July 26-27, 1999
Montreal, Canada

Speaker Biography

Bill Poulos

Director of Electronic Commcerce
EDS Office of Government Affairs

Bill Poulos is Director of Electronic Commerce Policy at the EDS Office of Government Affairs in Washington, DC. He provides EDS officers and business unit leaders with advice on national and international public policy issues relating to the Internet and electronic business.

As chair of the Electronic Commerce Committee drafting group of the US-Japan Business Council, a group of approximately 150 CEOs from Japan and the United States, he provides policy recommendations to both the US and Japanese governments, and to other international governments.

Mr. Poulos chairs the Legal Jurisdiction Committee of the Global Business Dialogue, an organization of 24 CEOs from Asia, Europe, Africa, and the Americas who create consensus recommendations on issues relating to doing business on the Internet. Participating US companies include IBM, AOL, Netscape, Hewlett Packard, Time Warner, MCIWorldcom, Disney, and EDS.

In 1997 and 1998, Mr. Poulos chaired the US Electronic Commerce Committee of the Transatlantic Business Dialogue, an organization of approximately 100 CEOs from Europe and the United States who provide policy recommendations to the European Commission and the US Government.

Mr. Poulos is periodically invited to participate as an advisor to the US Government on negotiations with international government bodies. He is very active in national and international policy discussions over how best to develop global policy for electronic business. He also has testified before the US House and Senate on numerous occasions.

Mr. Poulos is widely recognized as an expert on the issues most critical to the development of the Internet for business use: security and encryption; privacy; electronic authentication; intellectual property; and liability issues for information service providers and others. He also contributes to shaping policy regarding the control of undesirable content on global networks, and policy regarding the harmonization of legal systems to allow seamless electronic commerce and contracting on a global scale.

From 1986 to 1993, Mr. Poulos was a Senior Manager of Government Affairs for Apple Computer, Inc.

Before joining Apple Computer, Mr. Poulos had a distinguished 20-year career in the US Army. He was an airborne infantry officer and a decorated combat veteran of Vietnam who completed his military career with service in the Office of the Secretary of the Army, Congressional Liaison.

Mr. Poulos is married and has three adult daughters. He is a graduate of the University of Tampa and the United States Armed Forces Staff College.