Morning tech tip sheet: Tuesday, May 4

Other tech news:

Movie groups seek to refute exchange supporters’ claims (Tech Daily Dose) — Writes Juliana Gruenwald: “Movie industry groups are keeping up their aggressive effort to block two firms from launching futures exchanges that would be based on speculation over motion picture box office receipts. … In a letter sent late last week to senators, five movie industry groups, including the Motion Picture Association of America, tried to dispute recent claims made by supporters of such exchanges, who are aiming to strip language from a financial regulatory bill that would ban movie futures exchanges.”

Connecticut AG probing Craigslist on sex ads (Reuters) — “Craigslist.com was subpoenaed on Monday by Connecticut’s attorney general, who is investigating whether the popular online classified ad service is doing enough to quash prostitution on its site and whether it may be profiting from it. … Attorney General Richard Blumenthal, who is co-heading a group of 39 states looking into the matter, said in a statement that thousands of ads remain on Craigslist despite assurances from the company they would be removed.”

Chip sales are up 4.6% (Wall St. Journal) — From Tess Stynes, “Global semiconductor sales rose 4.6% in March from the prior month, setting a new high for the month and second all-time to November 2007, according to the Semiconductor Industry Association. … The recent growth has been driven by demand for personal computers and cellphones that began late last year.”

Cash-strapped states go online, hoping to tax sales (Washington Post) — Ylan Q. Mui reports: “For years, consumers have counted a legal quirk that allows many Internet retailers to forgo charging sales tax as one of the perks of shopping online. But as states face yawning budget gaps, there is a growing movement to lay claim to the billions of dollars lost through the loophole each year. … In most states, the burden is on shoppers to track what they buy online, calculate the sales tax owed and then pay it. In reality, few consumers fess up — many do not even know such a requirement exists. That will result in $9 billion in unpaid state and local sales taxes this year, according to a study at the University of Tennessee.”

What we’re covering this week… 

TUESDAY

New America Foundation

FCC: Toothless regulator or cop on the beat?

Where: 1899 L St., Suite 400

When: Tues., May 4, 12 – 1:30 p.m; RSVP required

Panelists include Hank Hultquist, VP for Federal Regulatory Affairs at AT&T; Barbara Esbin, a senior fellow at the Progress and Freedom Foundation; Harold Feld, legal director for Free Press; and Linda Kinney, a VP at DISH Network.

WEDNESDAY 

House Judiciary Committee

Full committee hearing on patent reform

Where: Rayburn 2121

When: Wed., May 5, 10:15 a.m.

House Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights and Civil Liberties

Hearing on the Electronic Communications Privacy Act

Where: Rayburn 2121

When: Wed., May 5, 2 p.m.

THURSDAY

The FCC’s Joel Gurin, head of the commission’s Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau, discusses a new initiative involving consumer billing.

Where: FCC headquarters

When: May 6

FRIDAY

American National Standards Institute and the Internet Security Alliance 

Cybersecurity briefing on Capitol Hill to present new report

Where: Cannon 311C

When: Friday, May 7, 11:30 a.m. RSVP required