EdTech
FCC: SLC Announces Opening of Website
WP: School Computer Parity Has High Price in Fairfax
Telephony
WSJ: Supreme Court to Review Parts of Telecom Act
NYT: High Court to Hear Dispute On Opening Phone Markets
WP: Supreme Court Accepts Phone Case Rivalry
TelecomAM: Supreme Court To hear FCC's Appeal Of 8th Circuit Rulings
FCC: WTO Agreement on Basic Telecommunications Services
NYT: AT&T Maps Its Battle Plan For Escalating Phone Wars
WP: AT&T Plans to Cut Up to 18,000 Jobs
WSJ: AT&T Revamping to Trim 18,000 Jobs
Infrastructure
WSJ: Bell Atlantic Seeks Clearance For Network
WSJ: Lucent Innovation Boosts the Capacity Of Fiber Networks
Television
B&C: Kids rules, what kids rules?
B&C: Copyright to Study Local-into-Local
B&C: Broadcasters Concerned about DBS Must-carry
Internet
WP: Web Venture Links Lobbies, Legislation
Privacy
NYT: 'Gay' Sailor's Dismissal Is Blocked
WP: Judge Blocks Navy's Discharge of Gay Sailor
WSJ: When Is a Satellite Photo An Unreasonable Search?
** EdTech **
Title: SLC Announces Opening of Website
Source: FCC
http://www.fcc.gov/Bureaus/Common_Carrier/Public_Notices/1998/da980129.html
Issue: Universal Service/EdTech
Description: The Schools and Libraries Corporation (SLC) has announced that
the website on which completed applications will be posted for competitive
bidding will open on Friday, January 30, 1998. The website address is
www.slcfund.org. The website will operate every day from 5:00 a.m. to
midnight Eastern Time. The opening of the website triggers the beginning of
the 75 day initial filing window, during which all applications (FCC Forms
470 and 471) will be treated as if filed simultaneously. The 75 day window
will begin and schools and libraries may begin to submit applications,
therefore, on Friday, January 30, 1998. For further information, contact the
Schools and Libraries Corporation's Client Service Bureau at its toll-free
telephone number (1-888-203-8100) or by fax (1-888-276-8736).
Title: School Computer Parity Has High Price in Fairfax
Source: Washington Post (B5)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/WPlate/1998-01/27/077l-012798-idx.html
Author: Victoria Benning
Issue: EdTech
Description: A new report prepared by Fairfax (VA) school administrators,
says it
would cost at least $150 million over the next four years to close the gaps
in student access to computers in Fairfax County. The average cost of $37.5
million a year is almost twice the amount of what the district receives in
its annual technology budget of $20 million. In order to maintain and
upgrade equipment and to provide computer training to school staff members
following the four year catch-up period, the district would also need to
spend about $43 million annually. The administrators who prepared the report
acknowledge that there will not be enough money to obtain that goal but that
the estimates provide the School Board with a clearer picture of how far the
district is from providing equal access to classroom computers at every school.
** Telephony **
Title: Supreme Court to Review Parts of Telecom Act
Source: Wall Street Journal (A4)
http://wsj.com/
Author: Eva M. Rodriguez
Issue: Telephone Regulation/Telecom Act
Description: The Supreme Court agreed to review parts of the 1996 Telecom
Act, leaving communications companies in limbo until next year when the
court is expected to issue its decision. The case consolidates a cluster of
appeals centering on the law which was intended to deregulate the
multibillion-dollar telephone industry and spur competition in both local
and long-distance service. Specifically, the justices will review whether
the FCC has the authority to regulate the prices that regional Bell
companies charge long distance companies and others to connect to their
networks or buy access to parts of it.
