Lawmakers have also refocused their attention on cybersecurity, continuing the long-running debate over what, if any, legislative measures are necessary to improve the security of critical digital systems. Meantime, the privacy debate continues to simmer, with policymakers releasing two prominent reports advancing the administration's stance on protecting sensitive information online. Then the ongoing battle between wireless providers who say they desperately need more spectrum to handle the surge in mobile data traffic and the television broadcasters who are reluctant to give up their airwaves licenses saw something of a resolution.

In tech policy, as in other heavily lobbied sectors of government activity, it can sometimes be hard to separate the heat from the light. In that spirit, we've put together a recap of the movement of some of the most prominent industry issues over the first three months of 2012, a year with an abbreviated legislative calendar owing to the fall election.

With the of groups like the Motion Picture Association of American (MPAA) and the Recording Industry Association of American (RIAA), two slightly different versions of anti-piracy legislation in the House and the Senate seemed to be on the fast track toward passage in each chamber and reconciliation in conference.