Electronic Retailer - June 2011 - 11

Attendees Advocate on the Hill at 2011 ERA Government Affairs Fly-In
WASHINGTON, D.C. – The first blast of summer heat reached the East Coast just in time to greet this year’s attendees for the 2011 Government Affairs Fly-In. But the weather wasn’t the only sizzling heat attendees experienced. The opening reception, held in the Washington Room at the exclusive SunTrust Headquarters, gave attendees a bird’s eye view of the White House, and early attendees saw a driveby from the vice presidential motorcade. The next day saw no letdown in excitement with Dr. Doug Holtz-Eakin leading off the day’s educational session. Holtz-Eakin, a former director of the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) and policy advisor to John McCain’s presidential campaign, walked attendees through the fiscal and budget issues facing the nation. Following Holtz-Eakin’s great presentation, attendees were treated to a panel titled “Protecting Your Bottom Line from Counterfeiting Bandits,” about an issue that has plagued the industry for years and has recently begun to accelerate as a threat to ERA’s membership. Jennifer Boger with the Office of Intellectual Property Rights in the U.S. Department of Commerce joined Rich Halverson, unit chief of the National Intellectual Property Rights Coordination Center, to discuss the current landscape. They explained current trends in counterfeiting, as well as the response the U.S. government has initiated to combat the invasion of counterfeit goods on U.S. shores. An ERA policy event would never be complete without hearing from our primary regulator, the Federal Trade Commission, on the latest in enforcement and trends in advertising practices. We were pleased to host Mary Engle, the FTC’s associate director of the Division of Advertising Practices, for a conversation with three of the leading minds in ad practices law: Jeff Knowles of Venable LLP, Linda Goldstein of Manatt, Phelps & Phillips and Barry Cutler of Baker Hostetler. The intensity of this jam-packed event was then turned up a notch in preparation for the team visits to the Hill. Bill McClellan of ERA, Bruce Mehlman of Mehlman Vogel Castagnetti Inc. and Barry Cutler of Baker Hosteter briefed attendees during lunch on the Streamlined Sales Tax and Privacy/Behavioral Advertising as prep for the team visits to the Hill. In all, attendees where broken down into 11 teams with representation from 15 states. ERA teams met with more than 50 offices and multiple members of Congress to advocate for you and the industry as a whole. A special thanks to our 95 attendees this year for taking the time and making the effort to help spread the important message of the great things electronic retailers do in the community, for the economy and as an industry. – Bill McClellan, ERA Vice President of Government Affairs

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2011 ERA D2C Convention: Register Now
Registration is now open for the 2011 ERA D2C Convention, Sept. 13-15 in Las Vegas, Nev. Visit www.d2cshow.org for registration information, including early bird discounts. As an added bonus, join ERA before July 1 and receive an All Access Pass to a domestic ERA conference,  including the 2011 ERA D2C Convention or The Great Ideas Summit 2012, Feb. 27-29 in Miami, Fla. Contact ERA Vice President of Membership Robin Greenspan at rgreenspan@retailing.org and visit www.retailing.org.

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Electronic Retailer - June 2011

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