Building Careers and Shaping Public Policy

22 August 2005

David O. Carson
General Counsel
U.S. Copyright Office
101 Independence Avenue, SE
Washington, D.C. 20559-6000

Re: Supplemental Notice of Proposed Rulemaking Concerning Preregistration, 70 Fed. Reg. 44878

Dear Mr. Carson:

The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers – United States of America (IEEE-USA) welcomes the opportunity to comment on the supplemental notice of proposed rulemaking. The notice indicates that the Copyright Office is considering an online registration system that may not be compatible with web browsers other than Microsoft Internet Explorer. While support for other browsers is planned, such support will not be available when the preregistration system goes into effect. The notice inquires "whether (and why) an eligible party who anticipates preregistering a claim on the electronic –only form will not be able to use Internet Explorer to do so, or will choose not to preregister if it is necessary to use Internet Explorer to do so."

While this is an important question, we respectfully suggest that the Copyright Office has overlooked an even more important one – whether any agency of the federal government should adopt an Internet-based filing system that is compatible with only one company’s browser. IEEE-USA has a long-standing commitment to software interoperability and the competition it fosters. The federal government should not hinder competition in the browser market by adopting a registration system that is only compatible with a proprietary browser distributed by a single dominant vendor.

The Copyright Office’s selection of an Internet Explorer-only system is all the more inappropriate given that: 1) the Office proposes that preregistration occur only electronically; 2) the very product the Office has selected was the subject of successful antitrust litigation by the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division; and 3) alternative systems are available on the market that are compatible with multiple browsers.

IEEE-USA appreciates that the Copyright Office’s plans to support other browsers in the future, but feels that the Office should choose interoperability now. It should either implement a system compatible with all the widely distributed browsers; or it should adopt an all paper system. We would be happy to answer any questions you may have.

Sincerely,

Gerard A. Alphonse
President, IEEE-USA