Union Calendar No. 213
106TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 1858
[Report No. 106–350, Part I]
A BILL
To promote electronic commerce through improved
access for consumers to electronic databases, in-
cluding securities market information databases.
OCTOBER 8, 1999
The Committee on the Judiciary discharged; committed
to the Committee of the Whole House on the State of
the Union and ordered to be printed
IB
Union Calendar No. 213
106TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 1858
[Report No. 106–350, Part I]
To promote electronic commerce through improved access for consumers to
electronic databases, including securities market information databases.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
MAY 19, 1999
Mr. BLILEY (for himself, Mr. DINGELL, Mr. TAUZIN, Mr. MARKEY, Mr.
OXLEY, and Mr. TOWNS) introduced the following bill; which was referred
to the Committee on Commerce
SEPTEMBER 30, 1999
Reported with an amendment and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary
for a period ending not later than October 8, 1999, for consideration of
such provisions of the bill and amendment as fall within the jurisdiction
of that committee pursuant to clause 1(k), rule X
[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic]
OCTOBER 8, 1999
Additional sponsors: Mr. BARTON of Texas, Mr. KASICH, Mr. CLAY, Ms.
ESHOO, Mr. DEAL of Georgia, Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi, Mr.
BLUNT, Mr. STEARNS, Mr. ETHERIDGE, Mr. MCINTOSH, Mr. NEY, Mr.
BARRETT of Wisconsin, and Mr. BOUCHER
OCTOBER 8, 1999
The Committee on the Judiciary discharged; committed to the Committee of
the Whole House on the State of the Union and ordered to be printed
[For text of introduced bill, see copy of bill as introduced on May 19, 1999]
A BILL
To promote electronic commerce through improved access
for consumers to electronic databases, including securi-
ties market information databases.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Consumer and Investor
Access to Information Act of 1999’’.
TITLE I—COMMERCE IN DUPLI-
CATED DATABASES PROHIB-
ITED
SEC. 101. DEFINITIONS.
As used in this title:
(1) DATABASE.—(A) The term ‘‘database’’ means
a collection of a large number of discrete items of in-
formation that have been collected and organized in
a single place, or in such a way as to be accessible
through a single source, through the investment of
substantial monetary or other resources, for the pur-
pose of providing access to those discrete items of in-
formation by users of the database. Such term does
not include works that are combined and ordered in
a logical progression or other meaningful way in
order to tell a story, communicate a message, rep-
resent an idea, or achieve a result.
(B) If a database is organized into discrete sec-
tions containing a large number of discrete items of
information, each section may be treated as a data-
base if each such section meets the requirements of
subparagraph (A).
(2) DUPLICATE OF A DATABASE.—A database is
‘‘a duplicate’’ of any other database if the database
is substantially the same as such other database, as
a result of the extraction of information from such
other database.
(3) INFORMATION.—The term ‘‘information’’
means facts, data, or any other intangible material
capable of being collected and organized in a system-
atic way, with the exception of works of authorship
within the meaning of section 102 of title 17, United
States Code.
(4) COMMERCE.—The term ‘‘commerce’’ means
all commerce which may be lawfully regulated by the
Congress.
(5) IN COMPETITION.—The term ‘‘in competition
with’’ when used with respect to the sale or distribu-
tion of a database to the public means that the
database—
(A) displaces substantial sales or licenses of
the database of which it is a duplicate; and
(B) significantly threatens the opportunity
to recover a reasonable return on the investment
in the collecting or organizing of the duplicated
database.
(6) GOVERNMENT
DATABASE.—The term ‘‘gov-
ernment database’’ means a database that—
(A) has been collected or maintained by the
United States of America, any foreign govern-
ment, or any agency or instrumentality thereof;
(B) has been collected or maintained by a
commercial entity pursuant to a contract with
the United States of America or any agency or
instrumentality thereof, unless the information
contained in such database was permanently
available on an interactive computer network
without restriction in a publicly accessible elec-
tronic form without charge, at the time a dupli-
cate of such database was sold or distributed; or
(C) is required by Federal statute or regula-
tion to be collected or maintained, to the extent
so required.
puter program used in the manufacture, production,
operation, or maintenance of a database, or any ele-
ment of a computer program necessary to its oper-
ation.
(2) INCORPORATED
DATABASES.—A database
that is otherwise subject to protection under section
102 is not disqualified from such protection solely be-
cause it resides in a computer program, so long as
the database functions as a database within the
meaning of this title.
(d) NONPROTECTABLE SUBJECT MATTER.—Protection
under section 102 does not extend to the sale or distribution
to the public of a duplicate of any individual idea, fact,
procedure, system, method of operation, concept, principle,
or discovery.
(e) SUBSCRIBER
LIST
INFORMATION.—Protection
under section 102 does not extend to a database of sub-
scriber list information within the meaning of section
222(f) of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C.
222(f)). Nothing in this subsection shall affect the operation
of section 222(e) of such Act, under which a telecommuni-
cations carrier provides, upon request, subscriber list infor-
mation for the purposes of publishing directories in any
format under nondiscriminatory and reasonable rates,
terms, and conditions.
(f) LEGAL MATERIALS.—Protection under section 102
does not extend to a database of primary legal materials,
including court opinions, statutes, codes, regulations, or ad-
ministrative agency decisions, from any Federal, State, or
local jurisdiction, unless such materials were permanently
available on an interactive computer network without re-
striction, in an official publicly accessible electronic form
without charge, at the time a duplicate of such database
was sold or distributed.
