October 1998

EDTECH
Schools Get Internet Access, but How do Teachers Use it? (CyberTimes)
Log On or Lag, Girls Are Warned (WP)

UNIVERSAL ACCESS/PHONE REGULATION
Carpe Diem: Seizing Opportunities in the Global Marketplace (FCC)
Local Telephone US Out to Reclaim Local Phone Power (ChiTrib)
Justice Questions Local-Telephone Rules (WSJ)

JOBS
Bill to Increase Work Visas for Foreigners Gets New Lease on Life (NYT)

OWNERSHIP
ABC Kills Story Critical Of Owner Disney (WP)
ABC Kills Planned TV Story Critical of Parent's Park (WSJ)
New Radio Network Set for Fox News (NYT)

ADVERTISING
Mass. Gets Tough With Adult Smokers In Graphic TV Ads (WP)

CENSORSHIP
ACLU Favors Porn over Parents (WSJ)

MERGERS
Commission to Hold the First of Two En Bancs Regarding
Telecom Mergers (FCC)

ANTITRUST
Microsoft Rebuttal Reinterprets Old E-Mail (NYT)

======
EDTECH
======

SCHOOLS GET INTERNET ACCESS, BUT HOW DO TEACHERS USE IT?
Issue: Ed Tech
Next week, Market Data Retrieval will release a report
http://www.schooldata.com/ that says teachers are not yet making regular
use of the Internet in the classroom. The study shows that 85% of American
schools have Internet access and 44% of classrooms have at least one
computer wired to the Internet. 14% of the schools reported that 90% or more
of their teachers use the Internet for what the study called "instructional
purposes" while about 60% of the schools surveyed reported that less than
one third of their teachers employed the Internet to assist with
instruction. About 46% of the responding schools reported that less than one
third of their teachers used the computer daily for "instructional planning
and/or teaching." [Those damn gym teachers are always pulling down the
curve] Market Data Retrieval said the reason for the low use could be 1)
that connections in schools are new so teachers are just getting use to
computers and the Internet and 2) it could be generational -- in a
profession where the median age is 44, many teachers grew up without
computers and may feel uncomfortable with the technology or lack the
training to use it, a researcher said. "One of the things lagging behind is
professional competency and development," said Cheryl Lemke, executive
director of the Milken Exchange on Educational Technology, a group that
promotes effective use of technology in schools. "Whereas teachers may now
have the access, they have not had the opportunity to learn how to use the
technology effectively with children." Larry Cuban, a Stanford University
education professor who has written a history of failed attempts to
introduce technology into schools, offered other possible reasons for slow
adoption of computers in the classroom: 1) policymakers have not worked with
teachers closely enough to ensure the successful introduction of new
technology and 2) no one has answered the question yet -- do kids learn more
using computers.
[SOURCE: New York Times (CyberTimes), AUTHOR: Pamela Mendels
mendels( at )nytimes.com]
http://www.nytimes.com/library/tech/98/10/cyber/education/14education.html

LOG ON OR LAG, GIRLS WARNED
'Virtual Ceiling' May Replace Glass as Computer Gap Widens
Issue: Gender/ EdTech
A report being released today by the American Association of University
Women found that girls lag behind boys in the number and level of computer
courses they enroll in. This gap persists through college and results in an
underepresentation of women in the lucrative technology career market. "We
are concerned that as we move into the 21st century, girls are not going to
be prepared for the areas for which clearly there will be a need," said
Janice Weinman, AAUW's executive director. "The virtual ceiling is replacing
the glass ceiling." The AAUW report does not include information on
minorities in technology education, but researchers at Carnegie Mellon
University who offer a summer course for high school computer science
teachers say the minority gap is at least as troubling. "Many of the high
school teachers are saying gender is a problem, but race is the most glaring
problem," said Jane Margolis, a visiting research scientist at Carnegie Mellon.
[SOURCE: Washington Post (A4), AUTHOR: Ann O' Hanlon]
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/WPcap/1998-10/14/034r-101498-idx.html

=================================
UNIVERSAL ACCESS/PHONE REGULATION
=================================

UNIVERSAL ACCESS : CARPE DIEM: SEIZING OPPORTUNITIES IN THE GLOBAL MARKETPLACE
Issue: Universal Access
Chairman Kennard's Speech at the Regulators' Breakfast ITU Plenipotentiary
Conference in Minneapolis, Minnesota. "This conference provides a unique
opportunity for regulators from around the world to debate and discuss, both
formally and informally, the major issues that will determine the future of
international telecommunications. As regulators, we face a critical role in
shaping that future and ensuring that competitive and liberalized markets
benefit all consumers around the globe....I believe there are three basic
principles which should guide our policies on universal access: 1.
Reasonable and Affordable Rates for All Consumers; 2. Competitive and
Technological Neutrality; 3. Universal Service Mechanisms that are
Transparent and Fair"
[SOURCE: FCC]
http://www.fcc.gov/Speeches/Kennard/spwek831.html

LOCAL TELEPHONE US OUT TO RECLAIM LOCAL PHONE POWER (ChiTrib)
JUSTICE QUESTIONS LOCAL-TELEPHONE RULES (WSJ)
Issue: Telephone Regulation
While the Supreme Court is eager to encourage competition in local telephone
markets, the Court was skeptical of the FCC rules designed to do just that.
Several Justices felt that the federal rules, requiring incumbent carriers
to lease local network access to competitors, usurped the state's power to
set local rates.
[SOURCE: Chicago Tribune (Sec 3,p.3), AUTHOR: Jan Crawford Greenberg]
http://chicagotribune.com/
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal (B10), AUTHOR: Edward Felsensthal]
http://wsj.com/

====
JOBS
====

BILL TO INCREASE WORK VISAS FOR FOREIGNERS GETS NEW LEASE ON LIFE
Issue: Jobs
Congressional leaders have agreed to add to the omnibus spending bill
legislation that will nearly double the number of employment visas for
skilled foreign workers. "This is a big victory for the economy, which is
being fueled in large part by our high-tech industries," Senator Spencer
Abraham (R-MI) said. "The legislation strikes the right balance in
safeguarding America's competitive edge and protecting U.S. jobs." Sen Tom
Harkin (D-Iowa) and the White House had opposed the bill because of concerns
it lacked protection for US workers. The number of H1-B visas will increase
from 65,000 to 115,000 in each of the next two years and settle back to
107,500 in the third year. No more than 15% of a company's work force can
consist of H1-B employees and it must attest that they have not replaced
American workers. There will be a $500 filing fee on visa applications and
renewals which is expected to raise $75 million. These funds will be spent
for training and scholarship programs for US citizens. (Oh, training US
citizens for jobs in the US; yeah, I guess that's another way to go.) The
bill is seen as a big victory for the Silicon Valley firms that said they
could not find enough skilled US workers.
[SOURCE: New York Times (C3), AUTHOR: Jeri Clausing]
http://www.nytimes.com/library/tech/yr/mo/cyber/articles/14visa.html

