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The 463: Inside Tech Policy

Technology policy trends, insight and news

Off Topic: All You Need to Know About Our Great Nation's State of MindYesterday

Beverly Hills Chihuahua is number one at the box office for the second week in a row. This chart from the Indexed blog explains why:

Not the best news for Oliver Stone's new flick.

Big Changes AfootOctober 11

While rumor has it that the economy may not be doing so hot, for the time being, at least, plenty of good people continue to get good jobs in our little happy niche.

The big inside baseball gossip item of the week was that Dean Garfield, the MPAA's chief strategic officer, grabbed the Information Technology Industry Council (ITI) top gig. Garfield is replacing the well-respected Rhett Dawson, who helped make ITI a strong DC lobbying force for the industry.

Andrew Noyes asks Garfield the obvious question:

Q: What do you say to those who question a content industry executive's appointment to a leadership post at a high-tech trade group?

A: I spend lot of time being creative and one thing I know is that in a time of change, the old rules don’t always work and the old alliances don’t always work. They remain valuable but you have to work hard at building new relationships. Sure, we may have had our policy differences on various issues but I've tried to instill a belief in being pragmatic and not making it personal. As time goes on, trust that my interest will be

Obama & McCain Debate Tech PolicyOctober 8

Not shockingly, outside of knowing nods at the benefits clean technologies, there has been precious few tech policy moments during the debates or in the rest of this mavericky election. So, as a public service to our dear target audience, below is a replay of last year's Obama and McCain (separate) appearances at Google. If you play the videos at the same time, you can pretend they are debating, my friend.

Obama's visit was in November -- when most thought he might give Hilary Clinton a run, but wouldn't prove victorious. And, McCain's visit was last May -- when even members of his own campaign team didn't think he had much of a chance.

SV Event: Tech and Quality of LifeOctober 6

Saying that innovation improves the quality of live is blindingly obvious to most. Still, it's sometimes necessary to drill much deeper into obviousnesses and examine the true value of advancements in technology on important facets of our lives.

And, that is exactly what the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation has done in a report called "Digital Quality of Life: Understanding the Personal and Social Benefits of the Information Technology Revolution". It will be launched and discussed on Wednesday in Silicon Valley and show how IT is at the heart of driving change and improvement in the following thirteen areas:

* Education and Training
* Health Care
* Personal Safety
* Accessibility for People with Disabilities
* Recreation and Entertainment
* Access to Information
* Environment
* Energy
* Transportation
* Public Safety
* Government
* Communities
* Developing Nations

This is a follow-up to the ITEF's "Digital Prosperity: Understanding the Economic Benefits of the Information Technology Revolution."

For information on the event, continue reading...

Rob Atkinson, President, ITIF will provide a briefing on the report and policy recommendations. The event will also feature remarks from Chris Boyer, AT&T; Chris Caine, IBM; and Robert Hoffman, Orac

How to Get the R&D Tax Credit Extended: Wait for Financial ArmagedeonOctober 3

The Mercury News writes:

With suspense building toward a dramatic vote expected Friday, Silicon Valley tech companies, business groups and non-profits joined a broad coalition to ratchet up pressure on a recalcitrant House of Representatives to reverse course on an emergency $700 billion bill to rescue a financial system said to be in danger of catastrophic failure.

The revised bailout legislation, passed by the Senate on Wednesday, contains sweeteners of keen interest to Silicon Valley: tax credits for renewable energy and for corporate research and development, as well as relief from the alternative minimum tax.

And, all sorts of tech groups are pushing to get this over the goal line...

TechNet, the tech lobbying group based in Palo Alto, is working "fast and furious'' for passage of the bill, spokesman (and 463er) Jim Hock said.

Here's why the tax credit matters (from eWeek):

In the nine months since the R&D tax credit expired, U.S. businesses have been unable to assume the credit in their 2008 financial reporting results or in forecasting project costs. ITAA has estimated that the lapse of the R&D credit has placed at risk more than $13 billion and over 10,000 jobs.