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ACCESS
Ads to Pay for Free PCs (NYT)
TELEPHONE
As Phone Wars Move To Rural Towns, Tactics Are
Growing Rougher (WSJ)
Utah Ends US West Support After Favoritism Claims (WP)
Speech: A Networked Future For All Americans (FCC)
Advertisement: SBC Communications...A New Breed of
Telecommunications Company (ChiTrib)
INTERNET
Administration and Management of The .us Domain Name Space (NTIA)
A New Market For Middlemen (WP)
More States Consider Laws Restricting Junk E-Mail (CyberTimes)
Court Upholds Internet Office Ban (CyberTimes)
Lawmakers Weigh National Security Issues and the Net (CyberTimes)
EDTECH
Speech: The Ed Tech Challenge: Training Our Youth for
21st Century (NTIA)
MERGER/LOBBYING
At&T, Poised To Close Tci Takeover, Puts Pressure On
State, Local Regulators (WSJ)
JOBS
Job Opportunities: NTIA's Office of Spectrum Management (NTIA)
PHILANTHROPY
For-Giving Technology (WP)
ANTITRUST
Microsoft Official Concedes Company Sought To
Restrict Web-Browser (WSJ)
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ACCESS
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ADS TO PAY FOR FREE PCS
Issue: Access
Free PC? Sort of. A start-up company, One Stop Communications, offered
10,000 free PCs on Monday to Internet users willing to watch advertisements
on their computers. Yesterday, the company offered 25,000 iMacs to users who
promise to spend at least $100 a month for 36 months at an online mall run
by the company. Recipients of the free computers also must agree to use One
Stop Communications as their Internet service provider at $19.95 a month.
[So, it's a great deal if you can't afford a $1000 computer, but you can
handle $1,500 in other purchases/charges per year...]
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Reuters]
http://www.nytimes.com/library/tech/99/02/biztech/articles/11mac.html
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TELEPHONE
=========
AS PHONE WARS MOVE TO RURAL TOWNS, TACTICS ARE GROWING ROUGHER
Issue: Telephony
Phone customers in Regent (ND) who signed up with Western Wireless, a company
recently launching "fixed wireless" service in Regent to compete with the
longtime sole local provider in the region, Consolidated Telephone Cooperative,
had their phone service shut off as a result of a conflict between the two
companies, spurred by a "fuzzy law." Western Wireless hopes to set up wireless
service in small, rural towns and has converted 32 customers so far in Regent.
It's offering "fixed wireless" to overcome customer reluctance of using
wireless in their home. It is wireless that looks and is used like a
conventional phone. Western Wireless also hopes to receive federal
"universal service"
subsidies that Consolidated now receives. Consolidated's chief executive, L.
Dan Wilhelmson said, "the customer-owned cooperative was merely responding to
what it felt was Western Wireless's failure to obtain necessary permission from
state regulators, and its failure to negotiate a working agreement with
Consolidated." As part of the 1996 Telecommunications Act, Congress worried
that rural towns like Regent may be left out as big providers vie to offer
service packages and exempted rural phone carriers like Consolidated from
fostering local competition. Consolidated, a company that employs 86 local
people last year began competing with US West for phone business in Dickinson,
a town of 17,000. Before it did, it followed state law to obtain permission and
a federal law to negotiate an agreement with US West. Consolidated expected
Western Wireless to do the same, and has now re-connected Wireless customers
for the time being. When Wilhelmson consulted with lawyers, they told him "the
law is fuzzy." An earlier law exempted wireless carries form state regulation.
"Congress never foresaw fixed-wireless service more like traditional wired
service when it's used to compete locally."
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, Feb. 10, 1999 (A1), AUTHOR: Bryan Gruley]
UTAH ENDS US WEST SUPPORT AFTER FAVORITISM CLAIMS
Issue: Telephony
Utah governor Mike Leavitt (R) has stepped away from a proposal to
drastically deregulate US West's operation in that state. Consumer groups
alleged that Gov. Leavitt had planed to offer deregulatory incentives in
exchanges for US West's renewed sponsorship of the scandal-ridden 2002
Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City. The local Bell company has just given
city Olympic officials $5 million dollars for preparations for the 2002
games.