=========
OWNERSHIP
=========

ABC KILLS STORY CRITICAL OF DISNEY OWNER (WP)
ABC KILLS PLANNED TV STORY CRITICAL OF PARENT'S PARK (WSJ)
Issue: Ownership
Yesterday, ABC officials denied that corporate linkage influenced their
decision to pull an investigative report on allegations involving Walt
Disney Co., which owns ABC. "Disney: The Mouse Betrayed", a "20/20" segment
produced by Brian Ross, alleged, among other things, that Disney World in
Florida fails to perform security checks that would prevent the hiring of
sex offenders, and has problems with peeping Toms. According to an ABC
spokeswoman, news president David Westin's killing of the story had nothing
to do with any network reluctance to criticize its parent company. "The fact
that this particular story involved Disney was not the reason it did not
make air," claim ABC officials.
[SOURCE: Washington Post (D), AUTHOR: Howard Kurtz ]
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/WPlate/1998-10/14/029l-101498-idx.html
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal (B8), AUTHOR: Bruse Orwall]
http://wsj.com/

NEW RADIO NETWORK SET FOR FOX NEWS
Issue: Radio/Ownership
Westwood One, the number 1 distributor of radio programming, will team up
with the Fox News Channel to create a new radio network -- Fox News. The
network will feature sports and entertainment updates, and news from Fox
with sports and entertainment from Westwood One which services 7,000 radio
stations around the world through an agreement with CBS.
[SOURCE: New York Times (C8), AUTHOR: Bloomberg News]
http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/f/AP-Fox-News-Radio.html

===========
ADVERTISING
===========

MASS. GETS TOUGH WITH ADULT SMOKERS IN GRAPHIC TV ADS
Issue: Advertising/Health
While state health departments around the country have fought smoking by
attacking the tobacco industry, with mixed success, officials in
Massachusetts are attempting to focus attention on individual adult smokers
and encourage them to quit. A series of 30-second documentary-style
sequences, which cost $1.5 million to produce, will show Pam Laffin, 29-year
old mother of two, struggle to survive while slowly suffocating from the
debilitating and deadly lung disease emphysema. The six-part series of
compelling and often graphic antismoking commercials will air during some of
this season's most popular television programs. The MA Department of Health
developed a new advertising approach after researchers concluded that
realistic and graphic antismoking images were more effective in targeting
smokers than lighter, less direct approaches
[SOURCE: Washington Post (A3), AUTHOR: Pamela Ferdinand, Special to The
Washington Post]
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/WPcap/1998-10/14/051r-101498-idx.html

==========
CENSORSHIP
==========

ACLU FAVORS PORN OVER PARENTS
Issue: Censorship (Op-Ed)
Author Amitai Etzionoi is appalled by the ACLU and the American Library
Association's attempt to prevent Libraries from installing filtering
software to block children's access to harmful material. The ACLU has filed
suits against several communities that have tried to install such blocking
devices. Etzioni claims that, in trying to insure the free flow of ideas,
the ACLU is restricting parents' ability to shape the education of their
children; "developing a child's charter is a parent's highest duty - a duty
no civil libertarian should interfere with."
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal (A22), AUTHOR: Amitai Etzionoi]
http://wsj.com/

=======
MERGERS
=======

COMMISSION TO HOLD THE FIRST OF TWO EN BANCS REGARDING TELECOM MERGERS
Issue: Mergers
Commission to Hold the First of Two En Bancs Regarding Telecom Mergers to
Discuss Recent Consolidation Activities in the Telecommunications Industry,
on Thursday, October 22, 1998, Focusing on Three of the Proposed Mergers
Before the Commission. The first En Banc will take place on Thursday,
October 22, 1998, from 2:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m., and will be held in the
Commission Meeting Room (Room 856) at 1919 M. Street, N.W., Washington, DC.
The purpose of these En Bancs is to assist the Commission in determining
whether these mergers are consistent with the goals of the 1996
Telecommunications Act, which include promoting competition in
telecommunications markets and protecting the public interest.
[SOURCE: FCC]
http://www.fcc.gov/Bureaus/Common_Carrier/Public_Notices/1998/da982045.html

=========
ANTITRUST
=========

MICROSOFT REBUTTAL REINTERPRETS OLD E-MAIL
Issue: Antitrust
Am I the only person in this room who can read binary, Mr Gates said...
In a 40-page paper Setting the Record Straight, released yesterday,
Microsoft attempts to refute the Government's antitrust case which the
company asserts is based on "a handful of snippets" from among the 3.3
million pages of email and memos handed over to the Justice Department. In
the paper, Microsoft portrays itself as an upstart underdog battling and
rivals Intuit and America Online. One quoted internal email written by Mr.
Gates describes a meeting he had with the chief executive of Intuit which at
the time had started shipping Quicken financial software with the Netscape
Internet browser. "I was quite frank with him that if he had a favor we
could do for him that would cost us something like $1 million to do that in
return for switching browsers in the next few months, I would be open to
doing that." Microsoft contends that put in context, it is actually Intuit
that is doing the hard bargaining, not Mr. Gates. "You would expect
Microsoft to take positions that at least pass the laugh test," said Kevin
Arquit, a partner at Rogers and Wells, who is a consultant to Sun
Microsystems Inc. a Microsoft rival. "This paper suggests that Microsoft is
worried about the evidence that is going to come out in the trial."
[SOURCE: New York Times (C2), AUTHOR: Steve Lohr]
http://www.nytimes.com/library/tech/98/10/biztech/articles/14soft.html

*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*

TELEVISION
Wait-and-see TV (ChiTrib)
CBS News Division Cuts About 7% of Work Force (NYT)
CBS Talking Heads Spared the Budget Ax (WP)

ELECTRONIC COMMERCE
Attention Internet Shoppers: No New Taxes (NYT)
Senate Passes Moratorium On New Internet Taxation (WP)
Focus on Productivity and Profit at Internet World (CyberTimes)
A flood of Web Patents Stirs Dispute Over Tactics (WSJ)

INTERNET
Internet Domain Names (NTIA)

MERGERS
Clear Channel to Buy Jacor For $2.8 Billion in Stock (NYT)
Zell Tunes In To Radio Mergers in $4 Billion Deal (ChiTrib)

ADVERTISING
Media Companies Paying to Get Noticed (NYT)

COPYRIGHT/PRIVACY
House and Senate Agree on Complex Copyright Bill (CyberTimes)
Strict European Privacy Law Puts Pressure on U.S. (CyberTimes)

MAGAZINES
Canada Tries to Protect Market for Magazines (WP)
Canada Proposes Ban on Local Advertisements in
Foreign MagazineS (WSJ)

