Commission Announces March 19 Roundtable: Creating Interactive Data to Serve Investors
Vanguard Chairman and CEO John J. Brennan to Deliver Opening Address
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
2007-37
Washington, D.C., March 8, 2007 - The Securities and Exchange Commission announced today that Vanguard Group Chairman and CEO John J. Brennan will be the keynote speaker at the Commission's March 19 roundtable on the use of interactive data by public companies and mutual funds to improve disclosure for individual investors.
Mr. Brennan is expected to discuss how the new interactive data will allow investors to easily gather and compare mutual fund risk and return information, including costs and performance that might otherwise be buried deep within disclosure documents.
"This looks to be an exciting event, with plenty of show-and-tell illustrations of the latest software tools for investors," said SEC Chairman Christopher Cox.
The roundtable will begin at 10:00 a.m. with brief remarks by Chairman Cox. Following Mr. Brennan's remarks, John White, Director of the Commission's Division of Corporation Finance, will discuss the creation of interactive financial reports by public companies.
The roundtable will also feature a panel discussion on the benefits, including potential cost savings, of preparing financial reports using interactive data written in a computer language called XBRL. Panelists will include executives at public companies currently providing investors with interactive data on a test basis as part of the SEC's voluntary filing program. The panel will be moderated by Chicago Sun-Times personal finance columnist Terry Savage.
The March 19 roundtable will be the third in a series of interactive data roundtable discussions conducted by the SEC. At the previous roundtables, Xerox CEO Anne Mulcahy and PepsiCo CEO Indra Nooyi have discussed their tests of XBRL software and the potential of interactive data to enhance disclosure for the benefit of investors in public companies.
The roundtable will be held in the Auditorium at the Commission's headquarters at 100 F Street, N.E., Washington, D.C., from 10:00 a.m. to noon. The roundtable will be open to the public with seating on a first-come, first-served basis. Doors will open at 9:30 a.m. Visitors will be subject to security checks. Materials related to the roundtable, including the day's agenda, are accessible at http://www.sec.gov/spotlight/xbrl.htm. Real time and archived audio and video webcasts will be accessible at http://www.sec.gov.
The Commission welcomes feedback on any aspect of the use of interactive data. The information that is submitted will become part of the public record of the roundtable. Submissions to the Commission may be provided by any of the following methods:
Electronic submissions:
Use the Commission's Internet submission form at www.sec.gov/news/press.shtml; or
Send an e-mail to rule-comments@sec.gov. Please include File Number 4-515 on the subject line.
Paper submissions:
Send paper submissions in triplicate to Nancy M. Morris, Secretary, Securities and Exchange Commission, 100 F Street, N.E., Washington, D.C. 20549-1090.
All submissions should refer to File Number 4-515. This file number should be included on the subject line if e-mail is used. To help process and review your submissions more efficiently, please use only one method. The Commission will post all submissions on the Commission's Internet Web site at http://www.sec.gov/news/press/4-515.shtml.
Please note that all submissions received will be posted without change; the SEC does not edit personal identifying information from submissions. You should submit only information that you wish to make available publicly.
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http://www.sec.gov/news/press/2007/2007-37.htm
