Hi All!
http://www.bayarea.com/mld/bayarea/4861776.htm
Interesting story ...
Intel, HP and M$ fear that too strict restrictions will harm their $$$
"They hope to convince Congress that strict copy-protection legislation setting
technological mandates would stifle innovation, harm consumers and threaten an
already-suffering tech industry."
here's the whole story:
Tech industry to launch new Washington lobbying effort
By Heather Fleming Phillips
Mercury News Washington Bureau
WASHINGTON - The high-tech industry plans to launch a sophisticated new
lobbying campaign later this month to strike back against Hollywood in a battle
to shape rules of the road for new digital technologies.
The Business Software Alliance and Computer Systems Policy Project -- two
prominent high-tech trade groups representing Intel, Hewlett-Packard, Microsoft
and other Silicon Valley heavyweights -- are forming a new coalition and
working to enlist support from consumer and business groups.
They hope to convince Congress that strict copy-protection legislation setting
technological mandates would stifle innovation, harm consumers and threaten an
already-suffering tech industry.
``These things have a very big impact on our industry and on Intel,'' said
Intel lobbyist Doug Comer. ``It's not just about, `Are we driving up the price
of the chip?' It's about what kind of future is being created for digital
consumers.''
The entertainment industry had the upper hand in the battle last year, with a
carefully orchestrated lobbying campaign and bills introduced by powerful
lawmakers. Hollywood-backed legislation filed by Sen. Ernest Hollings, D-S.C.,
and Rep. Howard L. Berman, D-Los Angeles, would embed copy protection into PCs
and an array of consumer devices.
But the legislation had consequences that Walt Disney and other backers hadn't
bargained for. It served as a rallying cry for consumer groups and tech
companies to fight for consumers rights to make copies of CDs, DVDs and other
digital works for personal use, as they do with TV shows and audio tapes.
The political winds have shifted in Washington over the past year, and a
Hollings-style bill isn't expected to get far in the new Congress.
``Nothing is going to go through without a great deal of public scrutiny,''
said Gigi Sohn, President of Public Knowledge, a public-interest advocacy group
that promotes consumers' digital rights.
CU, Ricsi
--
|~)o _ _o Richard Menedetter <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> {ICQ: 7659421} (PGP)
|~\|(__\| -=> Watch where you go... remember where you've been... <=-