==========
TELEVISION
==========

WAIT-AND-SEE TV
Issue: Television
In July 1974, more than 7 out of 10 homes tuned in for one or more committee
sessions as Congress weighed impeachment of President Nixon. Broadcasters
are uncertain if they will air impeachment hearings this time around. "Gosh,
I wish I knew," said Lane Venardos, executive producer of special events at
CBS News. "We don't know if they'll be a week, two weeks, a month, or a
series of months of excruciating detail that will make your head hurt. Not
much is known about this." Even PBS which ran around-the-clock coverage in
'74 is not sure how much coverage it will make available: "it's a totally
different world now," a PBS spokesperson said. True -- in 1974 the broadcast
networks owned the world of television then. Now 50% of the television
audience watches cable networks. If broadcasters let cable provide the
coverage, however, what about the 30% of households that don't have cable?
"The only thing we can say for sure is we see it (the hearing) as a very,
very serious deliberation...and we'll cover it as thoroughly and completely
as we can," said Bob Murphy, senior vice president of hard news at ABC News.
"This is a constitutional process that has only been done two other times.
You can't state it any other way than in serious
terms," Murphy said. "Would we do wall-to-wall every day? I would say that
will be unlikely," said Wheatley. "But there probably would be particular
times when it is newsworthy."
[SOURCE: Chicago Tribune (Sec 3, p.1), AUTHOR: Tim Jones]
http://chicagotribune.com/textversion/article/0,1492,ART-16312,00.html

CBS NEWS DIVISION CUTS ABOUT 7% OF WORK FORCE
CBS TALKING HEADS SPARED THE BUDGET AX
Issue: Television Economics
CBS will save close to 40 million by firing about 7% of its news staff. The
network lost money last year and is expected to again this year -- largely
as a result of higher prices for entertainment shows and football games. No
bureaus were closed and no correspondents were let go. "We are consolidating
management functions in our hubs in New York, Washington, Los Angeles,
London and Tokyo," Andrew Heyward, President of CBS News wrote in a
memorandum to the news division Thursday. "This means fewer people in
Dallas, Miami, Tel Aviv and Moscow, but our core news gathering strength in
those places remains intact and is expected to increase elsewhere as this
system evolves." The new system will rely on communications technology --
satellites, cell phones, and computers -- to link correspondents and
producers in the field to supervisors in the hub cities.
[SOURCE: New York Times (C4), AUTHOR: Lawrie Mifflin]
http://www.nytimes.com/yr/mo/day/news/financial/cbs-reorg.html
[SOURCE: Washington Post (D7), AUTHOR: Lisa de Moraes ]
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/WPlate/1998-10/09/096l-100998-idx.html

===================
ELECTRONIC COMMERCE
===================

ATTENTION INTERNET SHOPPERS: NO NEW TAXES
SENATE PASSES MORATORIUM ON NEW INTERNET TAXATION
Issue: Electronic Commerce
In a 96 to 2 vote, the Senate passed the Internet Tax Freedom Act yesterday,
agreeing to make the Internet a tax-free zone for the next three years. "Let
it grow out of its infancy before we let the tax man put his teeth into
various parts of its anatomy," Senator Joseph I. Lieberman (D-CT) said in
debate on Wednesday. But Senator Dale Bumpers (D-AK) who voted against the
bill, complained in debate, "I'm for computers, I'm for technology, but I'm
not for allowing them to erode the tax base of this country." The bill will
have to go to a conference committee to work out minor differences between
the House version of the bill -- both call for a three-year moratorium on
Internet taxes by state and local governments and for a panel to study the
matter.
[SOURCE: New York Times (C3), AUTHOR: Matthew Wald]
http://www.nytimes.com/library/tech/yr/mo/biztech/articles/09net.html
[SOURCE: Washington Post (G12), AUTHOR: Curt Anderson (Associated Press)]
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/WPlate/1998-10/09/123l-100998-idx.html

FOCUS ON PRODUCTIVITY AND PROFIT AT INTERNET WORLD
Issue: Electronic Commerce
The focus of the 1998 Fall Internet World trade show is profitability, not
being "cool." The buzzword this year has been "portal" and Lycos and AOL
made announcements on how they will improve as portals. AOL and seven portal
sites, including Infoseek, Yahoo, Lycos, Excite, Netscape, Snap and
Microsoft will donate $3 million worth of banner advertising to TrustE's
Privacy Partnership campaign, which will promote the responsible use of
personal information gathered online. Internet telephony was also
prominently displayed at the show. as heavyweight AT&T announcement its
Global Clearinghouse service, which will enable Internet service providers
and small telecommunications carriers to offer phone-to-phone Internet
telephony service to 140 countries.
[SOURCE: New York Times (CyberTimes), AUTHOR: Matt Lake]
http://www.nytimes.com/library/tech/98/10/cyber/articles/09iworld.html

A FLOOD OF WEB PATENTS STIRS DISPUTE OVER TACTICS
Issue: Internet
Many online companies are racing to patent online versions of familiar
practices in the physical world. There are now patents for online processes
ranging from frequent buyer programs to "reverse" auctions, where buyers
name prices for airline tickets. As cyberspace makes things patentable that
weren't before, it is likely that companies will demand fees from Web
Merchants for the completion of everyday transactions. Instead of
encouraging innovation, some fear that e-patents might just cause holdups in
cyberspace.
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal(B1), AUTHOR: Scott Thurm]
http://wsj.com/

========
INTERNET
========

INTERNET DOMAIN NAMES
Issue: Internet
NTIA has posted the October 6 Negotiated Amendment to the Cooperative
Agreement between the Department of Commerce and NSI.
[SOURCE: NTIA]
http://www.ntia.doc.gov/ntiahome/domainname/proposals/docnsi100698.htm

=======
MERGERS
=======

CLEAR CHANNEL TO BUY JACOR FOR $2.8 BILLION IN STOCK
ZELL TUNES IN TO RADIO MERGERS IN $4 BILLION DEAL
Issue: Mergers/Radio
In a deal that will link 855 radio stations in the US, Clear Channel will
pay $2.8 billion for Jacor Communications. The combined company will rank
behind CBS and Chancellor Broadcasting as the biggest radio ownership
groups. Clear Channel will also assume $1.5 billion in Jacor debt. You want
synergy from your mergers? Jacor has 40% of its radio stations where Clear
Channel has "forests" of billboards, but Clear Channel radio stations are
mostly in other markets. The combined company will have two or more radio
stations in 6 of the top 12 largest markets in the US.
[SOURCE: New York Times (C5), AUTHOR: Allen Myerson]
http://www.nytimes.com/yr/mo/day/news/financial/radio-merger.html
[SOURCE: Chicago Tribune (Sec 3, p.3), AUTHOR: Tim Jones]
http://chicagotribune.com/textversion/article/0,1492,SAV-9810090162,00.html

===========
ADVERTISING
===========

MEDIA COMPANIES PAYING TO GET NOTICED
Issue: Advertising
Media companies like ESPN, Time Inc, and USA Today will pay an estimated
$100,000 each to sponsor the three daily sessions of the Association of
National Advertisers conference. "A national convention should probably not
be bought out by sponsors," said a Hearst executive who complained of last
year's sponsorship of the conference by ABC, CBS, and FOX, "and ideally
ought to be a neutral forum for thinking about where the business is going."
But since you can't beat 'em -- you join them: Hearst is sponsoring a
general session at this year's conference. (Can anyone say The Media Will
Eat Itself?) The chief executive of ANA said: "We've had nothing but
positive responses to the format we established last year and the attendance
this time looks like another all-time record high" at about 550 registrants.
"These conferences are very difficult and expensive to put together," he
added. "The sponsorship fees enable us to produce a meeting of the proper
caliber. Everything we're talking about" at the conference "is totally
consistent with a marketer trying to build business by building brands and
reaching the changing consumer."
[SOURCE: New York Times (C5), AUTHOR: Stuart Elliott]
http://www.nytimes.com/yr/mo/day/news/financial/ad-column.html

