Tech lobbyists’ new mantra: strength through unity

Silicon Valley CEOs re-engineered lobbying 15 years ago. Their invention, TechnNet, which brings members of Congress out to meet celebrity tech execs — and their checkbooks — is no longer seen as doing enough to deliver the goods, some say. Neither are the other tech lobbies. Tech companies nearly lost a battle with Hollywood over online piracy on the Hill this year. And their other pet issues — more immigration of high-skilled workers and a tax holiday for overseas earnings — have gone nowhere. TechNet member CEOs are now in the throes of deciding whether to merge with a more traditional Washington lobby, the Information Technology Industry Council, to push their agenda the old-fashioned way: by strength in numbers making the rounds in DC. “In order to strengthen our voice, we realized we could be more effective in joining with other organizations doing the same thing,” said Kim Polese, a startup founder and CEO of such companies as Marimba and SpikeSource who also is a member of TechNet’s executive council. “Our mission is too important not to have the maximum resources and a unified voice.” Some tech leaders are pushing for a single organization to represent the gamut of tech companies, which ranges from hardware manufacturers to Internet companies to mobile app developers, similar to the Motion Picture Association of America and PhRMA. Others say it’s time for tech to have its own super PAC or start a marketing campaign to better tell its story to the public and the Hill.