ANN ARBOR—National leaders from legal, policy, technical and business domains will meet March 7-9 at the University of Michigan Law School to discuss “Law, Policy and the Convergence of Telecommunications and Computing Technologies” in a free public conference. The session will define a policy agenda for addressing the many issues spawned by technological innovation.

The conference will begin with a presentation by Joel Klein, assistant attorney general in the Clinton Justice Department who was responsible for the Microsoft prosecution. Participants include Hank Barry, chief executive officer of Napster Inc. and partner at Hummer Winblad Venture Partners, the first venture capital firm focused exclusively on software. Barry has worked extensively with media and technology companies, and has been counsel to Looksmart, Liquid Audio, Homegrocer.com and Viant.

Others participants are:

•James Davidson, co-founder of Silver Lake Partners, an investment firm with $2.3 billion of committed capital. Silver Lake primarily makes large-scale investments in technology and related growth companies.

•Donn Davis, chief operating officer of AOL Interactive Properties, AOL Time Warner, which includes the AOL Local Group and the AOL Messaging Group, two of the company’s fastest growing Internet segments.

•Steven Gorosh, former executive vice president, general counsel and founder of NorthPoint Communications, a pioneer in providing Digital Subscriber Line service. During his tenure at NorthPoint, Gorosh led the fight to establish regulatory protections to spur the development of a competitive carrier industry for DSL, and led the landmark battle for line sharing.

•Jennifer M. Granholm, Michigan’s attorney general. Granholm introduced a new High Tech Crime Unit to explore, investigate and prosecute Internet and high-tech crimes. She has taken action against online child pornographers, online sellers of contraband to minors, online fraud, identity theft and Internet murder.

•David Pine, vice president and general counsel of Handspring Inc., a leading innovator in the handheld computing industry. Pine also has held executive positions with @Home Corporation, a broadband online service provider, and Radius Inc., a manufacturer of Macintosh computer peripherals.

•Richard D. Snyder, CEO and co-founder of Ardesta LLC, in Ann Arbor. Ardesta is dedicated to developing the microsystems industry through investing in startup and early stage companies and providing business and technical resources support. Snyder previously served as president and COO of Gateway Inc.

•James R. Young, a telecommunications and legal consultant in Washington, D.C. Young retired from Bell Atlantic where he was executive vice president and general counsel. During his tenure, Bell Atlantic became the first Bell company to gain entry into long distance in New York, achieved two of the largest mergers in telecommunications history, and completed successful First Amendment litigation that allowed telephone companies to enter the video business.

The conference will be held at the U-M Law School’s Honigman Auditorium, Room 100, Hutchins Hall.

[Central Campus map, Hutchins Hall lower left]

Joint sponsors for the event are the Law School, U-M College of Engineering, U-M schools of Information and of Business, the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy, and the Michigan Telecommunications and Technology Law Review, with support of the Park Foundation.

For registration information, panel titles, and a complete list of participants, visit www.law.umich.edu/ConvergenceConference. The conference will be available on the Web at http://www.itcom.itd.umich.edu/streaming/umlaw/. For more information, contact Nancy Marshall at the U-M Law School, (734) 764-6375 or [email protected].

Law SchoolJoel KleinJames DavidsonDonn DavisNorthPoint CommunicationsJennifer M. Granholmvice president and general counsel