=================
COPYRIGHT/PRIVACY
=================

HOUSE AND SENATE AGREE ON COMPLEX COPYRIGHT BILL
Issue: Copyright
The House and Senate have reached agreement on a compromise version of the
Digital Millennium Copyright Act
http://ftp://ftp.loc.gov/pub/thomas/c105/h2281.ih.txt. The bill is
designed to implement World Intellectual Property Organization
http://www.wipo.org treaties for protecting music, software and written
works on the Internet. But the bill goes farther than those 1996 WIPO
agreements, making it illegal to circumvent technologies used to protect
digital works. "Congress could have, if it really wanted to strike a balance
in the most even-handed way, said, 'Okay, we're going to make it illegal for
someone to go through these digital wrappers... for the intent of what we
would call digital piracy,'" said Adam Eisgrau, legislative counsel for the
American Library Association in Washington. "They could have said, 'But you
are permitted to go through a digital wrapper if you are doing something
other than digital piracy. What we ended up with, is that it is illegal,
flat out, to go through a digital wrapper."
[SOURCE: New York Times (CyberTimes), AUTHOR: Matt Lake]
http://www.nytimes.com/library/tech/98/10/cyber/articles/09wipo.html

STRICT EUROPEAN PRIVACY LAW PUTS PRESSURE ON US
Issue: Privacy
On October 25, the European Union's Data Protection Directive comes into
effect. Based on the notion that privacy is a fundamental human right, it
establishes a common minimum standard of data privacy protection in Europe.
"The directive has raised the visibility of privacy law in the U.S.," said
Peter P. Swire, a law professor at Ohio State University. "Some of the least
defensible corporate practices in the U.S. are coming under pressure," Prof
Swire said, noting that in recent months the Federal Trade Commission has
worked hard to protect children's privacy on the Internet and an increasing
number of Web sites in the United States have posted privacy policies. "I
don't think the timing is a coincidence." The European law requires that
citizens be told what their personal data will be used for, have access to
data about themselves in companies' files, have the ability to correct false
information and be given notice and the opportunity to opt out before
personal data is transferred to a third party. "The fact is, we have a very
strong tradition of privacy protection," said Marc Rotenberg, director of
the Electronic Privacy Information Center,. "What we don't have are adequate
techniques for enforcement, and we don't have a coherent approach to private
sector protection -- we have a patchwork quilt of laws. I think the E.U.
directive is a reminder that we have more work to do in the U.S. to protect
privacy."
[SOURCE: New York Times (CyberTimes), AUTHOR: Carl Kaplan]
http://www.nytimes.com/library/tech/98/10/cyber/cyberlaw/09law.html

=========
MAGAZINES
=========

CANADA TRIES TO PROTECT MARKET FOR MAGAZINES (WP)
CANADA PROPOSES BAN ON LOCAL ADVERTISING IN FOREIGN MAGAZINES (WSJ)
Issue: Magazines
In a move to help protect Canada's culture from domination by that of its
larger neighbor, the USA, the Canadian government has introduced legislation
today that would make it illegal for American magazines to sell advertising
in editions directed at Canadian audiences. "We can't afford to let the
cultural underpinnings of our country be cut down by people whose only
interest is to sell advertising," said Sheila Copps, Canada's heritage
minister. Copps argues that without protection, Canadian consumers and
advertisers would wind up with fewer choices, not more, as hundreds of
Canadian magazines are driven out of business by American competition. The
magazine dispute -- the latest in a series of trade conflicts - has caused
U.S. officials to fear that, if allowed to stand, the magazine restrictions
could set a precedent that would work against other key American export
industries, such as television and movies, software and Internet services.
[SOURCE: Washington Post (A40), AUTHOR: Steven Pearlstien]
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/WPlate/1998-10/09/053l-100998-idx.html
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal (B9), AUTHOR: Wall Street Journal Staff]
http://wsj.com/

*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*
Congratulations to Nobel Prize for Literature winner Jose Saramagoes and CRH
staffer Ted Tate who is off to get married this weekend.

...and we are outta here. We'll see you *Tuesday* -- enjoy the holiday.

DIGITAL TV
Digital TV Broadcasts to Begin (NYT)
Four Area Stations to Offer Digital Broadcasts (WP)

INFRASTRUCTURE
Evanston on Road to High-Speed Data (Chi-Trib)

ED TECH
Educators Emphasize Teacher Training in Technology (NYT)
NYU Sees Profits in Virtual Classes (NYT)

INTERNET
U.S. and Domain Registry Reach Accord (NYT)
Firm Loosens Control of Internet (WP)
Commerce Dept. and Network Solutions Reach Agreement (NTIA)
Internet Giants Plan Campaign to Teach Consumers Their Online
Privacy Rights
(WSJ)
Firms Plan Ad Blitz on Internet Privacy (WP)
Coalition Announces Intiative for Online Privacy (NYT)
France Telecom Plans Update for Minitel (NYT)
Study Finds Ad Banners Make an Impression (NYT)

TELEPHONY
Press Statement by Chairman Kennard on Access Charge Reform (FCC)
FCC Seeks Comment on Changes to Local Telephone Companies' Rate of
Return to Reflect Marketplace Conditions (FCC)

MERGERS
2 Book Giants In Global Deal To Sell Titles Via Internet (NYT)
Publisher, Bookseller Join Forces (WP)
Bertelsmann to Buy A 50% Interest in Web Bookseller
2 Big On-Line Music Stores Said to Be Discussing Merger (NYT)
CDNow and N2K Music Retailers Online to Merge (WSJ)

==========
DIGITAL TV
==========

DIGITAL TV BROADCASTS TO BEGIN (NYT)
FOUR AREA TV STATIONS TO OFFER DIGITAL BROADCASTS (WP)
Issue: Digital TV
The National Association of Broadcasters announced that 42 stations -- 16
more than were originally scheduled -- will air digital broadcasts beginning
this November. While the stations will only broadcast some program events --
like movies or sports -- in the razor-sharp high definition format, regular
digital programs will sill have much higher resolution than current analog
broadcasts. Digital's rocky start, including compatibility problems between
cable and DTV sets, could mean that even some viewers who have spent
$5000-$10000 to purchase digital receivers might have trouble receiving the
new broadcasts.
[SOURCE: New York Times (CyberTimes), AUTHOR: Associated Press]
http://www.nytimes.com/library/tech/98/10/biztech/articles/07digital-tv....
[SOURCE: Washington Post (C11), AUTHOR: Paul Farhi]
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/WPlate/1998-10/07/114l-100798-idx.html
See also: Press Statement by Chairman Kennard on Digital Television Transition.
[SOURCE: FCC]
http://www.fcc.gov/Speeches/Kennard/Statements/stwek875.html