Title: High Court to Hear Dispute On Opening Phone Markets
Source: New York Times (D2)
http://www.nytimes.com/yr/mo/day/news/financial/scotus-phones.html
Author: Linda Greenhouse
Issue: Telephone Regulation/Telecom Act
Description: Following a warning by the Federal Communications Commission
that the future of local telephone competition was at stake, the Supreme
Court agreed yesterday to review a decision that limited the Commission's
role in opening up the $100 billion market for local telephone service to
new players. The appeal, which the justices will not hear until their next
term beginning in October, was brought by a broad coalition of long distance
telephone companies, including AT&T, MCI and Sprint, and the FCC. "The
companies are trying to break the long-standing monopolies and offer local
telephone service nationwide, under provisions of the Telecommunications Act
of 1996." On the other side are the incumbent providers of local telephone
service who have allied themselves with state regulators. The incumbents
have won a series of notable legal victories in an effort to preserve their
current dominance in local markets. The FCC's role in interpreting and
carrying out the mandate for competition under the Telecommunications Act
is at issue in the case the Supreme Court accepted.
Title: Supreme Court Accepts Phone Case Rivalry
Source: Washington Post (D1,D4)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/WPlate/1998-01/27/117l-012798-idx.html
Author: Joan Biskupic and Mike Mills
Issue: Telephone Regulation/Telecom Act
Description: "The Supreme Court announced yesterday that it will resolve a
dispute over federal regulations intended to bring greater competition, and
potentially lower consumer prices, to the nation's $110 billion local
telephone markets. The justices will hear a challenge brought by the Clinton
administration and long-distance companies to a lower-court ruling that
sharply curtailed the ability of federal regulators to set terms on the
prices that competitors must pay to connect local phone networks."
Title: Supreme Court To hear FCC's Appeal Of 8th Circuit Rulings
Source: Telecom AM---jan. 27, 1998
http://www.telecommunications.com/am/
Issue: Telephone Regulation/Telecom Act
Description: The U.S. Supreme Court will hear appeals of the Eighth U.S.
Appeals Court, St. Louis, rulings that overturned key parts of the FCC's
interconnection order. The court decided to take up the case during a
closed-door meeting, but left the telecom industry in limbo over the
weekend. The decision to hear the case is considered a major victory for the
FCC, long distance carriers and new competitive phone companies because it
means that the court will most likely hear the case before the court's
current term ends this summer.
Title: WTO Agreement on Basic Telecommunications Services
Source: FCC
http://www.fcc.gov/Bureaus/International/News_Releases/1998/nrin8001.html
Issue: International/Telephone
Description: FCC Chairman William Kennard hailed the decision reached in
Geneva today on entry into force of the World Trade Organization (WTO)
Agreement on Basic Telecommunications Services. WTO Members agreed that the
pact would become effective on February 5, just one year after the agreement
was concluded. Chairman Kennard said, "This agreement allows
telecommunications consumers worldwide to enjoy the benefits of improved
competition in basic and advanced telecommunications services. It will
increase investment and competition in the United States, leading to lower
prices, enhanced innovation and better service. At the same time, market
access commitments from major trading partners will provide U.S. service
suppliers opportunities to expand abroad."
Title: AT&T Maps Its Battle Plan For Escalating Phone Wars
Source: New York Times (D1,D4)
http://www.nytimes.com/yr/mo/day/news/financial/att-restructure.html
Author: Seth Schiesel
Issue: Corporate Retrenchment
Description: In the first time he has publicly outlined his plan for
revitalizing the AT&T Corporation, the company's new chairman, C. Michael
Armstrong, said yesterday that he will not only reduce AT&T's work force by
up to 14 percent but also will offer a variety of new services, including
wireless phones that will receive calls free, and cheap phone calls via the
Internet. The company also plans to spend billions of dollars to upgrade its
national communications network and to introduce a new type of wireless
phone made by Nokia of Finland with a battery that lasts up to eight days --
much longer than that battery life of today's mobile phones. The cuts, which
will come in the form of layoffs and voluntary buyouts, were described by
analysts and Mr. Armstrong as being "important medicine" for AT&T as it
works to "return to vigor amid the sweeping changes in the
telecommunications landscape.'