(g) SECURITIES MARKET DATA.—Nothing in this title
shall apply to any database, or any discrete section of a
database, composed predominantly of market information
within the meaning of section 11A(e)(6) of the Securities
Exchange Act of 1934, as amended by section 201 of this
Act.
SEC. 105. RELATIONSHIP TO OTHER LAWS.
(a) OTHER RIGHTS NOT AFFECTED.—Subject to sub-
section (b), nothing in this title shall affect rights, limita-
tions, or remedies concerning copyright, or any other rights
or obligations relating to information, including laws with
respect to patent, trademark, design rights, antitrust, trade
secrets, privacy, access to public documents, misuse, and the
law of contract.
(b) PREEMPTION OF STATE LAW.—On or after the ef-
fective date of this Act, no State law that prohibits or that
otherwise regulates conduct that is subject to the prohibi-
tions specified in section 102 shall be effective to the extent
that such State law is inconsistent with section 102.
(c) LICENSING.—Subject to the provisions on misuse
in section 106(b), nothing in this title shall restrict the
rights of parties freely to enter into licenses or any other
contracts with respect to the use of information.
(d) COMMUNICATIONS ACT OF 1934.—Nothing in this
title shall affect the operation of the Communications Act
of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 151 et seq.) or the authority of the Fed-
eral Communications Commission.
(e) SECURITIES LAWS.—Nothing in this title shall
affect—
(1) the operation of the Securities Act of 1933
(15 U.S.C. 78a et seq.), the Securities Exchange Act
of 1934 (15 U.S.C. 78a et seq.), the Public Utility
Holding Company Act of 1935 (15 U.S.C. 79a et
seq.), the Trust Indenture Act of 1939 (15 U.S.C.
77aaa et seq.), the Investment Company Act of 1940
(15 U.S.C. 80a–1 et seq.), the Investment Advisers Act
of 1940 (15 U.S.C. 80b et seq.), or the Securities In-
vestor Protection Act of 1970 (15 U.S.C. 78aaa et
seq.); or
(2) the authority of the Securities and Exchange
Commission.
SEC. 106. LIMITATIONS ON LIABILITY.
(a) SERVICE PROVIDER LIABILITY.—A provider of
telecommunications services or information services (within
the meaning of section 3 of the Communications Act of 1934
(47 U.S.C. 153)), or the operator of facilities therefor, shall
not be liable for a violation of section 102 if such provider
or operator did not initially place the database that is the
subject of the violation on a system or network controlled
by such provider or operator.
(b) MISUSE.—A person or entity shall not be liable
for a violation of section 102 if the person or entity bene-
fiting from the protection afforded a database under section
102 misuses the protection. In determining whether a per-
son or entity has misused the protection afforded under this
title, the following factors, among others, shall be consid-
ered:
(1) the extent to which the ability of persons or
entities to engage in the permitted acts under this
title has been frustrated by contractual arrangements
or technological measures;
(2) the extent to which information contained in
a database that is the sole source of the information
contained therein is made available through licensing
or sale on reasonable terms and conditions;
(3) the extent to which the license or sale of in-
formation contained in a database protected under
this title has been conditioned on the acquisition or
license of any other product or service, or on the per-
formance of any action, not directly related to the li-
cense or sale;
(4) the extent to which access to information nec-
essary for research, competition, or innovation pur-
poses has been prevented;
(5) the extent to which the manner of asserting
rights granted under this title constitutes a barrier to
entry into the relevant database market; and
(6) the extent to which the judicially developed
doctrines of misuse in other areas of the law may ap-
propriately be extended to the case or controversy.
SEC. 107. ENFORCEMENT.
(a) USE OF FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION ACT AU-
THORITY.—The Federal Trade Commission shall have juris-
diction, under section 5 of the Federal Trade Commission
Act (15 U.S.C. 45), to prevent violations of section 102 of
this title.
(b) RULEMAKING AUTHORITY.—The Federal Trade
Commission may, pursuant to subparagraph (A) or (B) of
section 18(a) of the Federal Trade Commission Act (15
U.S.C. 57a(a)), but without regard to the limitations con-
tained in section 18(b)(3) of such Act, prescribe rules to
implement this title.
(c) ENFORCEMENT.—Any violation of any rule pre-
scribed under subsection (b) shall be treated as a violation
of a rule respecting unfair or deceptive acts or practices
under section 5 of the Federal Trade Commission Act (15
U.S.C. 45). Notwithstanding section 5(a)(2) of such Act (15
U.S.C. 45(a)(2)), communications common carriers shall be
subject to the jurisdiction of the Federal Trade Commission
for purposes of this title.
(d) ACTIONS
BY
THE COMMISSION.—The Federal
Trade Commission shall prevent any person or entity from
violating section 102 or a rule of the Commission under
subsection (b) of this section in the same manner, by the
same means, and with the same jurisdiction, powers, and
duties as though all applicable terms and provisions of the
Federal Trade Commission Act (15 U.S.C. 41 et seq.) were
incorporated into and made a part of this title. Any person
or entity who violates section 102 or such rule shall be sub-
ject to the penalties and entitled to the privileges and im-
munities provided in the Federal Trade Commission Act
in the same manner, by the same means, and with the same
jurisdiction, power, and duties as though all applicable
terms and provisions of the Federal Trade Commission Act
were incorporated into and made a part of this title.