===============
INFRASTRUCTURE
===============

EVANSTON ON ROAD TO HIGH-SPEED DATA
Issue: Infrastructure
A group of regional planners in the Chicago area is working toward the goal
of turning suburban Evanston into the area's first totally wired community.
Made up of officials from Northwestern University and the City of Evanston,
the group has solicited proposals from a half-dozen companies to wire up
every residence in town with high-speed connections. A study to be released
by the Metropolitan Planning Council (MPC) Wednesday suggests that municipal
officials should embrace digital infrastructure as ardently as zoning.
According to the Chicago regional planners, high-speed information
infrastructure will become as essential to a community's economic well-being
in the near future as streets and sewers are now, . The new report, called
``The Digital Network Infrastructure and Metropolitan Chicago,'' notes that
electronic commerce will be a key factor in the next century and suggests
that Chicago can be as much at the center of information services as it has
been at the center of traditional transportation technology. ``We're trying
to provide models of how to get these networks built,'' said Patricia
Widmayer co-author of the report. ``We want other communities to have
examples of how to expand broadband networks. Municipalities don't have a
lot of money to spend, but what they do spend should be used strategically
to further planning goals.''
[SOURCE: Chicago Tribune (Sec 3, p.1), AUTHOR: Jon Van & LeAnn Spencer]
http://chicagotribune.com/textversion/article/0,1492,ART-16164,00.html
See full MPC report: http://www.nwu.edu/it/metrochicago/

=======
ED TECH
=======

EDUCAOTRS EMPHASIZED TEACHER TRAINING IN TECHNOLOGY
Issue: EdTech
Education experts have begun to focus on a seemingly simple concept: If the
billions of dollars being spent on technology in schools are to reap any
educational benefit, teachers need to know how to use the computers.
Officials from the United States Department of Education announced that, for
the first time since the award program was established four years ago, this
year's Technology Innovation Challenge Grant awards were only being given to
projects that focused on teacher training. Last week, the results of a new
study of classroom computer use appeared to support the new emphasis of the
challenge grants. The report found that computer-equipped students taught by
educators who had received technology training scored better on achievement
tests than other students. The message of these two developments was clear:
The machine is only as effective as the teacher using it.
[SOURCE: New York Times (CyberTimes), AUTHOR: Pamela Mendels]
http://www.nytimes.com/library/tech/98/10/cyber/education/07education.html

NYU SEES PROF ITS IN VIRTUAL CLASSES
Issue: EdTech
Moving to become a major player in the emerging Internet education market,
New York University plans to create a for-profit subsidiary that will
develop specialized online courses. The move is a direct response to what
many educators see as the biggest challenge to higher education: the rise of
profit-making institutions. These new schools threaten to use the Internet
to siphon off some of academia's most profitable courses -- continuing
education for adult learners -- and leave universities only in the expensive
business of undergraduate education. "Online courses can be developed very
cheaply, but what people are discovering is that the success rates are not
very high," said Gerald A. Heeger, dean of N.Y.U.'s School of Continuing and
Professional Studies, who will run the new enterprise. "The issue here is
not to have thousands of courses, but to have highly focused courses that
meet large needs." The for-profit venture is designed to help cover the
costs of developing, marketing and running new, more effective online classes.
[SOURCE: New York Times (A20), AUTHOR: Karen Arenson]
http://www.nytimes.com/library/tech/yr/mo/biztech/articles/07nyu.html

========
INTERNET
========

U.S. AND DOMAIN REGISTRY REACH ACCORD (NYT)
FIRM LOOSENS CONTROL OF INTERNET (WP)
COMMERCE DEPT. AND NETWORK SOLUTIONS REACH AGREEMENT (NTIA)
Issue: Internet
The Internet domain name system enters its third phase with the signing of
an agreement between the Department of Commerce and Network Solutions, Inc.
Network Solutions will allow other firms to enter the market to assign
Internet addresses and will become answerable to a nonprofit corporation
which will govern assignments on the Web. Other firms can begin to assign
names ending in ".com," ".net," ".org" and perhaps other suffixes beginning
March 31. Network Solutions will continue to maintain the master database
for most names and will be responsible for telling the other firms if
specific names are available. The nonprofit corporation which will govern
the system and its 19-member board are still on the drawing board. (NTIA
note: "Last week, the Department received three proposals to administer
policy for the development of competition in the Internet name and address
space. The proposals are posted at www.ntia.doc.gov and public comments on
the proposals will be accepted through October 13, 1998.") Network
Solutions agreed to make available a variety of information to the new
corporation and to the new retail companies who will be selling domain
names. Originally Network Solutions was paid by the U.S. government to
handle the assignments. More recently Network Solutions has held the
contract to administer the assignments with payments coming from the
registrants. The current charge for an initial two-year registration is $70.
[SOURCE: New York Times (CyberTimes), AUTHOR: Jeri Clausing]
http://www.nytimes.com/library/tech/98/10/cyber/articles/07domain.html
[SOURCE: Washington Post (C12), AUTHOR: Rajiv Chandrasekaran]
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/digest/tech3.htm
[SOURCE: NTIA]
http://www.ntia.doc.gov/ntiahome/press/NSI100698.htm

INTERNET GIANTS PLAN CAMPAIGN TO TEACH CONSUMERS THEIR ONLINE PRIVACY RIGHTS
(WSJ)
FIRMS PLAN AD BLITZ ON INTERNET PRIVACY (WP)
COALITION ANNOUNCES INTIATIVE FOR ONLINE PRIVACY (NYT)
Issue: Ed Tech/Privacy
About 85 major Internet companies begin a privacy awareness campaign on
October 12 that will attempt to convince computer users that they can safely
share personal information online. The companies fear that legislation will
come from Congress or rules will come from the Federal Trade Commission if
they do not convince the public that the Web offers adequate privacy
protection. The campaign will include millions of advertisements at World
Wide Web sites and electronic links to privacy resources. The initiative,
called Privacy Partnership, was organized in part by TRUSTe, a nonprofit
company formed to promote privacy online. The effort which runs through
October 31 will include ads on America Online, Microsoft and Netscape sites,
among others.
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal (B9), AUTHOR: Rebecca Quick]
http://www.wsj.com/
[SOURCE: Washington Post (C12), AUTHOR: Robert O'Harrow Jr.]
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/digest/tech1.htm
[SOURCE: New York Times (CyberTimes), AUTHOR: Jeri Clausing)
http://www.nytimes.com/library/tech/98/10/cyber/articles/07privacy.html

FRANCE TELECOM PLANS FOR MINITEL
Issue: Online Services
France Telecom, which pioneered the quirky Minitel online information
service years before anyone ever heard of the Web, announced plans to bring
its aging child into the modern world. Working with the International
Business Machines Corporation, the French telephone company said it would
develop a network to let customers surf the Internet with simple and cheap
screen-based telephones, which would give technophobic customers access to
the Internet without using a more complex personal computer. Under the
agreement announced today, I.B.M. is to develop a new networking platform
that connects a new generation of Internet devices. Unlike most other
Internet access providers, most of the management and navigational
information, including users profiles and their bookmarks, would be held
within France Telecom's network rather than in the terminals.
[SOURCE: New York Times (C2), AUTHOR: Edmund Andrews]
http://www.nytimes.com/library/tech/yr/mo/biztech/articles/07france-interne
t.html

