Digital Discourse / Archives for Obama

Obama on Patent Reform: We’re Not Done Yet, Patent Trolls Need to be Reined In

February 15, 2013 By

SIIA thanks President Obama for taking on patent trolls in yesterday’s Google+ Hangout. Obama said that patent reform was only a partial fix to the patent troll problem, and argued that more needs to be done to stop these abusive patent lawsuits. He said:

“[Patent trolls] don’t actually produce anything themselves. They’re just trying to essentially leverage and hijack somebody else’s idea and see if they can extort some money out of them.”

Though the passage of the America Invents Act in 2011 was an effective first step in addressing the problem of abusive patent litigation by trolls, we agree with Obama that more must be done. Patent trolls continue to damage the economy, hurt America’s tech industry, and threaten innovation. Obama continued:

“There’s a delicate balance between protecting intellectual property and making sure people aren’t ruined financially by patent trolls. What we need to do is pull together additional stakeholders and see if we can build some additional consensus on smarter patent laws.”

In December, SIIA joined with several other trade associations in issuing a call for action against abusive patent lawsuits, in a letter to the Congressional leaders who led the passage of patent reform in 2011. We welcome any opportunity to build consensus on this vital issue.

Watch the full Hangout:

Laura Greenback is Communications Director at SIIA. Follow the SIIA Public Policy team at @SIIAPolicy.

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Filed Under: Policy, Policy - Intellectual Property Tagged With: ,

SIIA Applauds Cybersecurity Commitment Announced in Tonight’s State of the Union Address

February 12, 2013 By

SIIA congratulates President Obama and his Administration for making cybersecurity a priority. We appreciate the President’s efforts to seek broad input in crafting the Executive Order signed today. We are particularly pleased that the Executive Order excludes commercial information technology products and consumer information technology services from the definition of ‘critical infrastructure at greatest risk.’ The Administration is clearly seeking to advance American innovation with this effort, however, the way in which the Order is implemented will be critical in determining its success or failure.

As we work with the Administration on implementation, a priority for our industry will be to avoid rigid regulations that impede the innovation that is essential for effective cybersecurity.

A regulatory approach seeking to cover a broad, rapidly-evolving cross-section of industry would have the unintended consequence of slowing technological innovation and limiting our collective cybersecurity preparedness. Therefore, it is essential that the Administration work with industry to implement the Executive Order in a way that retains necessary flexibility. Technological innovation must be allowed keep up with rapid developments pertaining to both cybersecurity threats and protections.

To that end, we look forward to continuing to work closely with the Administration and congressional leaders to implement this policy.

Ken WaschKen Wasch is President of SIIA. Follow the SIIA Policy team on Twitter at @SIIAPolicy.

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Filed Under: Government, Policy, Policy - Cybersecurity, Security, Software Tagged With: , ,

Education and Industry Groups Advocate for Technology in ESEA

March 31, 2010 By

Following the introduction of the Obama Administration’s ESEA Blueprint for Reform and with healthcare reform signed into law, the U.S. Congress  has once again turned to reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA).  Among the many programmatic and regulatory issues needing to be addressed is the role of technology.  The Obama/Duncan plan is short on details, but raises concerns by ending the Enhancing Education through Technology (EETT) program without an alternative targeted program.

A coalition of 50 education and high-tech organizations supports the Administration’s proposal for infusing technology throughout the ESEA programs, but as part of a two-tiered approach that also includes the Achievement Through Technology and Innovation (ATTAIN) Act.  The coalition – including Apple, ASCD, Intel, NSBA and NCTM – affirmed: “Many of today’s educational goals and requirements – including both the central tenets of ESEA as well as those set forth in the Obama Administration ESEA Reauthorization Blueprint for Reform – can be most effectively achieved by modernizing our educational practices and system through technology.”

