Roy Mark

The U.S. Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services said March 20 it would begin accepting H-1B visa applications April 1 as usual, but with terms and conditions imposed due to the recently approved Employ American Workers Act. The changes are not likely to affect the Silicon Valley but will severely restrict banks and other financial […]

As Washington bureaucracies attempt to deal with President Obama’s mandate to make the government more transparent to the public, the Center for Democracy and Technology and OpenTheGovernment.org released a report March 20 identifying the public’s 10 most wanted government documents. (PDF)The report is “based on an interactive, user-driven search to identify the most sought-after unclassified […]

With the Federal Communications Commission mandated by the recently approved stimulus legislation to draft a national broadband policy and broadband mapping efforts already underway, there is little doubt radio spectrum will play a critical role in future federal policy. But, just as the broadband mapping program is designed to determine who needs what, just how […]

Possibly hinting at a new iPhone release, rumors surfaced March 18 that AT&T plans to begin offering a no-contract 3G iPhone. Beginning March 26, according to a report by Boy Genius, AT&T will sell the no-commitment iPhones at $599 for an 8 GB iPhone and $699 for a 16 GB model.The report, based on AT&T […]

The Obama administration is opposing efforts to stop government attempts to gain access to users’ cell phone locations without a warrant. Carrying on a legal theme from the Bush administration, the Department of Justice contends that the Fourth Amendment prohibition against unreasonable searches and seizures does not apply to cell tower locations.In September 2008, a […]

Rep. Zoe Lofgren introduced legislation March 17 calling for a five-year moratorium on any new state or local discriminatory wireless taxes or fees. The Cell Tax Fairness Act (H.R. 1521) would not change any current state or local wireless taxes, nor would it ban any new federal taxes on cell phone services.“By curtailing further increases […]

High tech hopes U.S. Sen. Orrin Hatch is correct. The Utah Republican, co-sponsor of a patent reform bill before Congress, predicted March 18 the initiative long sought by Silicon Valley will finally see success in the 111th Congress. The reform effort has failed in the last two sessions of Congress, primarily from fierce opposition by […]

IBM may acquire Sun Microsystems for as much $6.5 billion in cash, a premium of more than 100 percent over Sun’s March 17 closing price of $4.97 a share. The proposed deal — neither confirmed or denied by IBM and Sun — would give IBM a powerful market position in open-source Linux and Java software […]

Rumors are nothing more than rumors, but that hasn’t stopped the rampant speculation that has burned up the Internet since media reports March 18 broke the news that IBM may be in unconfirmed discussions to buy Sun Microsystems for $6.5 billion in cash. Phrases like “software monolith,” “enterprise giant” and “high-tech juggernaut” have all been […]

A prominent privacy rights groups filed a petition with the Federal Trade Commission March 17 asking the agency to investigate the security and privacy safeguards of Google Apps. If necessary, the Electronic Privacy Information Center contends, the FTC should issue an injunction barring Google from offering its suite of cloud applications-Gmail, Google Apps and Picasa-until […]