STUDY FINDS AD BANNERS MAKE IMPRESSION
Issue: Advertising
Advertisers accustomed to 30-second television commercials and full-page
print ads have long criticized Internet ad banners for being too small, too
dull and incapable of luring viewers to another page. But with the release
of a new report, the lowly Internet ad banner may finally get some respect.
According to a study conducted by NetRatings, a Web audience measurement
company, sites that invest in even a modest banner advertising campaign can
significantly increase their audience size, regardless of the number of
people who actually click on the advertisement. The report found that there
is a "significant correlation among sites who consistently advertise" online
and increased audience size.
[SOURCE: New York Times (CyberTimes), AUTHOR: Bob Tedeschi]
http://www.nytimes.com/library/tech/98/10/cyber/articles/07advertising.html

==========
TELEPHONY
==========

PRESS STATEMENT BY CHAIRMAN KENNARD ON ACCESS CHARGE REFORM
Issue: Long Distance
In a written statement, FCC Chairman William Kennard said that access charge
reform is going through a series of steps that will "fulfill our promise of
bringing to consumers the benefits of competition in the form of more
choices and lower rates." Referring to the market-based approach being
implemented he said three aspects are being re-examined. "First we must
consider the X-factor, the measure of productivity that pushes access
charges lower

COMMUNITIES & INFORMATION
Report Says Poor Areas Lack Information (NYT)
Few and Far Between (B&C)
Latinos Satisfied, Dissatisfied with TV (B&C)
Speech: Hispanic National Bar Association (FCC)

FIRST AMENDMENT
UPN Show Draws Fire From L.A. (B&C)

LEGISLATION
Supreme Court Docket Mixes Old and New (NYT)
The Certainty of Reform (NYT)

ELECTRONIC COMMERCE
Patents: Software that Tracks Web Usage (NYT)
Citibank Sets New Online Bank System (NYT)
Are Online Bargains Here to Stay? (CyberTimes)

INFRASTRUCTURE
Control of Domain Names Draws Alternative Proposal (NYT)
Small Network Consultant Prospers on Backs of
Technology Giants (NYT)
Attention Focuses on AOL for Acquisitions, Alliances (WP)
AOL Builds Toward Broadband Competition (B&C)
Advanced Services Technical Roundtables (FCC)

INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY
The Next Voice You Hear (WP)

ANTITRUST
Microsoft Case: Tapes, E-Mail and Meetings (WSJ)
Why We're Suing Microsoft (WSJ)

=========================
COMMUNITIES & INFORMATION
=========================

REPORT SAYS POOR AREAS LACK INFORMATION
Issue: Low Income Communities
A new report from the World Bank, Knowledge for Development, stresses that
access to financial, technical and medical knowledge is crucial to improving
health and living standards. "In our enthusiasm for the information
superhighway, we must not forget the villages and slums without telephones,
electricity or safe water, the primary schools without pencils, paper or
books," wrote James Wolfensohn, the president of the bank, in an
introduction to the 1998-1999 World Bank Development Report. "For the poor,
the promise of the new information age -- knowledge for all -- can seem as
remote as a distant star." The bank recommends that developing countries
invest in education and technical training and maintain a trading regime
that is open to outside ideas. [For a look at information access in low
income communities in the US, see Losing Ground Bit by Bit: Low-Income
Communities in the Information Age http://www.benton.org/Library/Low-Income/]
[SOURCE: New York Times (C12)]
http://www.nytimes.com/yr/mo/day/news/financial/worldbank-report-afp.html

FEW AND FAR BETWEEN
Issue: Minorities/Ownership
"You would think in this era of unprecedented growth and prosperity in the
(Broadcast) industry we would see more growth in and prosperity among
minority stations," said Federal Communications Chairman William Kennard
last month in a speech to the National Association of Black-Owned
Broadcasters. "But we're seeing fewer people who own broadcast stations, and
we're not seeing new faces and new voices coming on the scene," he observed.
While overall minority ownership of stations remains frozen at 3%, the
number of African-American owned outlets has dropped from 213 in 1994 to
only 190 today. There are two factors that have negatively impacted on
minority ownership in the past few years. One is the growing trend of
consolidations and mergers that has priced out many one and two station
owners, the group to which most minority owners belong. The other factor is
the elimination of almost all of the FCC's minority ownership programs.
Although Chairman Kennard has announced plans to revamp FCC minority
programs and commission studies on female and minority access to the
industry, his efforts received criticism from all corners. Conservatives
argue that it is not the FCC's job to encourage minority ownership, while
minority owners say they are still waiting for the offensive to begin.
[SOURCE: Broadcasting & Cable (p28), AUTHOR: Bill McConnell]
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/

LATINOS SATISFIED, DISSATISFIED WITH TV
Over 60% of Hispanics report that there are no Hispanic anchors or
newscasters on the English-language news programs they watch most, according
to a study by University of Illinois for the Tomas Rivera Policy Institute.
And while nearly 42% of Latino viewers say that they never see Hispanic
characters on the English-language entertainment programs, Latinos also say
that they are general satisfied with what they see on TV and how they are
represented. One major concern expressed among Hispanics is the lack of
educational programming on Spanish-language TV.
[SOURCE: Broadcasting & Cable (p47), AUTHOR: Elizabeth A. Rathun]
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/

SPEECH: HISPANIC NATIONAL BAR ASSOCIATION
Issue: Ownership/Broadcasting
October First Remarks of Commissioner Gloria Tristani before the Hispanic
National Bar Association: "We in the Hispanic community are very much tuned
in. More than 99% of us have TVs in our homes. And over 64% of us watch
those TVs more than 4 hours a day, compared with less than 45% who watch
that much TV in Anglo households. The impact of that constant barrage of
images -- especially on our children -- is well-documented, and I won't go
into it here. Suffice it to say that TV is not only a reflection of public
values, it also is one of most powerful instruments for shaping and changing
public values in our culture. When it comes to the broadcasting business,
one of the keys is who actually owns the station, and therefore ultimately
controls the editorial content. The numbers in this area are disturbing. In
1996, minorities owned only 3.1% of the broadcast properties in the U.S.
That number has now dropped even lower, to 2.9%. Among Hispanics, the
figures are even worse -- one half of one percent of the full power TV
stations and just over one percent of radio stations are Hispanic-owned. The
high prices being paid for stations in today's market means that it's
tempting for existing minority broadcasters to sell out, and that it's tough
for new minority broadcasters to replace them."
[SOURCE: FCC]
http://www.fcc.gov/Speeches/Tristani/spgt812.html

