[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 73 (Wednesday, April 16, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Pages 21439-21440]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-08627]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
Patent and Trademark Office
National Telecommunications and Information Administration
Notice of Public Meetings on Copyright Policy Topics (as Called
for in the Department of Commerce Green Paper, Copyright Policy,
Creativity, and Innovation in the Digital Economy)
AGENCY: United States Patent and Trademark Office, U.S. Department of
Commerce; National Telecommunications and Information Administration,
U.S. Department of Commerce.
ACTION: Notice of public roundtables.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: In the Department of Commerce's Internet Policy Task Force
(Task Force) Green Paper on Copyright Policy, Creativity, and
Innovation in the Digital Economy (Green Paper), released on July 31,
2013, and in its later Request for Comments issued on Oct. 3, 2013, the
Task Force stated its intention to convene roundtables on certain
copyright topics, namely: the legal framework for the creation of
remixes, the relevance and scope of the first sale doctrine in the
digital environment, and the appropriate calibration of statutory
damages in the contexts of individual file sharers and of secondary
liability for large-scale infringement. In accordance with these
previous announcements, the Task Force plans to hold four roundtables
in cities across the United States in May, June, and July 2014. See the
Instructions and Information on the Public Roundtables below regarding
how to participate in or observe the roundtable discussions.
DATES: The four roundtables are scheduled to be held in: (1) Nashville,
TN on May 21, 2014, (2) Cambridge, MA on June 25, 2014, (3) Los
Angeles, CA on July 29, 2014, and (4) Berkeley, CA on July 30, 2014.
All roundtables will begin at 8:30 a.m. and end at 5:00 p.m. Requests
to participate and observe are due three weeks in advance of each of
the respective roundtables on the following dates, by 5:00 p.m. E.S.T.:
(1) April 30, 2014 for the Nashville roundtable, (2) June 4, 2014 for
the Cambridge roundtable, (3) July 8, 2014 for the Los Angeles
roundtable, and (4) July 9, 2014 for the Berkeley roundtable. The
agendas and webcast information will be available a week before each of
the roundtables on the Task Force Web site, http://www.ntia.doc.gov/Internetpolicytaskforce and the USPTO's Web site, http://www.uspto.gov/ip/global/copyrights/index.jsp.
ADDRESSES: The Task Force will hold the initial roundtable on May 21st
at Flynn Auditorium, Vanderbilt University Law School, 131 21st. Ave.
S. in Nashville, TN 37203, the second roundtable on June 25th at
Wasserstein Hall, Harvard University Law School, 1585 Massachusetts Ave
in Cambridge, MA 02138, the third roundtable on July 29th in Los
Angeles, CA at a location to be announced shortly on the Web sites
listed above, and the fourth roundtable on July 30th at the Bancroft
Hotel, 2680 Bancroft Way in Berkeley, CA 94704.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For further information regarding the
roundtables, please contact Ann Chaitovitz, Ben Golant, or Hollis
Robinson, Office of Policy and International Affairs, United States
Patent and Trademark Office, Madison Building, 600 Dulany Street,
Alexandria, VA 22314; telephone (571) 272-9300. Email questions should
be sent to copyrightpolicyroundtable@uspto.gov. Sign up for the USPTO's
Copyright Alert subscription at enews.uspto.gov to receive updates
about the roundtables.
Please direct all media inquiries to the Office of the Chief
Communications Officer, USPTO, at (571) 272-8400.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Roundtable Discussions
In the Green Paper on Copyright Policy, Creativity, and Innovation
in the Digital Economy (Green Paper), released on July 31, 2013, and in
its subsequent request for public comments, 78 FR 61337 (October 3,
2013), the Task Force stated its intention to hold roundtable
discussions on (1) the legal framework for the creation of remixes; (2)
the relevance and scope of the first sale doctrine in the digital
environment, and (3) the appropriate calibration of statutory damages
in the contexts of (i) individual file sharers and (ii) secondary
liability for large-scale infringement. See Request for Public Comments
and Notice of Public Meeting, 78 FR 61337-38 (Oct. 3, 2013), available
at http://www.ntia.doc.gov/files/ntia/publications/ntia_pto_rfc_10032013.pdf.