SIIA also recently submitted recommendations to Congress on ESEA addressing several areas: Systemic Transformation from Mass Production to Mass Customization;  Modernize Education Practice Through Technology; Innovation, Public-Private Partnership and Appropriate Federal R&D Role; School Improvement and Low-Performing Students; Teacher Effectiveness and Connectedness; Assessment, Data & Accountability; and High-Tech Workforce Readiness.

SIIA called for ESEA to “drive transformational innovation that reengineers education delivery models [and] Incentivize the shift from a seat-time, assembly-line education model to a more flexible, student-centered outcomes-based model built around individual learning needs and pace, and anytime-anywhere learning [i.e., personalization].”

ESEA was last reauthorized in 2002 through the No Child Left Behind Act.  Congress made a similar attempt in 2007, but policies and politics prevented the House and Senate Committee Chairs from ever formally introducing a bill.  While there appears to be much agreement in principle, including on fixes to the current accountability system, many hurdles exist, and many insiders are suggesting Congress will run out of time in this election year before completing work to update Title I and most other major federal K-12 programs.

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Filed Under: Ed Tech Industry Summit, Education, Education Policy, Policy Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,

Is Every Education Program a Technology Opportunity? Obama Budget, Part II

February 4, 2010 By

After an initial reaction here Monday to the Obama Administration’s proposed FY2011 budget for the U.S. Department of Education and educational technology, a fuller analysis is now possible (see others here, here and here).  The budget notes that: “The President strongly believes that technology, when used creatively and effectively, can transform education and training in the same way that it has transformed the private sector.”  The question then is how the budget proposes to support that notion, and if in fact it would.

The Obama educational technology proposal includes three core elements: (1) “consolidation” of the Enhancing Education Through Technology (EETT) program, which would end the program and diffuse those dollars as a technology priority throughout the new Effective Teaching and Learning programs (p.7, 26-27, and 34); (2) integration of technology into other programs including i3 and RttT; and (3) enhanced R&D investment in USED and National Science Foundation.

The EETT budget justification reads:  “The Administration‟s ESEA reauthorization proposal would consolidate this [EETT] program into the Effective Teaching and Learning for a Complete Education authority. Each of the three programs under this new authority would include a focus on integrating technology into instruction and using technology to drive improvements in teaching and learning. In addition, using technology to improve student outcomes is a key priority in the Race to the Top and Investing in Innovation (i3) programs. The Administration‟s proposal for College- and Career-Ready Students [i.e., Title I] also will promote the development of State capacity to support district efforts to use technology to improve instruction.” 

SIIA applauds the Obama Administration’s proposed budget for recognizing the important role of technology to transform education and improve student outcomes.  We also welcome proposals to better integrate technology to drive improvements in teaching and learning throughout the many grant programs. This integration currently exists on paper, but there are many opportunities to further leverage this approach into practice.

SIIA also believes targeted federal investment, including through the EETT program, plays a critical role in both building state and local capacity for educational innovation through technology, as well as for coordinating disparate school improvement investments that leverage educational technologies. Directed investment may be especially important where capacity and resources are otherwise lacking to take advantage of existing and new flexibility, thus risking exacerbation of the classroom digital divide between schools.

SIIA looks forward to working with the Administration and Congress to ensure that any new federal K-12 paradigm continues the systematic and coordinated investment in educational technology leadership needed to drive education innovation and continuous improvement.  This includes work during the ESEA reauthorization processes to further integrate technology throughout all education programs as proposed, as well as continued support for increased investment in EETT (or an alternative such as the ATTAIN Act) at least until such time as there are meaningful and quantifiable alternative approaches enacted to achieve these goals.

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Filed Under: Education, Education Policy, Policy Tagged With: , , , , , , , , ,

Obama Budget Proposal: Half Empty or Half Full for Ed Tech?

February 1, 2010 By

The FY2011 (2011-12 school year) budget proposal released today by the Obama Administration would dramatically remake the federal education landscape in the name of flexibility and alignment around the four assurances.  Among the changes would be the “consolidation” of the Enhancing Education Through Technology program (and 38 others down to 11), perhaps ending some 15+ years of targeted USED investment in educational innovation and improvement through technology only recently touted by 30+ national education and high-tech organizations and supported in the stimulus.  While SIIA has been ensured of the goal to integrate technology throughout, those details to date are not available. 