[SOURCE: Washington Post (E1), AUTHOR: Mike Mills]
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/business/feed/biztop918740216732.htm
SPEECH: A NETWORKED FUTURE FOR ALL AMERICANS
Issue: Universal Service (Rural)
2/10/99 Address of FCC Chairman Kennard before the National Telephone
Cooperative Association Annual Meeting, San Antonio (TX): If our strength as
a free people and as a democratic nation is tied to our organizations and
associations, then you all, cooperatives and small, independent phone
companies alike, are pillars of our democracy. Cooperatives bring local
communities together to provide essential services and to pursue a greater
good. And both telephone cooperatives and small rural telephone companies
literally link Americans who live in the countryside into the national
community. You make it possible for all Americans, whether they live in a
small town in Maine, on a ranch in Montana, or on a farm in Missouri -- to
be part of the debate and give and take that is vital to our democracy. By
investing in your exchanges where the big companies wouldn't, you have
enabled millions of Americans to be a part of the free exchange of ideas.
[SOURCE: FCC]
http://www.fcc.gov/Speeches/Kennard/spwek907.html
ADVERTISEMENT: SBC COMMUNICATIONS...A NEW BREED OF
TELECOMMUNICATIONS COMPANY
Issue: Telephone
SBC Communications, trying to win approval from regulators to purchase
fellow phone monopolist Ameritech, is running a full page ad in the Business
section of the Chicago Tribune. "We're working with regulators now to
approve our entry into long distance and our merger with Ameritech, which
will launch our expansion into 30 new major markets across the country. At
SBC, we move fast -- fast enough to stay up with our customers." The ad also
touts the company's recent alliance with Williams Communication.
[SOURCE: Chicago Tribune (Sec 3, p.5)]
http://chicagotribune.com/
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INTERNET
========
ADMINISTRATION AND MANAGEMENT OF THE .US DOMAIN NAME SPACE
Issue: Internet
The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) will
hold a public meeting to explore the future administration and management of
the .us domain name space. Topics to be discussed including the current
structure of the .us domain, issues and opportunities facing the current and
future management of the .us space, current practices and issues in the
management of other country code TLDs (ccTLDs), proposals for administering
the .us domain, and a discussion on the next steps for the management and
administration of the .us domain. An electronic copy of the Federal Notice
http://www.ntia.doc.gov/ntiahome/domainname/dotusmtg.fedreg.htm that
describes the meeting and agenda in further detail is available at
http://www.ntia.doc.gov. The meeting will be held March 9, 1999 10:00am to
4:30pm at the Dept of Commerce (14th and Constitution Avenue, NW); if you
plan to attend, you should complete a pre-registration form
http://www.ntia.doc.gov/ntiahome/domainname/dotusregform.htm. For further
info contact: Karen Rose, NTIA/OIA, (202) 482-1866. Media contact: Sallianne
Fortunato, NTIA Public Affairs, at 202-482-7002
[SOURCE: NTIA]
http://www.ntia.doc.gov/ntiahome/press/021099dotusmtg.htm
A NEW MARKET FOR MIDDLEMEN
Issue: E-Commerce
John Hagel III's, author of a new book, entitled "Net Worth" has a plan for
customers to take more control in the face of random advertising and privacy
issues on the Internet. Hagel says the Internet is breeding ground for
"infomediaries" that would keep customer information confidential and use it to
tailor ads to users, helping them get more from Internet retailers. "We would
rely on these agents to negotiate some benefit for us in return for that
information -- a price discount, free service or perhaps even cash," he
says. These
"informediaries" could only succeed, Hagel says, if customers trust them. The
companies would develop sophisticated software to allow customers security and
choice in how much is revealed about them. Yahoo and AOL are possible
contenders but they collect information only about users of their own services.
