An amendment added to a government spending bill, HR-933, would limit federal agencies to sending at most 25 employees to any single U.S. meeting, potentially preventing important dialogue between the government and private industry, said the National Customs Brokers and Forwarders Association of America (NCBFAA) in a notice. The timetable on the amendment, introduced by Sens. Coburn, R-Okla., and John McCain, R-Ariz, isn't clear, though "the Senate leadership has expressed a desire to expedite the amendment process," said NCBFAA.
March 14-17 FIATA (International Federation of Freight Forwards) HQ Session, Swissotel, Zurich, Switzerland (here)
Creating an effective Do Not Track (DNT) measure and an online education portal for consumers to learn about the practices of data brokers would be good business practices for the online advertising industry, FTC Commissioner Julie Brill said Wednesday at a Direct Marketing Association conference. “We all know that consumers are starting to worry,” and industry actions like those would make users feel more comfortable about data brokers and online tracking, she said. A DNT tool “enabled by browsers … would be the most effective way to provide consumers with granular choices that will be honored across platforms,” and consumers should be able to learn about the practices of data brokers and view and correct the information data brokers have about them, she continued. “Today’s biggest threat is the customer that is made skittish as she learns how her personal information is collected, used, bought and sold.” These resources would help the agency and the industry reach their shared goal of “a vibrant online and mobile marketplace fueled by the responsible use of consumer data,” she said. Brill also applauded the work of Peter Swire, the new co-chair of the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) Tracking Protection Working Group. “I do have a bit of a frustration” that the W3C discussions aren’t moving faster, but Swire has led the group in important discussions, including about the de-identification of browser data, she said.
The planned changes to the 19 CFR Part 111 regulations that govern customs brokers are still several stages away from implementation, said Elena Ryan, acting director of Trade Facilitation and Administration at CBP, who is overseeing the process for the agency. Ryan declined to put a time frame on the expected changes, but said the rulemaking process can sometimes be a multi-year process. While some of the discussed changes are more contentious than others, the update will be part of a single rulemaking, rather than piece by piece changes, she said in an interview.
The FTC will continue to focus on consumer privacy and Do Not Track (DNT) rules under new Chairman Edith Ramirez, said FTC Bureau of Consumer Protection Acting Director Charles Harwood during a Direct Marketing Association panel Tuesday. Ramirez will prioritize continuity from former FTC Chairman Jon Leibowitz’s tenure, Harwood said: “She understands that being the new Chairman doesn’t mean you need to have entirely new programs” because companies have to make decisions based on what they expect from the agency and “can’t change on a dime.” Under Ramirez, the agency will be data-driven, Harwood said: “She is a very rigorous, data driven individual."
The FTC will continue to focus on consumer privacy and Do Not Track (DNT) rules under new Chairman Edith Ramirez, said FTC Bureau of Consumer Protection Acting Director Charles Harwood during a Direct Marketing Association panel Tuesday. Ramirez will prioritize continuity from former FTC Chairman Jon Leibowitz’s tenure, Harwood said: “She understands that being the new Chairman doesn’t mean you need to have entirely new programs” because companies have to make decisions based on what they expect from the agency and “can’t change on a dime.” Under Ramirez, the agency will be data-driven, Harwood said: “She is a very rigorous, data driven individual."
There may be some delay in the processing of broker license applications because the FBI has stopped processing fingerprint cards for CBP's background checks, said the National Customs Brokers and Forwarders Association of America in an alert to its members. CBP will use the Global Entry System (GES) to process the fingerprint cards as it works to find a permanent solution, said the NCBFAA.
March 10-12 Air Cargo 2013, Red Rock Casino, Las Vegas (here)
Media company Q4 results: Suddenlink sales rose 7.1 percent to $524.6 million from the year-ago period as the cable operator added broadband, phone and digital video customers and raised video rates. The company lost 19,100 basic video subscribers during the quarter, with 1.21 million total on Dec. 31. “Bundling and promotional discounts and digital customers purchasing fewer digital tiers of service during the trailing twelve months” also hurt results, privately held Suddenlink said in a news release Thursday (http://bit.ly/VLDLxN). “Revenues for our commercial business grew due to increases in the number of commercial high-speed data and telephone customers and from increases in cell tower and backhaul revenues from carrier customers.” Income from operations fell 29 percent to $57.4 million. ... Nexstar sales rose 35 percent to $116.2 million from the year-earlier period as political ad revenue surged by well over 1,000 percent to $27.3 million during the runup to November’s elections. The political ad sales were “record-breaking,” said Chairman Perry Sook, in a Thursday news release (http://bit.ly/15AmXvB). It said retransmission fee revenue rose 56 percent to $16.1 million. “The big retrans year will be 2014,” analyst Marci Ryvicker of Wells Fargo wrote investors following the company’s earnings call. “Management expects the JSA situation to remain ’status quo,'” she wrote of a draft FCC order, now on hold, that would attribute TV joint services agreements to the station brokering more than 15 percent of another in-market station’s ads (CD Feb 27 p1). Nexstar Q4 income from operations doubled to $35.4 million from the year-ago quarter. The stock closed up 4.5 percent at $16.91 on Thursday ... Journal Communications Q4 sales rose 31 percent to $124.5 million from Q4 2011. Chairman Steven Smith cited “record political spending,” in a news release Thursday (http://bit.ly/W8BR9x). TV revenue rose 76 percent to $55.8 million. Retrans revenue rose by a quarter to $3 million. This quarter excluding political sales, broadcast revenue will rise by a percentage in the mid-single digits from the year-ago period, the company forecast. Last quarter’s operating earnings rose 92 percent to $27.2 million. Journal Communications shares closed up 9 percent at $6.27 on Thursday.
An International Service Agreement (ISA) should preserve the licensing and citizenship requirements for U.S. customs brokers, said the National Customs Brokers and Forwarders Association of America (NCBFAA) in comments to the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative. Current regulations require that only U.S. citizens can obtain a broker's license and that at least one officer of a company or association must hold a valid broker's license in order to work on customs business. "These licensing and citizenship requirements are necessary and should be preserved in any" ISA, said the NCBFAA. CBP relies on the information entrusted to brokers and the ISA should provide an exception to "National Treatment," which gives equal treatment to domestic and foreign parties, said NCBFAA.