Contact: Mary Jane Collipriest, 202-224-5444, Washington, DC 20510
February 08, 2000
Contact: Mary Jane Collipriest, 202-224-5444, Washington, DC 20510 |
FOR
IMMEDIATE RELEASE February 08, 2000 |
Bennett Announces Fifth Annual Financial Services and Technology Conference
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Jim Barksdale of the Barksdale Group and former president and head of Netscape, will be the keynote speaker at Senator Bob Bennett's fifth annual Financial Services & Technology Conference, titled "E-Commerce: What's Next?" February 17 and 18 in Salt Lake City, Utah."Today, we are witnessing a revolution–the rise of a digital economy," said Bennett, chairman of the Senate Republican High-Tech Task Force. "This global medium will become the most important driver of business, economic and social change in this century. Examining privacy considerations, the proper role of government and other complex issues that have emerged with this new medium will be topics at the center of this conference."
The Barksdale Group is a leading investment and advisory group committed to growing Internet services companies. Prior to joining the Barksdale Group, Jim served at Netscape as president and chief executive officer, he also served as president, chief operating officer and chief executive officer of AT&T Wireless Services. Jim is a member of the board of directors of America Online, 3Com, Sun Microsystems, Respond.com and Liberate Technologies among others. He has recently been in the news for his generous donation to implement reading programs and promote literacy in his home state of Mississippi.
In addition to remarks by Barksdale, the conference will feature a speech by Robert Kohn; chairman of Emusic.com, Inc.. Kohn is a seasoned high tech executive, member of the California Bar, and co-author of Kohn on Music Licensing, a practical guide to business and legal issues in the music industry. He has served as chief legal counsel for Pretty Good Privacy, Inc., Borland International and Ashton-Tate corporation. Prior to Ashton-Tate, he was an attorney at the Beverly Hills law office of Rudin & Richman, an entertainment law firm whose clients included Frank Sinatra, Cher, and Warner Bros. Music.
The conference will also feature two panel discussions. The first entitled "E-Commerce: Cross-Border Jurisdictional Issues," will include panelists Russell Schrader, senior vice president and associate general counsel, Visa U.S.A.; John Scheibel, Washington counsel and director of government affairs, Yahoo! Inc.; and Barbara Wellbury, counselor to electronic commerce, U.S. Department of Commerce. The discussion will examine issues facing the implementation of new technologies for the delivery of financial services.
The second panel, "Privacy in the Year 2000," will include Geoff Gray, senior professional staff, U.S. Senate Banking Committee and Oliver Ireland, associate general counsel of the Federal Reserve Board. Discussion will focus on attempting to maintain a balance between protecting the privacy of consumers without placing onerous regulations on Internet capabilities.
Bennett added, "As chairman of the Republican High-Tech Task Force and a member of the Senate Banking Committee, I am delighted to host this conference. I have found from previous conferences that listening to experts and participating in discussion with those in the industry I am in a much better position to assess the relevant legislative proposals dealing with finance and technology."
The conference, to be held at Little America Hotel, opens on the evening of February 17 with a welcoming reception and dinner. On February 18, the schedule begins with a breakfast at 8:00 a.m. followed by speakers, panels and a closing lunch at 12:15-1:30 featuring Jim Barksdale.
Registrations are now being accepted for the conference. Cost is $100 per person. For more information on conference attendance, contact Dixie Minson at (801) 524-5933.