Title: AT&T Plans to Cut Up to 18,000 Jobs
Source: Washington Post (D1,D4)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/WPlate/1998-01/27/108l-012798-idx.html
Author: Mike Mills
Issue: Corporate Retrenchment
Description: C. Michael Armstrong, AT&T's new chairman, outlines his plans
yesterday to overhaul the huge communications company. His plans include
eliminating 15,000 too 18,000 jobs, launching a new Internet telephone
service and renewing focus on he local telephone and business communications
markets. "We beat the street on the earnings and we need to grow more on the
revenue," Armstrong said. "We have more to do to achieve a competitive cost
position and invest for growth."
Title: AT&T Revamping to Trim 18,000 Jobs
Source: Wall Street Journal (A3)
http://wsj.com/
Author: John J. Keller
Issue: Corporate Retrenchment
Description: AT&T's Chairman C. Michael Armstrong unveiled a top-to-bottom
revamping that will entail as many as 18, 000 new job cuts, as much as $1.2
billion in charges against earnings in the first half and aggressive new
investments to revitalize the telecommunications giant. Armstrong laid out a
sweeping plan to make AT&T more competitive as it tries to expand into local
Internet and wireless services and stave off newcomers in long-distance
service. The plan is only a first step, though. Mr. Armstrong must still
figure out how to differentiate what AT&T sells from a raft of rival
offerings if it is to meet its most crucial long-term challenge: revenue growth.
** Infrastructure **
Title: Bell Atlantic Seeks Clearance For Network
Source: Wall Street Journal (B5)
http://wsj.com/
Author: Stephanie N. Mehta
Issue: Infrastructure
Description: Bell Atlantic is expected to file a petition with the FCC
asking for regulatory relief for a high-speed network it aims to build. The
Baby Bell said it wants to build an Internet "backbone" to relieve
data-traffic congestion in its territory, which stretches from Maine to
Virginia. The carrier said it plans to ask the FCC to exempt that data
network from the same pricing rules and regulations that govern the Bell's
voice network. "The company is interested in making a substantial
infrastructure investment," said Tom Tauke, Bell Atlantic's senior VP for
government relations. "But we see barriers in the regulatory arena." Those
barriers include a restriction that prohibits Bell companies from carrying
calls between certain local-area boundaries within their regions.
Title: Lucent Innovation Boosts the Capacity Of Fiber Networks
Source: Wall Street Journal (B6)
http://wsj.com/
Author: Stephanie N. Mehta
Issue: Infrastructure
Description: Lucent Technologies said it has developed a system that can
transmit as many as 400 billion bits of data per second over a single strand
of fiber. The system, which delivers five times the bandwidth of current
systems, raises the standards for such systems, which use a technology known
as dense wavelength division multiplexing. AT&T said it plans to deploy
Lucent's system to double the capacity of its 40,000-mile fiber optic
network by year's end. Wavelength division multiplexing increases the amount
of data a fiber can carry by dividing the strand into multiple channels of
light. Lucent's new system can split certain fibers into 80 channels as
opposed to the commercially available systems that can only split fibers
into 16 channels.
** Television **
Title: Kids rules, what kids rules?
Source: Broadcasting&Cable (pg.36)
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/
Author: Barry Garron
Issue: Children's TV
Description: New federal regulations requiring educational programs for
children have had virtually no effect, according to members of a NATPE panel on
children's programming. "I don't think more people are watching us, and I
don't think fewer people are watching us," said Carol Monroe, Fox Kids
Network senior VP of program services. What matters isn't whether or not the
program is educational but whether it's good, said John Claster, president
of Claster Television. Cyma Zarghami of Nickelodeon said it is possible to
do great educational programs for preschoolers but difficult to make them
attractive to older children.