Websites like Intuit's Quicken.com and AutobyTel.com are cited as being
stronger contenders because they collect information about how customers use a
variety of services and retailers and present customers with choice among them.
He's skeptical of "online loyalty programs" like FreeRide Media that rewards
people for visiting certain sites. Hagel says these companies are likely to be
more loyal to advertisers.
[SOURCE: Washington Post (E1), AUTHOR: Leslie Walker]
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/business/feed/biztop918740217812.htm
MORE STATES CONSIDER LAWS RESTRICTING JUNK E-MAIL
Issue: Internet
Several states are beginning to take the issue of spam (junk email) very
seriously. Three states have already enacted laws that make it illegal for
ISP customers to send spam if their ISP expressly forbids it. Others state
legislatures are also trying to find ways to address the problem of junk
mail without making it difficult for people to conduct authentic business
online. A fear has arisen that if laws vary state to state, legitimate
online marketing could be seriously hampered. "We would prefer a single good
federal law," said John Mozena, a board member of the Coalition Against
Unsolicited Commercial E-Mail (CAUCE), "but if we can't find a federal
solution we're going to have to work state by state."
[SOURCE: CyberTimes, AUTHOR: Jerry Clausing]
http://www.nytimes.com/library/tech/99/02/cyber/articles/11spam.html
COURT UPHOLDS INTERNET OFFICE BAN
Issue: Internet/ Content
Wednesday, a federal appeals court upheld a Virginia law that prohibits
state employees from looking at sexually explicit material on the Internet
while at work. Several college professors challenged the law, arguing that
it would effect their ability to conduct legitimate research. The court
ruled that government has the right to supervise the on-the-job activities
of its employees. "This is an enormously disappointing decision that runs
against the grain of free-speech decisions regarding the Internet," said
Kent Willis of the American Civil Liberties Union. A bill to repeal the law
is currently pending in the state Senate.
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Associated Press]
http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/a/AP-Internet-Porn.html
LAWMAKERS WEIGH NATIONAL SECURITY ISSUES AND THE NET
Issue: Security/Right to Gov Info
The House Commerce Committee has begun debating whether or not online
postings of unclassified, but sensitive information about potential
disasters at the nation's chemical plants should be permitted. Some
committee members fear that posting Environmental Protection Agency risk
management plans would give too much information to terrorist. Other members
argue that communities need to have this information -- which the Clean Air
Act mandated for public release -- to prepare for emergencies. "Are we
willing to forsake the health and safety of people who live near these
plants?" asked Representative Diana DeGette (D-CO). "The
benefit to the communities far outweighs the small risk," she added. Some
advocates worry that a proposal to limit the distribution of EPA data could
set a precedent for limiting the dissemination of other non-classified
government documents. Rather than taking advantage of the Internet's
democratic potential to allow citizens the ability to access public
information, these proposals view the Internet and its power to distribute
information as a threat," said Ari Schwartz, a policy analyst at the Center
for Democracy and Technology.
[SOURCE: CyberTimes, AUTHOR: Jerri Clausing]
http://www.nytimes.com/library/tech/99/02/cyber/articles/11epa.html
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EDTECH
======
SPEECH: THE ED TECH CHALLENGE: TRAINING OUR YOUTH FOR 21ST CENTURY
Issue: EdTECH
Larry Irving spoke at the Mississippi Educational Technology Luncheon,
"Using Technology Tools to Transform Teaching and Learning," 1-27-99: When
you look at the world today, there's no doubt that technical literacy is as
important as "reading, writing, and arithmetic" to our students. New
technologies now pervade daily life. Today, some estimate that nearly 200
million people are now online worldwide -- not only for e-mail, but to shop,
listen to music, watch live video footage, or trade stocks. There are now
830 million web pages you can visit, and by 2003 there may be 8 billion.
