Travis Gianchetta, a partner at the Beekeeper Group moderated the panel which included short presentations on technology and economic recovery by Dr. Joseph Fuhr, Shahin Kohan and Karen Kerrigan.  Fuhr is a fellow of the American Consumer Institute and a professor at Widener University.  Kohan is the CEO of Focal Technology and a Microsoft Gold Certified Partner.  Kerrigan is the president of the Small Business & Entrepreneurship Council.

During the Q&A session the panel addresses questions on intellectual property protection, the importance of innovation to economic growth especially from small business and technology firms and the potential for state lawmakers to improve the policy environment.

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Join Americans for Technology Leadership on Monday, July 12th from noon to 1:30 pm for a discussion of the role of information technology in economic recover.

WHAT:
Americans for Technology Leadership will host a luncheon panel discussion on the role that IT plays in our economic recovery. The event will feature data from recent independent studies and experts on small business and the IT industry. Jobs are the number one priority in this economy and the IT and communications industry is working hard to help create jobs. Panelists will discuss the role the IT industry plays in our economy.

WHO:

· Shahin Kohan, CEO, Focal Technology

· Karen Kerrigan, President, Small Business & Entrepreneurship Council

· Dr. Joseph Fuhr, Senior Fellow, American Consumer Institute

WHEN: Monday, July 12th

TIME: Noon – 1:30pm

WHERE: Hotel Monaco, Paris Ballroom, 700 F St., NW, Washington, DC 20004

RSVP: rvsp at techleadership dot org

Focusing on a specific IP enforcement strategy to help coordinate the protection of our Intellectual Property sends an important message to countries that have been lax in their enforcement of IP protections. It is critical that other countries understand our resolve on IP protection and that they take the steps necessary to enforce the laws already in place and protect the cycle of innovation, which brings great benefits to consumers. Additionally, these steps send a message to those who seek to steal valuable intellectual property – anywhere in the world – that we take enforcement seriously and that there will be consequences to breaking the law.

Vice President Biden is exactly right when he said that “This is theft. Clear and simple. It’s smash and grab, no different than a guy walking down Fifth Avenue and smashing the window at Tiffany’s and reaching in and grabbing what’s in the window.”

Intellectual property protection is critical to encouraging innovation and economic growth and the Administration should be applauded for giving IP protection such a high priority.

ATL Executive Director, Randy Skoglund lead a discussion with Russ Fromkin, from Intel Federal; Michael Nelson, visiting professor of Internet Studies at Georgetown; and John Kropf, Deputy Chief Privacy Officer at the Department of Homeland Security on the wide-range of privacy issues surrounding cloud computing during Digital Capital Week in Washington, D.C.

Opening the discussion was Russ Fromkin who focused on how we got to cloud computing and the potential of the cloud. Fromkin underscored the intersection of privacy and cloud noting that “how you implement the cloud will change the way you have to worry about [privacy] policy.”

John Kropf enumerated the solid privacy principles including access, transparency, auditing and accountability which should be rooted in cloud computing. Kropf further outlined the government’s basic principles and agency best practices regarding cloud computing. As well, Kropf noted that privacy should not be an afterthought in the process and that he was pleased to see many of the chief privacy officers getting involved early on in the process.

In wrapping up discussion, Michael Nelson described cloud computing as important as the worldwide web was in the 1990s. Nelson also addressed the issue of jurisdiction, both internationally and as it relates to how the Electronic Communications Privacy Act is applied to the cloud.

As the trend of cloud computing moves forward and evolves over time, the question of how to ensure solid privacy principles are in place moves to the forefront.

What are some of your biggest concerns with privacy in the cloud? Share them in the comments below.

Randy Skoglund, Russ Fromkin, Michael Nelson and John Knopf held a wide-ranging discussion on the issues around privacy created by the trend towards cloud computing, where shared processing resources, software and information are provided to users on demand. Data protection, security and international laws were all on the table, including the proposal of an industry coalition to amend the Electronic Communications Privacy Act.

More information about that effort is available at digitaldueprocess.org. For more on the topic, including a question from this correspondent on the relationship of the Patriot Act to data privacy in the cloud, head to the last ten minutes of the video below.

The panel will feature Russ Fromkin, Intel; Mary Ellen Callahan, Chief Privacy Officer, Department of Homeland Security; and Michael Nelson, Visiting Professor of Internet Studies, Georgetown. The panelists will discuss how cloud computing will impact privacy and how our laws need to be updated to reflect new technology.

To find our more information please click here.

The IPI blog states it best saying:

Piracy and counterfeiting, especially the large scale criminal enterprises are responsible for the majority of violations, are a cancer on innovation, not only eating into the value that should naturally accrue to those who create and innovate, but also eroding all the economic activity and job creation that depends on the innovation economy.

News of privacy violations by Google are almost a daily occurrence

WASHINGTON, DC – Google is one the world’s largest and most successful companies but consumers may start to see the company differently following a string of revelations about the way Google collects personal data, sometimes even advertently, says Americans for Technology Leadership.

Google was in the news yet again for collecting private data without the knowledge of consumers. It collected data from unsecured wireless networks while the company mapped the streets of in several European countries for its street view application.

“Consumers should know what information is being collected about them and how that information will be used. As news reports surface with greater frequency about Google’s lack of transparency about how it acquires and manages private data, consumers have reason to be concerned,” said Randy Skoglund, executive director of Americans for Technology Leadership. “The urban legend of giant servers housing a file on computer users from around the globe is less legend and now one step closer to being a part of the urban landscape.

“Consumers need to be aware of how certain companies collect and manage private data and how that can affect their everyday lives,” continued Skoglund. “There are privacy settings on social networking sites, at home wireless networks, email services and other applications that consumers should learn how to manage in order to ensure their private data remains private.”

“Governments and technology companies need to work together, along with consumers, to protect personal data and keep it safe. With the advent of phishing, scams, identity theft and other computer-related data schemes, it’s so important, now more than ever, to make sure personal data is kept safe and companies are transparent in how they plan to use that data,” concluded Skoglund.

Americans for Technology Leadership is a broad-based coalition of technology professionals, consumers, and organizations dedicated to limiting government regulation of technology and to fostering competitive market solutions to public policy issues that affect the technology industry. For additional information on ATL, public policy positions, and a mission statement visit the web site at www.techleadership.org