The Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) has issued a notice of filing of complaint and assignment with regard to APM Terminals North America, Inc.'s (APMT's) contention that the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey failed to adhere to its lease agreement with APMT by failing to turn over certain premises by the specified delivery date. According to FMC, this complaint has been assigned to the Office of Administrative Law Judges and an initial decision shall be issued by January 8, 2008. The final decision of the FMC shall be issued by May 7, 2008. (FMC D/N 07-01, FR Pub 01/17/07, available at http://a257.g.akamaitech.net/7/257/2422/01jan20071800/edocket.access.gpo.gov/2007/pdf/E7-496.pdf)
Sony BMG will allow consumers to exchange CDs containing concealed content-protection software purchased before Dec. 31, 2006, for non-content-protected versions and reimburse up to $150 to repair damages resulting directly from attempts to remove the software, according to a settlement with the FTC announced Tues. The FTC voted 5-0 to accept the proposed consent agreement. It will be subject to public comment through March 1, after which the FTC will decide whether to make it final.
Sony BMG will allow consumers to exchange CDs containing concealed content-protection software purchased before Dec. 31, 2006, for non-content-protected versions and reimburse up to $150 to repair damages resulting directly from attempts to remove the software, according to a settlement with the FTC announced Tues. The FTC voted 5-0 to accept the proposed consent agreement. It will be subject to public comment through March 1, after which the FTC will decide whether to make it final.
The State Department's Directorate of Defense Trade Controls (DDTC) has announced that effective February 1, 2007 it will no longer accept "carbon paper" or "downloadable" applications for the following forms, and that such forms will only be accepted via D-Trade:
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has posted to its Web site a notice announcing a "weekly" special import quota of 21,253,330 kg for upland cotton purchased not later than May 1, 2007 and entered under HTS 9903.52.31. The quota period is February 1, 2007 through July 30, 2007; the opening date is February 1, 2007.
The U.S. Association of Textiles and Apparel (USA-ITA) has reported that the Chinese government and two Chinese producers of coated free sheet paper filed suit in the Court of International Trade (CIT) on January 9, 2007 challenging the Department of Commerce (DOC) initiation of a countervailing (CV) duty investigation against these Chinese imports. USA-ITA states that the complaint charges that DOC does not have legal authority to initiate a CV case against China because it is currently considered a non-market economy. (See ITT's Online Archives or 12/19/06 news, 06121925, for BP summary of the ITA's request for comments on applying CV duties to imports from China.) (USA-ITA TDM, dated 01/10/07, www.usaita.com.)
The State Department's Directorate of Defense Trade Controls (DDTC) has posted a notice to its Web site announcing that it is still awaiting receipt of the new ("repaired" v4.8) D-Trade software. DDTC states that although its goal was to begin production testing by January 20, 2007, that has been postponed until further notice.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has posted to its Web site a question and answer document (Q&A) regarding the grace period it is providing for the February 3 - 20, 2007 period for the World Customs Organization (WCO) 2007 Harmonized Tariff Schedule (HTS) changes that become effective on February 3, 2007.
According to the State Department's Directorate of Defense Trade Controls (DDTC), the upgrade of D-Trade on January 8, 2007 to v4.8 experienced problems which resulted in the DDTC reverting to the "old" (pre-v4.8) version of D-Trade on January 10, 2007.
Time Warner Cable (TWC) shares began trading Fri. under the symbol TWCAV on the Over-the-Counter Bulletin Board on a when-issued basis. Shares fell about 4% to $41.25 by late- afternoon. U.S. Bankruptcy Court Judge Robert Gerber approved Adelphia’s reorganization plan this week, clearing the way for Time Warner Cable’s stock to trade (CD Jan 4 p1). Analysts were split over how much the shares ought to be worth.