Andrew Noyes has the worldwide exclusive:
House Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers will abolish the Subcommittee on Courts, the Internet, and Intellectual Property in the new Congress and instead keep intellectual property issues at the full committee level, a Judiciary aide told CongressDaily today.
Under the watch of Howard Berman, the subcommittee was a fertile ground for IP debates. Noyes notes in Tech Daily Dose (and Congress Daily) piece:
Hot topics like overhauling the U.S. patent system; ending a long-standing music royalty exemption for AM and FM radio and changing a portion of copyright law that deals with musical tracks, writings, images, videos or other content whose owners cannot be easily identified drew ample attention from the high-tech and entertainment industries.
Yet, according to a Conyers' staffer:
Conyers plans to remain just as active on IP issues at the full committee level
With everything that the Judiciary Committee has on its plate, this seems hard to believe. And, conversely, if they actually are able to process as much IP related debate, it's likely that the process will lack the depth and substance of a committee that solely focuses on these ever-evolving complex issues.
BTW, while his ties may not be as strong and reflexive as Berman's, Conyers is considered "a friend" of Hollywood.
Comments