On December 12, 2013, the Task Force held a day-long public meeting
to discuss the issues identified for further work in the Green Paper,
which included panel discussions on remixes, the first sale doctrine,
and statutory damages, as well as other topics. The Task Force also
sought written comments both prior to and after the December 12, 2013
meeting on these
[[Page 21440]]
subjects. An archive of the webcast of the public meeting is available
at http://new.livestream.com/uspto/copyright, and a transcript is
available at http://www.uspto.gov/ip/global/copyrights/121213-USPTO-Green_Paper_Hearing-Transcript.pdf. Copies of the comments received
are available at http://www.uspto.gov/ip/global/copyrights/green_paper_public_comments.jsp.
The purpose of the planned roundtables is to seek additional input
from the public in order for the Task Force to have a complete and
thorough record upon which to make recommendations.
Each of the scheduled roundtables will be divided into separate,
consecutive, sessions addressing the following topics raised in the
Green Paper: (1) The legal framework for the creation of remixes; (2)
the relevance and scope of the first sale doctrine in the digital
environment; and (3) the appropriate calibration of statutory damages
in the contexts of (i) individual file sharers and (ii) secondary
liability for large-scale infringement. Time will be reserved at the
end of each session within each roundtable for observers and viewers to
comment upon the topic discussed during the session. While the subject
matter will be consistent across each of the four roundtables, the
allotted time for each session may vary to accommodate the specific
interests of the participants at each location. In order to maximize
participation, no formal opening statements or presentations are
expected.
The roundtables will focus on (1) the questions set out in the
October 3rd Federal Register Notice, 78 FR at 61338-39, (2) the issues
raised in the stakeholder comments filed both before and after the Dec.
12 meeting, and (3) points made at the December 12th public meeting.
Individuals participating in the roundtables may be posed questions on
any of these issues.
Instructions and Information on the Public Roundtables
The roundtables will take place on May 21st (Flynn Auditorium,
Vanderbilt University Law School, 131 21st. Ave. S. in Nashville, TN),
June 25th (Wasserstein Hall, Harvard University Law School, 1585
Massachusetts Ave. in Cambridge, MA), July 29th (location in Los
Angeles, CA to be announced) and July 30th (the Bancroft Hotel, 2680
Bancroft Way in Berkeley, CA).
Interested parties may request to participate in, or to observe,
the roundtable discussions by submitting a request form, available at
https://www.signup4.net/public/ap.aspx?EID=THEG32E&OID;=130.\1\
Participation will entail responding to questions from Task Force
members and engaging with other participants, whereas observation will
entail listening to, but not participating in, the discussions,
although there will be time for observers to comment at the end of the
discussion. Parties who wish to attend roundtables in multiple
locations should submit a separate request form for each location. When
completing request forms, interested parties should identify the
particular discussion or discussions they wish to participate in or
observe. We will respond to the requests to participate or observe two
weeks before the day the roundtable will be held. Please note that the
Task Force may not be able to grant all requests but will seek to
maximize participation to the extent possible.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ Individuals who are unable to send requests via the Web site
should contact Hollis Robinson at (571) 272-9300 to make alternative
arrangements for submission of their requests to participate.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Participants and observers should arrive at least one-half hour
prior to the start of the roundtable and must present valid government-
issued photo identification upon arrival. The Task Force will provide
additional information on directions and parking in the agendas for
each of the roundtables.
The roundtables will be webcast. A transcription service will also
be present. The transcriptions will be made available on both the Task
Force and USPTO Web sites after each roundtable.
The roundtables will be physically accessible to people with
disabilities. Individuals requiring accommodation, such as sign
language interpretation, real-time captioning of the webcast or other
ancillary aids, should communicate their needs to Hollis Robinson,
Office of Policy and International Affairs, United States Patent and
Trademark Office, Madison Building, 600 Dulany Street, Alexandria, VA
22314; telephone (571) 272-9300; email hollis.robinson@uspto.gov, at
least seven (7) business days prior to the roundtable.
Dated: April 11, 2014.
Michelle K. Lee,
Deputy Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Deputy
Director of the United States Patent and Trademark Office.
Lawrence E. Strickling,
Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Communications and Information.
[FR Doc. 2014-08627 Filed 4-15-14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-16-P