Flexibility to use an array of federal program funds to meet educational needs through technology is an important principle, and in fact, advocacy by SIIA and others has ensured technology is already allowed in most core U.S. Department of Education programs (though much more work is needed).  The flexibility is most often taken advantage of by those with the vision, capacity and existing success.  The questions therefore are: What federal leadership teeth will be given to the integration policies to drive technology-based practices that would not otherwise happen.  And what will happen to those many communities and teachers without the vision, capacity and resources, if targeted investment is no longer provided?  EETT has been successful in targeting high-need schools especially in building local capacity and providing needed professional development.  Pending bipartisan legislation would build on those successes and revamp the program.

Among the other major proposals as part of a $3.5 billion overall increase: $1.35 B for RttT, $500 M for i3, $200 M more for literacy and STEM, $354 more for school improvement/turnaround, $800 M more for innovative teacher and leader reforms/recruitment/preparation, and slight increases for Title I and IDEA to about $25 B total.   Included is a shift in some cases from formula to competitive programs, while much of the proposal depends upon uncertain enabling legislation through the ESEA/NCLB reauthorization.  [Note that SIIA will be further analyzing the proposal for its members in the days ahead.] 

SIIA looks forward to learning more about the Administration’s proposals, and working with the USED and other stakeholders to ensure that any new federal policy paradigm pushes real transformation  and closes the gap of educational improvement enabled by educational technologies.

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Filed Under: Education, Education Policy, Policy Tagged With: , , , , , , , , ,

Race-to-the-Top, Prepare for the Marathon

January 26, 2010 By

Much recent attention has rightly been paid to the Race-to-the-Top (RttT), but there are a wide range of other policies and programs also driving educational investments and opportunities. 2009 lay some $100+ million in federal  education reform and improvement seeds, while Recovery Act implementation along with new legislation means 2010 is shaping up to be at least as critical  to the long-term growth of that investment and policy.  SIIA’s 2010 Ed Tech Government Forum  will help SIIA members understand the impact of Education Funding & Programs in a (Post) Stimulus World. 

SIIA members are encouraged to register by the February 1 early-bird deadline for the SIIA Forum, taking place March 3-4 in Washington, DC.  The Forum will provide SIIA members with insight on a wide range of K-20 policies and programs impacting the education sector, and do so with an eye toward the role of technology and the role of private partners. 

Speakers and Topics Include:

- CA Secretary of Ed Glen Thomas and US DoED Senior Advisor Hal Plotkin will share their inside perspectives on the their Open Educational Resources (OER) initiatives

- State and local education leaders will discuss the impact and timeline of Common Core Standards on educational publishers and developers

- US DoED’s Jim Shelton will answer all your questions about Investing in Innovation (i3)

- President Obama’s Special Assistant for Education Roberto Rodriguez will outline the Administration’s education agenda and the role of technology and e-learning

- Title I leaders will examine the newest models and opportunities around the $billions being invested in School Improvement through Title I and RttT

- Renowned RtI expert Dr. Russell Gersten will share the best policies, research and practice driving the large investments nationwide in Response-to-Intervention

- Education policy leaders will provide insight into the 2010 education agenda, including the Recovery Act, RttT, ESEA Reauthorization, and the federal education budget

- Keynotes from U.S. Senator Jeanne Shaheen and WV State Superintendent Steven Paine will help you understand the vision and policy prescriptions of national education leaders

Of course, all this insight and analysis will take place against a backdrop of extensive networking opportunities with education leaders from inside the beltway, and from around the country, as well as advocacy opportunities.

With the Obama Administration fundamentally reshaping federal education programs and national education policy, this is a critical year to be in Washington, DC.  More Information.

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Filed Under: Education, Education Policy, Policy Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,