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OVERNIGHT TECH: Online piracy battle keeps escalating
THE LEDE: The battle over online piracy legislation continued to build on Wednesday as supporters of the Stop Online Piracy Act dug in their heels this week and indicated they plan to stick by their legislation despite growing opposition from the technology industry. A series of talking points released by the House Judiciary Committee earlier this week took aim at an alternative piracy bill offered by opponents of SOPA, while Motion Picture Association of America Chairman and former Sen. Chris Dodd (D-Conn.) reiterated the gravity of the online piracy issue after his first official board meeting on Wednesday.
“Content theft is not a victimless crime,” Dodd said. “At this time of great economic uncertainty, it makes no sense to allow this state of affairs to continue. The movie and the TV industries aren’t just about big studios and stars. More than 2.2 million hard-working, middle-class people in all 50 states depend on the entertainment industry for their jobs. They work behind the scenes in production, and in small businesses like equipment rental, transportation, construction and food service. Millions more people work in theaters, retail, restaurants and other businesses that depend on entertainment. For all of these workers and their families, digital theft means declining incomes, lost jobs and reduced health and retirement benefits.”
While the MPAA is the most high-profile backer of SOPA, the bill has strong support from a number of groups, including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, several labor unions and various movie and TV studios. The alternative bill offered by House Oversight Chairman Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) and Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) would task the International Trade Commission with handling copyright complaints aimed at infringing foreign websites; Issa pushed back at criticism of his bill on Wednesday by repeating his belief that SOPA has no chance of passing the House.
Spectrum bill could be included in payroll tax proposal: Republicans are considering including Rep. Greg Walden's (R-Ore.) spectrum bill in a proposal to extend the payroll tax holiday, Speaker John Boehner's (R-Ohio) office confirmed on Wednesday. The spectrum legislation, which could raise as much as $15 billion through government auctions of airwaves, could help offset the cost of extending a payroll tax holiday and federal unemployment benefits. Republicans have insisted that the payroll tax deal not increase the deficit.Reps. Upton, Walden question FCC release of AT&T staff report: Two top GOP lawmakers on the House Energy and Commerce Committee sent a letter to Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Julius Genachowki on Wednesday, questioning his decision to publicly release his agency's analysis of the proposed merger between AT&T and T-Mobile. In the letter, Chairman Fred Upton (R-Mich.) and Rep. Greg Walden (R-Ore.), chairman of the subpanel on Communications and Technology, ask whether Genachowski consulted with the other commissioners and whether the FCC has ever released another report under similar circumstances.
ON TAP THURSDAY:
Obama has nominated Maureen Ohlhausen to the FTC and Jon Leibowitz to serve a second term as the agency's chairman.
The Senate Commerce Committee will hold a hearing on the
Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers's (ICANN) plan to
expand top-level domains so almost any word can be used as the final
part of a Web address. Federal Trade Commission Chairman Jon Leibowitz slammed the proposal in an interview with Hillicon on Wednesday.
The House Homeland Security Committee Transportation
Security subcommittee will hold a noon hearing reviewing passenger-screening
technology at U.S. airports. The technology used to screen passengers
has drawn considerable scrutiny from privacy advocates who claim the
scanners used can be invasive and that the data captured is ripe for abuse by federal
officials.
Brendan Sasso contributed to this post.
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