According to Reuters, on September 27, 2004, the World Trade Organization (WTO) launched a probe into a complaint by the European Union (EU) that the U.S. had failed to drop illegal import duties on certain EU steel products from Britain, France and Spain. The article states that the panel request followed consultations where the EU stated that the U.S. had not removed all safeguard duties, while the U.S. stated that they had been adjusted after the WTO ruled them illegal two years ago. (Reuters dated 09/27/04, available at http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=businessNews&storyID=6344486 )

CBP Posts Q&A and Other Documents

The Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has issued a final rule, effective September 23, 2004, in order to revise certain reporting and recordkeeping requirements contained in the Rough Diamonds Control Regulations (RDCR, 31 CFR Part 592).

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has posted to its Web site a notice announcing the 2004/2005 aggregate cap for apparel made from Andean Trade Promotion and Drug Eradication Act (ATPDEA) fabric, fabric components, or components knit-to-shape, etc. from ATPDEA/U.S. yarns (HTS 9821.11.25). (See today's ITT, 04092715, for BP summary of CITA's notice announcing this aggregate cap.) (QBT-04-541, dated 09/22/04, available at http://www.cbp.gov/linkhandler/cgov/import/textiles_and_quotas/qbts/QBT2004/2004_541.ctt/2004_541.doc)

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has issued a memorandum to its Directors of Field Operations stating that it is changing its policy of allowing different parties to be identified as the Ultimate Consignee for shipments of imported merchandise.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) at the Port of Detroit has issued an Information Notice regarding what it states is a CBP Headquarters policy change for Border Cargo Selectivity (BCS) at the U.S.-Canadian border.

CAFC Reverses Ruling that the Government's Litigation Filing is Untimely by 1 Day.In U.S. v. Inn Foods, Inc., the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (CAFC) reversed the Court of International Trade's (CIT's) finding that litigation filed by the U.S. on December 14, 2001 to collect Customs duties and fees from Inn Foods for violations of 19 USC 1592 was untimely by one day.

The Washington File has reported that the U.S. intends to rejoin the International Coffee Organization (ICO) after an 11-year break. According to the Washington File, the U.S. decision to rejoin the ICO was motivated by ICO reforms establishing a more market- and development-based approach, as well as by the difficulties plaguing many coffee producers as a result of plummeting prices. (Washington File Pub 09/15/04, available at http://usinfo.state.gov/xarchives/display.html?p=washfile-english&y=2004&m=September&x=20040915175646SAikceinawz8.323133e-03&t=livefeeds/wf-latest.html)

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has posted to its Web site a set of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) and responses regarding the mandatory advance electronic information requirements for truck carriers.

TiVo will seek to cut subscriber acquisition costs (SAC) to “$75 or less” in 2005, from $125 this year The increase in SAC this year was fueled by TiVo’s $50 million increase in promotional spending this year, which includes a program offering a $100 rebate that reduced the price of the standalone PVR with a 40 GB hard drive to $99, CEO Michael Ramsay said at Roth Capital investor conference this week. Based on monthly average revenue per subscriber of $8, TiVo recoups the cost of acquiring the customer in “a year or less,” he said. While TiVo charges $12.95 monthly for its service, it recognizes over 4 years revenue from customers paying a one-time $299 fee for a “lifetime subscription.” Those subscribers produce average monthly revenue of $6.19. Subscriber acquisition costs will decline in 2005 because TiVo will get “more cost out of the hardware which means the cost of the subsidy goes down,” Ramsay said. TiVo’s recent agreement with Macrovision on a new licensing pact will have “little near-term impact” on the company. The contract, signed in Aug., places limits on how much content may be recorded and stored on high-capacity PVRs. TiVo and rival ReplayTV agreed to impose changes in the “trigger bits” built into Macrovision analog copy protection in a PVR to activate one of 4 new copy-control settings to be determined by the content owner. Macrovision brokered the deal between the major film studios and the PVR suppliers. “It does give studios a little more control” over the content being recorded on PVR hard drives with capacities of 400 hours or more, Ramsay said. While TiVo has attracted 15-20 advertisers to its platform, including a heavy sampling of car manufacturers, the company’s ad revenue “has been constrained” by the size of its installed base. TiVo has about 1.9 million subscribers. Ad sales represent less than 10% of TiVo’s total revenue, but the company plans to increase sales by expanding the space dedicated to ads on the service, Ramsay said.