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Technology Stocks : PERI (Periphonics) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: rrufff who wrote (1629)	6/30/1999 1:30:00 PM
From: John F Beule	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 1682

The real reason PERI is up: Washington Works Out Bugs in Y2K Liability The President and Congress agree on a bill to limit some Year 2000 computer lawsuits What happens when the computer society meets the litigious society at some Y2K-breakdown point next year? Horrified by the possible multibillion-dollar answer, the high-tech industry, joined by the wider business community, convinced Congress to pass legislation earlier this year limiting company liability in the event of Y2K disruptions. But faced with a threatened log-off from the White House by way of a presidential veto, congressional negotiators sat down with White House aides in the past few weeks to address the President's concerns that consumers not be shortchanged by the legal system if they should come to court with a legitimate Y2K gripe. On Tuesday the two sides announced they had reached a compromise. <Picture: Special>The agreed-upon bill, which congressional leaders now hope can be enacted before the July 4 recess, would encourage mediation and give companies a 90-day period to fix a computer glitch before a plaintiff could file suit. There would be a punitive-damages cap for small businesses and companies would be held liable only for the portion of damage that they cause. “Both sides got something,” says TIME senior writer Adam Cohen. Industry got some protections, but he says “the bill still leaves a lot of room for people to go to court.” Congressional negotiators did not have a veto-proof majority, and “they got the best package the White House would go along with,” he says. But the big question remains: How necessary is the legislation? This is one of those rare instances where Washington has actually anticipated a problem. But it's a problem whose dimensions no one will really know until 2000 rolls around. -- ALAIN L. SANDERS