On Friday, February 12, 2010, U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder announced that the U.S. Department of Justice has launched a new intellectual property task force to combat the increasing prevalence of IP crimes. As referenced within a recent PC World article (available HERE), "The task force will work closely with the recently established White House Office of the Intellectual Property Enforcement Coordinator (IPEC), which has the responsibility of drafting a strategic plan on IP for President Barack Obama's administration." According to Holder, "[t]he rise in intellectual property crime in the United States and abroad threatens not only our public safety but also our economic well-being," and "[t]he Department of Justice must confront this threat with a strong and coordinated response." According to a NationalJournal.com article (available HERE), "[t]he department said the new task force emerged out of a White House meeting hosted by Vice President Biden in December, which included Holder and other members of the president's Cabinet as well as executives from the movie studios, record companies, book publishers and television networks."