CEO Forum 2010

Photo Gallery | Event Agenda

The Obama Administration and senior policy-makers in the US Congress are focused on efforts to strengthen the economy and put US markets on a sustainable path of growth and security. The software and technology sectors have played a crucial role in helping fuel the US economic recovery, and are in a position to play an even stronger role in helping expand US market strength in the years ahead.

On June 9, 2010, BSA member company CEOs met with President Obama’s senior economic team, the Attorney General and key congressional leaders to reinforce the significant contributions that the IT industry makes to the country’s economy and quality of life and to seek support for key policies needed to ensure that the full benefits of technology are harnessed for economic recovery and long-term growth.

Participating CEOs:

• Shantanu Narayen, Adobe
• Carl Bass, Autodesk
• J.R. Smith, AVG
• Greg Bentley, Bentley Systems
• William McCracken, CA Technologies
• Kris Hagerman, Corel
• Steve Ballmer, Microsoft
• Ray Schiavone, Quark
• Tom Adams, Rosetta Stone
• Tony Affuso, Siemens PLM
• Enrique Salem, Symantec
• Jack Little, The MathWorks
  
  
  

Event Highlights and Resources:

• Photo Gallery
• Event Agenda
• “The Solutions Industry: How Software is Driving Our Economy and Changing the World”
• BSA Cloud Computing Principles

During these meetings, the CEOs expressed the software industry’s positions on several top issues of concern, including:

China

For the software industry to continue to fuel the recovery by boosting exports, the Administration must help break down market barriers in China.

The two biggest obstacles that the software industry faces in China are rampant theft of its intellectual property and heavy-handed “indigenous innovation” policies that impede market access and limit US companies’ ability to compete fairly.

To address these challenges, the software industry asks the following of the Administration and Congress:

• Hold China accountable for its bilateral commitments to combat software theft and ensure that the government and enterprises use only legal software.
• Press the Chinese government to develop its “indigenous innovation” policies in an open, technology-neutral and non-discriminatory manner.
• Establish a “results-based” trade policy with China that focuses on concrete progress in expanding US software exports to China.

Next Wave of the IT Revolution

Driving long-term growth depends on advancing the next wave of the IT revolution, and the
Administration and Congress play a key role.

Next-wave IT solutions, such as cloud computing, move information and data off desktop computers and handhelds and onto the Internet —producing new levels of efficiency, flexibility, and cost savings.

To speed the growth of these innovative solutions, the US government must:

• Promote data security;
• Combat fraud and other illicit acts in the cloud;
• Protect intellectual property rights; and
• Provide predictable international trade rules.