=================
FIRST AMENDMENT
=================

UPN SHOW DRAWS FIRE FROM L.A.
ISSUE: First Amendment
Last Tuesday (Sept. 29), the Los Angles City Council passed an unusual
resolution. They called for the debut airing of UPN's "The Secret Diary of
Desmond Pfeiffer," a farce set in the Lincoln White House, to be postponed.
The City Council said the sitcom is "a bad idea destined to fan the flames
of racial discord." UPN Chief Executive Dean Valentine called the measure
"an unconscionable and ill-thought-out attack on the First Amendment."
[SOURCE: Broadcasting & Cable (p84), AUTHOR: Michael Stroud]
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/

===========
LEGISLATION
===========

SUPREME COURT DOCKET MIXES OLD AND NEW
Issue: Telecom Act of 1996
Among the cases on the Supreme Court's agenda this year is the Court's first
review of the provisions in the Telecommunications Act of 1996 that were
supposed to open local phone markets to competition. AT&T v. Iowa Utilities
Board (No. 97-826) is a group of eight cases that is expected to be so
complex that the Court has scheduled two hours of oral argument instead of
one. The main matter of the case is jurisdiction -- should the FCC or state
regulatory agencies have authority in making important pricing decisions.
Incumbents are siding with the states while new entrants favor the US
Government. Arguments are scheduled for October 13.
[SOURCE: New York Times (A12), AUTHOR: Linda Greenhouse]
http://www.nytimes.com/library/politics/scotus/articles/100598scotus-newter
m.html

THE CERTAINTY OF REFORM
Issue: Campaign Finance Reform
Sure, Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott is serving as "executioner in chief"
of the McCain-Feingold campaign reform bill. But the movement will only gain
momentum because in both houses a majority favors change. Washington pundits
have repeatedly declared reform dead, but the issue keeps coming back and
when forced to vote on the issue, Members of Congress realize they cannot
denounce the excess of the '96 election without trying to do something to
prevent it from happening again. "Sooner or later, the elected politicians
will redeem the public's trust and return to the spirit of their democracy.
It is only a matter of time."
[SOURCE: New York Times (A22), AUTHOR: NYT Editorial Staff]
http://www.nytimes.com/yr/mo/day/editorial/05mon1.html

===================
ELECTRONIC COMMERCE
===================

PATENTS: SOFTWARE THAT TRACKS WEB USAGE
Issue: Advertising
Thinking Media Corporation of New York has patented a method for tracking
how people respond to advertising on commercial websites. "The patent covers
the idea of embedding a little smart piece of software with something sent
out, whether it's a Web page, an ad or other resource, so when it gets to
your machine it gets 'live,' and sends back information." Part of that
information, founder Owen Davis said, is "how much time the client spent on
the Web site; once the Web site is loaded, it starts a timer and it runs."
"We don't know the person, but we know their machine," he added. "We can
look at the time they spend, the cached ads, we can look at the cookie and
the IP, and we can collect environmental variables like the browser type and
the kind of operating system they're on. The value of the cookie and IP
identifiers as we build a profile is that we can know that someone has seen
an ad twice, so we can take them off the list and swap the ad for another
one," Mr. Davis explained. "Now we have real control over the reach and
frequency, and over ads and Web pages." The patented software tracks how
people use commercial Web sites as well. "As someone moves through an ad and
makes use of different 'decision trees,' it allows us to keep track of that
as well," he said. "Say Barnes & Noble has live chats with famous authors
online. As part of their promotional feature, they put up six book covers.
You click on one, see a page of the book, and say 'enroll me in that,' and
24 hours before the event Barnes & Noble sends an e-mail that says 'Don't
forget.' But it's also interesting to Barnes & Noble to know that you looked
at three other books but didn't enroll in the chats," he continued. "Imagine
that you are Coca-Cola and you put a game inside an ad. There's nothing to
sign up for, but somebody might play the game for three minutes. That's
incredibly important information because they had your undivided attention
for three minutes and they need to know that." He added, "Where an ad has
some depth and requires people to move through it, we can capture the time
spent" as well as other statistics about use.
[SOURCE: New York Times (C8), AUTHOR: Sabra Chartrand]
http://www.nytimes.com/library/tech/yr/mo/biztech/articles/05patents.html

CITIBANK SETS NEW ONLINE BANK SYSTEM
Issue: Electronic Commerce
Citibank -- soon to be merged with Travelers Group into a new company called
Citigroup -- is abandoning the computer systems it developed over the past
decade to offer online banking. The company is creating a new retail banking
and investment service on the Internet. Citigroup will have approximately
100 million customers in the US and abroad -- it hopes to have 1 billion by
2010. "Among bankers, Citibank is at the front of the pack" [in terms of
computer infrastructure], said Bill Burnham, an analyst with Credit Suisse
First Boston. "The problem is there are a heck of a lot of new people in the
race, and most of them are in front of the bankers." Burnham estimates there
are three million Internet-based brokerage accounts in the nation and far
fewer online banking accounts. Citibank's plan to discard its existing
systems might be the best way to catch up with the leaders. "If you are
trying to leverage your existing infrastructure, you end up in an endless
series of meetings with the people whose toes you are stepping on," Mr.
Burnham said. "Freeing yourself of the restraints of your existing systems
enables you to respond in Internet time."
[SOURCE: New York Times (C1), AUTHOR: Saul Hansell]
http://www.nytimes.com/library/tech/98/10/biztech/articles/05citi.html

ARE ONLINE BARGAINS HERE TO STAY?
Issue: Electronic Commerce
Internet retailers are offering discounted prices to lure users to their
sites. But how long will these prices be sustainable? Well, for "deep
pockets" players, the prices will last longer than for smaller start-ups.
But there are still advantages to opening a business online. A market
researcher said, "Traditional retailers have to spend $3-to-$5 million to
open a store, and then they can only draw from a 20-mile radius, so they
have to make sure they make a fair margin." Reel.com has recently been sued
by Tower Records for offering Titanic for just $9.99 -- $20 less than list
and less than the minimum advertised price set by advertisers and the
studio. According to Julie Wainwright, Reel.com's chief executive officer,
"With everybody in e-commerce fighting to be the winner, you have to spend
more and be more aggressive in your pricing. And although our pricing
strategy is to be the lowest on the Internet, we're not necessarily looking
to compete with the off-line stores."
[SOURCE: New York Times (CyberTimes), AUTHOR: Bob Tedeschi]
http://www.nytimes.com/library/tech/98/10/cyber/articles/04commerce.html

