lobbying

AeA: More high-tech lobbying needed at state level

SAN FRANCISCO--The AeA (American Electronics Association) plans to expand its focus on government technology policy to include many more individual states, the trade group said Thursday.

After spending much of its history lobbying for governmental policy favorable to the industry at the federal level and in a few key states with high-tech centers--California, Texas, Florida, New York, Massachusetts--the group says the current legislative environment requires more.

At a meeting of member companies here, new CEO Christopher Hansen said that it's necessary the AeA expand beyond those traditional tech meccas. "Legislation affects this industry in a lot of places … Read more

Sci-fi movie robot all stars, on display at Alien

MORGAN HILL, Calif.--What do you do if your company has raised $291 million in venture funds and you're still waiting for your market to take off?

You buy replica robots that starred in movies from the 1950s.

At least that's what Alien Technology, based here, did. The company's previous CEO bought these two gems, which sit in the headquarters lobby. (The company is currently headed up by Fujitsu and Apple alum George Everhart.)

The roundish one, that looks like Bib the Michelin Man wearing a hat that pipes beer from two cans into your mouth, is … Read more

Google's biggest competitor

Forget Microsoft and Yahoo!. Google's biggest competitor, writes Joshua Green in the December edition of the The Atlantic [Subscription req'd], is Washington, D.C. The United States federal government, that is.

Why? Because, as Green writes, "You can control vast markets and terrify your competitors, but still be a Washington rookie." Washington likes to be in charge. As Microsoft found out (by going light on lobbying during its 1990s dominance), ignoring "the feds" is a bad idea. Green writes:

Just as Google has begun thinking creatively about Washington, the government has been thinking about Google.… Read more

Why don't US airlines check passenger IDs? Money

Why were US airlines able to stop checking IDs at the gate less than a year after 9/11, while European and Asian airlines still to this day check identity documents. Has this resulted in a lower level of flight security in the US? Do US airlines know something the Europeans don't, or do they just have more lobbying power with their government. This blog post analyzes the economic reasons behind the US airlines decision to stop checking IDs, and exposes the fact that US Passenger Name Record (PNR) data is for the most part, unreliable and worthless.

This … Read more

Ten things that finally killed Net neutrality

If you haven't heard much about Net neutrality this year, you're not alone. It went from being the political equivalent of a first-run Broadway show, with accompanying street protests and high profile votes in Congress, to a third-rate performance with no budget and slumping attendance.

So what killed Net neutrality? Here's a list, in no particular order:

1. The Bush administration. Democrats may control Congress, but the White House and federal agencies matter. And the administration made it perfectly clear on Thursday that no new Net neutrality regulations are necessary. That gives the Republicans in Congress their … Read more

Microsoft's anti-Google lobbyists, revealed

If it wasn't official before, we have it in writing now: Microsoft is directing at least a small fraction of its massive (by tech industry standards) lobbying shop toward Google's proposed purchase of DoubleClick.

According to a recent public disclosure filing with the U.S. Senate, Redmond has retained veteran lobbyists Thomas Boggs and Kathleen Ireland (no, not that Kathy Ireland), along with Antitrust Modernization Commission vice chairman and former Clinton White House attorney Jonathan Yarowsky. All of them work for the prominent law firm Patton Boggs.

Their charge, according to the paperwork? "Competitive issues surrounding Google-DoubleClick … Read more

Google's Schmidt pays Capitol Hill visit

Earlier this week, we explored the political assault on Google bubbling up from an unlikely mix of companies and consumer groups--and noted none of its top executives had paid any recent personal visits to Capitol Hill in support of their company's practices.

Well, we may have spoken too soon.

On Thursday, Google CEO Eric Schmidt descended on Capitol Hill for meetings with a number of members from both chambers, the firm's Public Policy Blog reports. The list of seemingly wide-open topics included "health care, patent reform, immigration, privacy and consumer issues."

So what about the … Read more

Google steps up lobbying over DoubleClick deal

As it awaits the green light from federal antitrust regulators, Google disclosed this week in a government filing that it is putting new lobbying muscle, including a former high-ranking Justice Department antitrust lawyer, behind its proposed $3.1 billion acquisition of online ad-tech company DoubleClick.

According to documents dated Thursday, the company has brought on four attorneys from the Washington D.C. branch of the law firm Brownstein Hyatt & Farber, including Makan Delrahim, who was appointed deputy assistant attorney general of the U.S. Department of Justice's antitrust division in July 2003 and shifted to private practice about … Read more