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.
The FCC Fri. referred Sprint Nextel, Alltel, U.S. Cellular and Nextel Partners to the Enforcement Bureau for what could be stiff financial penalties for the carriers’ failure to comply with an E-911 Phase II mandate that 95% of subscribers have location-capable handsets by Dec. 31, 2005. The Commission warned Verizon Wireless, Leap, Qwest Wireless and Centennial to get their systems into full compliance, but didn’t refer them to the Enforcement Bureau, at least for now. All of the orders were highly “fact specific” taking each individual company’s progress and problems into account.
The International Trade Administration (ITA) and the International Trade Commission (ITC) have each issued a notice initiating an automatic five-year Sunset Review on the antidumping (AD) and countervailing (CV) duty orders for low enriched uranium from France.
The RIAA is flaunting its expert witness’s credentials as it fights a request to turn over the expert’s hard drive examination report in UMG v. Lindor, the defense said. It asked the U.S. Dist. Court, Brooklyn to bar new submissions by plaintiffs until the report is turned over. The report was completed months before RIAA, in another case, lost for the first time on a request for its own expert to analyze a defendant’s hard drive (WID Oct 30 p4). The trade group Tues. submitted a 26-page resume of Doug Jacobson -- dir. of Ia. State U.’s Information Assurance Center and RIAA’s go-to witness in multiple file-sharing cases -- to accompany Jacobson’s analysis of file-sharing activity that he traced to Marie Lindor’s son. RIAA is trying to compel Gustav Lindor to turn over his hard drive. The defense hasn’t yet taken a deposition of Jacobson. “As the court knows we have now been waiting more than four and a half months for Dr. Jacobson’s report, and the ability to depose him as to that report, his credentials, and any other expert witness materials,” Lindor defense lawyer Ray Beckerman said. He asked the court to strike any more materials from Jacobson, deny any motion based on his testimony, and issue “stern sanctions” against RIAA “for their sharp practice” in the case.
Among German priorities in assuming the EU Presidency Jan. 1 will be progress on revising the EU e-communications regulatory framework (NRF), its work program says. Telecom experts disputed whether Germany’s tense relations with the EC over controversial national legislation poised to grant Deutsche Telekom (DT) a regulatory break for its new fiber networks could stymie that progress.
Among German priorities in assuming the EU Presidency Jan. 1 will be progress on revising the EU e-communications regulatory framework (NRF), its work program says. Telecom experts disputed whether Germany’s tense relations with the EC over controversial national legislation poised to grant Deutsche Telekom (DT) a regulatory break for its new fiber networks could stymie that progress.