==============
INFRASTRUCTURE
==============

CONTROL OF DOMAIN NAMES DRAWS ALTERNATIVE PROPOSAL
Issue: Infrastructure
Jon Postel submitted a plan to the Government of Friday for creating the
nonprofit Internet Corporation for Assigning Names and Numbers and allowing
the organization to administer Internet domain names. "This organization
will be unique in the world -- a nongovernmental organization with
significant responsibilities for administering what is becoming an important
global resource," Mr. Postel wrote. The plan also outlines the final
privatization of the Internet by the Federal Government which financed the
development of the computer network over decades to facilitate military and
academic communications. The plan would also create a nine-member board that
would finish writing the organization's bylaws and help pick a permanent
19-member board. The proposed 9-member board includes: Geraldine Capdeboscq,
executive vice president for strategy, technology and partnerships at Groupe
Bull, an international information systems group based in France; George H.
Conrades, a partner at Polaris Venture Partners, based in Seattle; Gregory
L. Crew, chairman of the Australian Communications Industry Forum; Esther
Dyson, chairwoman of Edventure Holdings, a venture capital firm in New York;
Frank Fitzsimmons, senior vice president for global marketing at Dun &
Bradstreet Corp.; Hans Kraaijenbrink, chairman of the executive board of the
Association of European Public Telecommunications Network Operators; Jun
Marai, professor of environmental information at Keio University in Tokyo;
Eugenio Triana, an Internet management consultant in Spain; Linda S. Wilson,
president of Radcliffe College. [For more information, see the NTIA
http://www.ntia.doc.gov/ntiahome/domainname/domainhome.htm]
[SOURCE: New York Times (C2), AUTHOR: Jeri Clausing]
http://www.nytimes.com/library/tech/yr/mo/biztech/articles/05domain.html

ATTENTION FOCUSES ON AOL FOR ACQUISITIONS, ALLIANCES (WP)
AOL BUILDS TOWARD BROADBAND COMPETITION (B&C)
Issue: Online Service/Bandwidth
In a series of decisions and announcements the past few days, America Online
is proving that it has the technical sophistication and is on its way to
developing political savvy in its business dealings. The company appears to
be on a track toward the broadband market with its decision to include
streaming technology in its latest software and its revamping of its games
channel. Both are aimed at high-speed Internet access. The company also
hired a new VP for broadband development and selected a couple of well-known
people for board positions showing its improved desire for political
connections. In a political setback (of sorts) this week, the company
reported a profit for the fourth quarter last week instead of the loss that
it wanted to show. In a bookkeeping crackdown the SEC said that AOL had to
write off more of a recent company purchase than the company wanted. The
result will mean reduced earnings reports for the next few years. Other
technology companies are also under the gun from the SEC to avoid stretching
out amortization of goodwill for companies that have been acquired.
[SOURCE: Washington Post (F7), AUTHOR (Jerry Knight)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/digest/tech1.htm
[SOURCE: Broadcasting and Cable (64), AUTHOR: Richard Tedesco]
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/

SMALL NETWORK CONSULTANT PROSPERS ON BACKS OF TECHNOLOGY GIANTS
Issue: Infrastructure
International Network Services, a small Sunnyvale, California company, does
not manufacture equipment, run computers, re-engineer business processes or
develop corporate strategies. INS designs, manages and secures
communications networks and has evolved into the engineer's engineer -- "the
expert that the network experts can turn to when they need a specialist's
touch." Clients include Bell Atlantic, AT&T, MCI and Worldcom, SBC, Sprint,
BellSouth, Cable & Wireless, Airtouch, GTE, Cisco Systems, Compaq, and
Oracle. The Yankee Group expects the network integration market to grow from
$1 billion this year to over $52 billion by 2001.
[SOURCE: New York Times (C1), AUTHOR: Seth Schiesel]
http://www.nytimes.com/library/tech/98/10/biztech/articles/05temp.html

ADVANCED SERVICES TECHNICAL ROUNDTABLES
Issue: Bandwidth
As previously announced on September 24, 1998, the Commission's Bandwidth
Task Force and Common Carrier Bureau will host three roundtables to discuss
technical issues related to deployment of advanced services. These
roundtables will permit representatives from different segments of the
telecommunications industry to address the technical issues with respect to
each of these topics. 1) Technical Issues Relating to the Provision of
Advanced Services Over the Local Loop: Loop Qualification and Subloop
Unbundling: Tuesday, October 6, 1998, 1:30-5:00pm Participants: Neil
Ransom, Alcatel; John Reister, Copper Mountain; Mark Schmidt, U S WEST; Jim
Washington, ATT/Teleport; Charles Gowder, Valley Telephone Cooperative; Mike
Viren, Second Century Communications; George Hawley, Diamond Lane
Communications. 2) Technical Issues Relating to the Use of Different
Advanced Services Technologies: Spectrum Interference in the Copper Loop:
Thursday, October 8, 1998, 2:00-5:00pm Participants: Bill Euske, Northpoint;
Eugene Edmon, SBC; Tom Starr, T1E1.4 Standards Committee; Kevin Sievert, MCI
WorldCom; Wayne Gatchell, Nortel; Philip Kyees, Paradyne. For both panels,
see topics of discussion at URL below.
[SOURCE: FCC]
http://www.fcc.gov/Bureaus/Common_Carrier/Public_Notices/1998/da982004.html

========
INFOTECH
========

THE NEXT VOICE YOU HEAR
Issue: Info Tech
First Gate Service is advertising that it will send your voice messages over
the Internet for $10 a month. The author tried the service and concluded
that, yes, it works but "FirstGate seems to be a service in search of a
need." Audio is good. It doesn't cost much. It works as swiftly as other
e-mail. It has great reach. The service allows the registered user to call
its computer via phone, punch in ID numbers for the people who are to be the
recipients and leave a voice message. The message is turned into a "wave"
file and is delivered as e-mail to the recipients (who must have a sound
card and speakers to receive it). The company says it will be "especially
useful and economical for mobile professionals and people with lots of
contacts overseas."
[SOURCE: Washington Post (Business27), AUTHOR (Robert O'Harrow Jr.)
http://www.washingtonpost.com

=========
ANTITRUST
=========

MICROSOFT CASE: TAPES, E-MAIL AND MEETINGS (WSJ)
Issue: Antitrust
A couple of meetings are considered key in the federal antitrust case
against Microsoft Corporation that begins next week. Each side in the
dispute has released some information that it plans to use at the trial. At
one meeting Microsoft is alleged to have asked Apple Computer Inc. to resist
putting its QuickTime multimedia software in the Windows market. In return
Microsoft would help Apple with video-software tools. The other involves an
attempt by Microsoft to divide up the Internet software market with Netscape
Communications. Microsoft calls the market-division charges false saying
that meetings among rivals are common to ensure compatibility. Microsoft
also claims pretrial testimony by Chairman Bill Gates is being misrepresented.
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal (B1), AUTHOR: John R. Wilke]
http://www.wsj.com/

WHY WE'RE SUING MICROSOFT (WSJ)
Issue: Antitrust
In an Op-Ed column, Chairman and CEO of Sun Microsystems, Inc. Scott McNealy
calls the company's decision to file suit against Microsoft Corporation in
October
1997 as "necessary." McNealy claims Microsoft breached the contract with
Sun which would allow distribution of products that incorporate Java
technology. Sun says that unlike other contracted users Microsoft claimed a
right to change the formula of Java to suit their needs. McNealy says that
"Microsoft is attempting to flood the market with what its own executives,
in an internal e-mail cited in the Justice Department's antitrust filing,
call a 'polluted' version of Java technology." Decrying Microsoft's
monopoly power in trying to convert the Internet to its proprietary domain,
McNealy concludes, "All the technology in the world doesn't alter a simple
golden rule of business: A deal is a deal."
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal (A30), AUTHOR: Scott McNealy]
http://www.wsj.com/

*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*