NCITD PROPOSES RULES TO IDENTIFY COMPUTER SPEEDS
'The National Council on International Trade Development, a Washington-based industry group, wants to modernize the U.S. government’s system for measuring computer speeds.
“That would make it easy for non-technical people to make correct licensing and reporting decisions,” said Herb Riley, the NCITD’s export committee chairman, in a letter this week to William Reinsch, undersecretary for the Commerce Department’s Bureau of Export Administration.
To do that, the NCITD suggests that manufacturers should certify a computer’s speed at the time of sale. Then the manufacturer would not be liable if the computer’s speed is enhanced after the buyer takes possession.
Many companies buy computers in the U.S. that are exported to overseas operations. “Making the correct licensing or reporting decision can be difficult since the manufacturer does not provide information on the speed of the computer that is compatible with the parameters described in the CCL (Commerce Control List),” Riley said.