Hill about the blockchain distributed database technology in a way that highlights the full spectrum of the technology's potential applications, said co-chairmen Jared Polis, D-Colo., and David Schweikert, R-Ariz. Polis and then-House Monetary Policy Subcommittee Vice Chairman Mick Mulvaney, R-S.C., formed the CBC in September (see 1609260038). Schweikert replaced Mulvaney as caucus co-chairman in February when Mulvaney became Office of Management and Budget director (see 1702100058).
The FTC plans to continue to “vigorously enforce” the EU-U.S. Privacy Shield as part of the agency's role as the “chief privacy enforcer” in the U.S., said acting Chairman Maureen Ohlhausen during a Financial Times event Wednesday. FTC and International Trade Administration officials said before President Donald Trump's inauguration they were hopeful the commission's commitment to the Privacy Shield would continue after then-President Barack Obama left office (see 1611090016, 1611100039 and 1611210032). “We have committed to investigate Privacy Shield companies on our own initiative,” Ohlhausen said. “We will prioritize referrals from European data protection authorities. And we will monitor our orders to ensure compliance with the framework. When companies don’t comply with orders, we will bring enforcement actions.” The FTC is also committed to working with EU institutions on improving the Shield's effectiveness, including participating in the European Commission's annual review of the framework and meeting with the Article 29 Working Party, Ohlhausen said. The chair said she has been “pleased to see that [the Trump administration] has affirmed its commitment” to the Privacy Shield given the framework's importance to U.S.-based business interests. EU agencies and U.S. businesses sought reassurances from the FTC after Trump's election and inauguration, including whether Trump's executive orders on immigration from some majority-Muslim countries (see 1701290001, 1702060016 and 1702100042) would affect Privacy Shield enforcement. “We don't believe it will,” Ohlhausen said. Enforcement of the Privacy Shield and other international privacy frameworks “is an integral part” of the FTC's cybersecurity and privacy program, Ohlhausen said. She cited the agency's privacy memorandums of understanding with Ireland, the Netherlands and U.K. and the agency's participation in the Global Privacy Enforcement Network. An “ongoing dialogue” with EU partners is necessary because of the ongoing misconception “that this is the Wild West” for privacy, Ohlhausen said. The FTC has “an extremely robust record” on privacy, she said.
RIAA and other music industry stakeholders will continue to pursue proposing the creation of a terrestrial broadcasting performance royalty right either via the Fair Play Fair Pay Act or another bill despite broadcasters' strong opposition, said RIAA General Counsel Steve Marks Tuesday. The terrestrial performance right was one of several top legislative agenda items that stakeholders highlighted during a SXSW-related CTA policy summit in Austin. Tech sector interests noted a range of policy challenges and opportunities they will face under President Donald Trump's administration, including the immigration dispute.
The board faced pressure for ICANN to name a definitive date for the next round of the new generic top-level domains (gTLDs) program. Chairman Steve Crocker also resisted renewed suggestions that the organization move its place of incorporation from Los Angeles, a point of contention left over from the now-completed Internet Assigned Numbers Authority transition, during Monday's forum at the ICANN 58 conference. The meeting in Copenhagen is to run through Thursday (see 1703100062).