Title: Copyright to Study Local-into-Local
Source: Broadcasting&Cable (pg.24)
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/
Author: Paige Albiniak
Issue: Satellites/Copyright
Description: The U.S. Copyright Office will examine whether current law
allows direct broadcast satellite companies to offer local broadcast signals
in certain local markets. EchoStar Comm. wants to offer local broadcast
signals to all viewers in the top 20 TV markets, but needs a change in the
law to do so legally. EchoStar asked the Copyright Office to rule that the
law does allow satellite companies to rebroadcast local signals in local
markets. The Copyright Office said that it would open an inquiry.
Title: Broadcasters Concerned about DBS Must-carry
Source: Broadcasting&Cable (pg.24)
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/
Author: Chris McConnell
Issue: Satellites
Description: Broadcasters pressed policymakers on whether they plan to
impose must-carry obligations on EchoStar. "There's some trade-off here",
Commerce Dept. Assistant Secretary Larry Irving said. He added that the
administration wants to promote the ability of DBS companies to compete with
cable, but also wants to protect local broadcasters. Worried broadcasters
voiced fears about a renewed court battle over the rule requiring cable
systems to carry the signals of local broadcasters. Others were concerned
that stations not affiliated with one of the four major networks will be
left out of the satellite service.
** Internet **
Title: Web Venture Links Lobbies, Legislation
Source: Washington Post (A15)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/WPlate/1998-01/27/033l-012798-idx.html
Author: Bill McAllister
Issue: Internet
Description: A new web site http://www.incongress.com, that developers say
may presage the electronic way to lobbying on Capitol Hill, will debut this
week as Congress reconvenes. The site brings together texts of proposed
legislation and the policy positions that various interest groups have
issued on the proposals, as well as links to governmental and congressional
sites. Although Congress and other groups have their own Web sites,
InCongress creators say their site is different because it brings all the
information together in one place.
** Privacy **
Title: 'Gay' Sailor's Dismissal Is Blocked
Source: New York Times (A8)
http://www.nytimes.com/library/cyber/week/012798navy.html
Author: Philip Shenon
Issue: Privacy
Description: In a decision hailed by gay rights groups and advocated of
electronic privacy, a Federal judge ordered the Navy yesterday to halt its
efforts to dismiss a highly decorated sailor because he posted a message on
an on-line server that described his marital status as gay. Federal District
Court Judge Stanley Sporkin said, "Although Officer McVeigh did not publicly
announce his sexual orientation, the Navy nonetheless impermissibly embarked on
a search and 'outing' mission." Judge Sporkin added that he "cannot
understand why the Navy would seek to discharge an officer who has served
his country in a distinguished manner just because he might be gay."
Title: Judge Blocks Navy's Discharge of Gay Sailor
Source: Washington Post (A6)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/WPlate/1998-01/27/047l-012798-idx.html
Author: Bradley Graham
Issue: Privacy
Description: A federal judge blocked the navy from discharging Senior Chief
Petty Officer, Timothy McVeigh, for homosexuality yesterday. U.S. District
Judge, Stanley Sporkin, castigated military officials for "launching a
search and destroy" mission against the sailor based on information they
received from an online computer service. Judge Sporkin also said that the
Navy had violated not only Pentagon guidelines for investigating suspected
homosexuals but also federal statutes set in place to protect the privacy of
Internet users.
Title: When Is a Satellite Photo An Unreasonable Search?
Source: Wall Street Journal (B1)
http://wsj.com/
Author: Ross Kerber
Issue: Privacy
Description: Does taking satellite photos of private citizens and their
property -- generally without ther knowledge -- violate the Constitution's
Fourth Amendment protections against unreasonable searches? The American Bar
Assoc. has organized a task force to explore that question. Because U.S.
Justice Dept. officials are on the task force, the recommendations are
expected to influence how law enforcement authorities and civil agencies use
the new images and at what point they require warrants. "It certainly has a
'Big Brother Is Watching You' flavor to it," says Larry Griggers, a director
at the Georgia Dept. of Revenue. "But it prevents us from having to spend
money for other types of enforcement." (I bet it does.... -p.h.)
*********