Even More I/P Legislation on the Horizon?

According to a September 16, 2004 report by David McGuire in the Washington Post, "term limits require that U.S. Senator Orin Hatch (R-Utah) hand over his chairman's gavel for the Seanate Judiciary Committee to Sen. Arlen Specter (R-Pa.) -- an otherwise routine power shift that could have far-reaching implications for high-tech firms, movie studios, record companies and the future of downloading."

Former staffers for both senators said that if Hatch wanted to re-launch the intellectual property subcommittee that was disbanded during Hatch's chairmanship, then Specter would probably play along. Nobody in the committee or in the senators' offices would comment on whether such a move had been discussed, but lobbyists on the issue, former staffers and observers suspect it's already in the works.

"Were Hatch to chair a subcommittee, he would have an entire staff and a huge chunk of his time to devote to those issues," writes Mr. McGuire.