September 11-12, 2000
San Francisco, CA

Speaker Biographies

Mark Bohannon

General Counsel and Vice President for Government Affairs
Software & Information Industry Association, USA

Mark Bohannon is the General Counsel and Vice President of Government Affairs for the Software & Information Industry Association (SIIA). SIIA represents more than 1,000 companies in 33 countries around the world that develop and market software and digital content for business, education, consumers and the Internet.

In this position, Mr. Bohannon is responsible for the legal and public policy agenda of the principal trade association of the digital code and content industry. His work in areas such as intellectual property, ecommerce, and the Internet, includes not only North America, but also Europe and the Pacific Rim.

Prior to joining SIIA, Mr. Bohannon was a senior official of the U.S. Department of Commerce where he served as Chief Counsel for Technology and Counsellor to the Under Secretary. During his tenure, he was integrally involved in a wide range of technology development, intellectual property, trade, global legal framework, ecommerce and domain name policy areas. Mr. Bohannon was a member of the US Delegation to the proposed Hague Convention, a Vice-Chair of the OECD Working Party on Information Security and Privacy, and the US Delegation to the UN Committee on International Trade Law, as well as a leader in the transition of the domain name system to the private sector and in the transatlantic agenda affecting e-commerce.

A native of Austin, Texas, Mark Bohannon is a graduate of the Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University and of the George Washington University Law School in Washington, D.C.