Tech trade groups combining for greater clout

TECH TRADE GROUPS COMBINING FOR GREATER CLOUT
[SOURCE: Associated Press 11/23, AUTHOR: Dibya Sarkar]
Relative newcomers to Capitol Hill lobbying, technology giants with sometimes differing agendas are figuring out what oil and pharmaceutical companies have known for years: There's strength in numbers. The Information Technology Association of America and the Government Electronics and Information Technology Association are combining. The industry's presence in Washington has long suffered, critics say, from lacking a unified force voice to lobby on fundamental issues, such as taxes, patent reform, immigration and trade, that affect tech companies of all stripes.
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