Inside The Beltway 07/19/12

ATIS kicked off an initiative aimed at identifying technologies that could provide a backup to the Global Positioning System (GPS) for time-and-frequency transport and delivery in an effort to “free North American communications networks from their critical dependence on GPS-derived timing.” ATIS’ Copper/Optical Access, Synchronization, and Transport Committee (COAST) will consider such alternatives as fiber-based time-and-frequency transfer solutions along with terrestrial RF technologies operating in spectrum less subject to interference…The Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITTF) says the United States “is continuing to fall behind other countries in providing tax incentives for companies to undertake research and development, putting U.S. firms at a disadvantage in the global innovation race,” ranking 27th out of 42 countries on R&D tax incentives, down from 23rd five years ago. The group asks Congress to make the R&D tax credit more generous and permanent.