"The Internet audience is not only growing, it is getting decidedly
mainstream," according to the Pew survey released two weeks ago. This year's
online holiday shopping is an example of that trend. It may not have been a
White Christmas, but it was certainly a "Web Christmas": consumers spent $ 8
billion on online holiday shopping this year, by some accounts - three times
the amount anticipated. But these technologies are doing more than
facilitating online shopping -- which is why it is so essential to
incorporate computer training in the school curriculum. The Internet,
wireless systems, and satellite technologies are opening new doors for
Americans. Now, those in remote areas and those at home, can take distance
education courses from universities worldwide. They can use these
technologies to brush up old skills or to learn new ones to find jobs in
newly expanding areas. Even navy officers serving on aircraft carriers can
now access courses using computers, satellite transmissions, and video
conferencing. And, if you have a computer and online access, you can explore
the thousands of job postings that are placed only on the Net, or find the
best price for a consumer good.
[SOURCE: NTIA]
http://www.ntia.doc.gov/ntiahome/speeches/edtech12799.htm
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MERGER/LOBBYING
===============
AT&T, POISED TO CLOSE TCI TAKEOVER, PUTS PRESSURE ON STATE, LOCAL REGULATORS
Issue: Mergers
AT&T is rushing to close its deal with TCI and may despite having some
regulatory
obstacles still in place. "As of yesterday, AT&T still needed approval from 28
municipalities covering more than 800,000 customers in such key markets as Los
Angeles, Oakland (CA), and King County (WA), which includes Seattle." William
Lowery, an attorney with Miller & Van Eaton in San Francisco, has been working
on the deal in several CA cities and says that local authorities may impose
financial penalties if AT&T closes the deal before approval. Local Bells are
gearing up to counter AT&T bundle packages of long distance, Internet, video
and discounted local services by offering competing packages.
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal (B6), AUTHOR: Leslie Cauley, and Rebecca
Blumenstein]
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JOBS
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JOB OPPORTUNITIES: NTIA'S OFFICE OF SPECTRUM MANAGEMENT
Issue: Jobs
Four new job opportunities for Telecommunication Policy Analysts and
Telecommunications Specialists have been posted by NTIA's Office of Spectrum
Management. See URL below.
[SOURCE: NTIA]
http://www.ntia.doc.gov/osmhome/jobmenu.html
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PHILANTHROPY
===========
FOR-GIVING TECHNOLOGY
Issue: Philanthropy
Steve Case, AOL chief executive, has made an offer that students of a DC
area high school can't refuse. Case told students of Calvin Cooligde High
School that each one who earns a 3.5 grade point average or above will
receive money toward college, a AOL employee mentor, and free SAT
preparation from Kaplan. The AOL Foundation, a nonprofit arm of the company,
will also provide the school with 30 computers and unlimited AOL online
access. Recently, both Xerox and Microsoft have donated money and supplies
to help homeless people and welfare recipients gain basic computer skills.
[SOURCE: Washington Post (E1), AUTHOR: Shannon Henry]
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ANTITRUST
=========
MICROSOFT OFFICIAL CONCEDES COMPANY SOUGHT TO RESTRICT WEB-BROWSER (WSJ)
Issue Antitrust
Microsoft Vice President Cameron Myhrvold conceded yesterday in the antitrust
trial against the company that Microsoft gave Internet Service firms visibility
on the "desktop screen" -- in exchange, firms agreed to restrict distribution of
Netscape's rival Web browser. Incentives were provided to firms to not inform
customers of the choice available. "You were concerned that if you presented
customers with a choice, they would pick Netscape and not Internet Explorer?"
Asked Justice Department lawyer David Boies. "Yes, that's right," replied
Myhrvold. Written testimony is expected today by Microsoft marketing chief
Mr. Chase who has told the court that AOL chose Microsoft over Netscape because
of superior technology, not because they were offered a spot in the
online-services folder of Windows desktop screen. AOL Senior Vice President
David Colburn's October testimony is contradictory. He told the court that he
chose Microsoft because of the link to Windows.
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal (A4), AUTHOR: Keith Perine and John Wilke]
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