RADIO
Support of Low Power Radio (MAP)
OWNERSHIP
FCC Staff Says Ownership Rule Can Be Relaxed (WSJ)
Media Giants Considering Hostile Bid for GM (SJM)
Rogers Communications, Shaw Agree to Swap Cable-TV Assets (WSJ)
ACCESSIBILITY
Service That Reads Aloud Web Content to Be Unveiled (WSJ)
LEGAL ISSUES
Judge Allows Delivery By E-Mail (SJM)
Settlement Bid Anticipated In Microsoft Case (USA)
In Spam Case, Another Defeat for State Internet Laws (CyberTimes)
1,600 Web Sites Warned in Fraud Inquiry (Cyber Times)
INTERNATIONAL
US, Japan Clash Over Cost of Fees Charged by NTT (WSJ)
Hughes Electronics Agrees to Provide Satellite-Based Web
Service Across India (WSJ)
RADIO
SUPPORT OF LOW POWER RADIO
Issue: Radio
The National Association of Broadcasters has been making misguided and
misleading claims about interference that low power radio will cause.
Congress is currently considering legislation that would end the FCC's new
low power radio service. This bill, entitled the "Radio Preservation Act of
1999," would reverse the FCC's decision to establish a low power radio
service and prevent the FCC from considering the issue again in the future.
A mark-up of this legislation is scheduled in the House Commerce Committee
on Tuesday, March 28. Find out more at the URL below.
[SOURCE: Media Access Project]
(http://www.mediaaccess.org/programs/lpfm/urgactn.html)
OWNERSHIP
FCC STAFF SAYS OWNERSHIP RULE CAN BE RELAXED
Issue: Ownership
In a move that would benefit Viacom's pending acquisition of CBS, the
Federal Communications Commission is recommending the easing of a
longstanding broadcast-ownership rule. Currently, the rule prohibits one of
the top four television networks from owning a second network. Under the new
recommendations, a top four network would be allowed to own a second-tier
network like UPN or Time Warner's WB Network. The problem with Viacom's
acquisition of CBS had been their 50% ownership of UPN -- under the old rules
Viacom would have had to sell its ownership stake. Under the new
recommendations, it'll be able to keep its ownership and even increase
it. This is particularly good news since Viacom just agreed to buy the rest
of UPN from Chris-Craft Industries last week. The FCC report is also
expected to look at rules prohibiting one company from controlling a TV
station and daily newspaper, or a TV station and cable system in the same
market. The report should be issued next month.
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal (B2), AUTHOR: Kathy Chen]
(http://interactive.wsj.com)
MEDIA GIANTS CONSIDERING HOSTILE BID FOR GM
Issue: Ownership
Rupert Murdoch of News Corp. and John Malone of Liberty Media Corp. are
considering a hostile takeover of General Motors Corp. to acquire access to
its hot satellite subsidiary, Hughes Network Systems (HNS). The deal - a
true buyout, rather than a merger - demonstrates the complexity of mergers:
rather than buying HNS outright, analysts say it would be less expensive for
Murdoch and Malone to buy GM and then sell off the car-making portions. GM
itself has no glamour for Murdoch and Malone, it is HNS's satellite strength
that matches their ambitions. A strong satellite operation in the United
States has been a "major piece" missing from Murdoch's global holding. The
DirecTV satellite service owned and operated by Hughes could possibly draw
anywhere from $33 - $38 billion alone. Prior Justice Department restrictions
of cable TV operators owning satellite TV frequencies is a hurdle to the
deal. Liberty Media is wholly owned by AT&T Corp. News Corp. has already
assembled a global satellite powerhouse through ownership of satellite TV
firms in Asia and Europe. Ownership of Hughes's DirecTV product would give
Malone and Murdoch not only the leading US satellite TV provider, but also a
monopoly over satellite TV in Latin America, said Jimmy Schaeffler, head of
the Carmel Group research firm.
[SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News, AUTHOR: Jon Healey, Kristi Heim]
(http://www.mercurycenter.com/business/top/000008.htm)
ROGERS COMMUNICATIONS, SHAW AGREE TO SWAP CABLE-TV ASSETS
Issue: Ownership/Cable
Rogers Communications and Shaw Communications agreed to swap cable systems
that they value at $4 billion and to join forces on Internet
ventures. It should help them take on Canada's phone companies. The deal
would solidify Roger's dominance of Eastern Canada's cable market with a
total of 3.5 million subscribers linked by one network. It would also give
Shaw most of Western Canada, with 1.86 million subscribers. The swap will
allow both companies to better provide bundles of services, such as cable,
high-speed Internet and wireless communications, and consolidate their
marketing and advertising. Rogers and Shaw have also agreed to merge their
two Web portals to create Excite at Canada. Excite( at )Home will be a minority
partner. Shaw also agreed to sell a C$198 million stake in Montreal cable
operator Cogeco Cable to Rogers, and Rogers agreed to sell a C$94 million
stake in Canadian Satellite Communications to Shaw. The swap deal is still
subject to regulatory approval.
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal (B4), AUTHOR: Mark Heinzl]
(http://interactive.wsj.com/articles/SB953844607225365787.htm)
ACCESSIBILITY
SERVICE THAT READS ALOUD WEB CONTENT TO BE UNVEILED
Issue: InfoTech
Motorola Corp. is expected to unveil a new technology that allows consumers
to connect to the Web using voice-activation technology. The service,
currently called "Mya," will read aloud Web content such as e-mail, stock
quotes, weather and traffic reports to consumers via any phone. Mya will
debut during the Academy Awards broadcast this week. This service is
another attempt to deliver Internet services via wireless devices.
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal (A8), AUTHOR: Staff writer]
(http://interactive.wsj.com)
LEGAL ISSUES
JUDGE ALLOWS DELIVERY BY E-MAIL
Issue: Internet
Dozens of Web site owners have received subpoenas and other documents in their
email boxes. U.S. District Judge Edward Harrington granted a temporary
restraining order last week against two computer experts who distributed a
method to thwart the popular "Cyber Patrol" software, which blocks children
from Internet pornography. The utility, called "cphack," discloses parents'
password, thus allowing access to questionable Web sites. Irwin B. Schwartz,
the lawyer for Microsystems, the filtering software's manufacturer, received
permission from the judge to e-mail copies of the order with a subpoena for
related information to anyone who was distributing the "cphack" utility and
its blueprints. Supporters of the email subpoenas say it allows attorneys to
respond in "Internet time" to new law and technology issues. Critics, on the
other hand, say it's unworkable because e-mail can be falsified or forged so
easily.
[SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News, AUTHOR: Ted Bridis]
(http://www.mercurycenter.com/svtech/news/breaking/ap/docs/351327l.htm)
SETTLEMENT BID ANTICIPATED IN MICROSOFT CASE
Issue: Antitrust
As prosecutors eased off demands that Microsoft be broken up, the company is
expected to make a sweeping offer today in an attempt to settle the
government's antitrust case against it. The four-month-old talks were
revived recently as Jackson moves closer to a final ruling that's expected
to say Microsoft broke antitrust laws. The software giant wants to head off
such a decision, which could be used as evidence by plaintiffs in the more
than 100 class-action lawsuits against it. At the same time, Justice
Department officials have signaled a willingness to consider broad
restrictions on Microsoft's conduct in place of a breakup. There is,
however, division among the 19 states suing Microsoft. While many are
receptive to limited sanctions, others continue to press for a breakup.
[SOURCE: USAToday (1B), AUTHOR: Paul Davidson]
(http://www.usatoday.com/usatonline/20000324/2068282s.htm)
IN SPAM CASE, ANOTHER DEFEAT FOR STATE INTERNET LAWS
Issue: Internet
A state judge recently ruled that Washington's much publicized junk e-mail
statute violates the Constitution because it unduly interferes with the free
flow of information in cyberspace. Judge Palmer Robinson of King County
Superior Court in Seattle dismissed a lawsuit by the state attorney general
against an out-of-state sender of unsolicited commercial e-mail, known as
spam. A 1998 law prohibited a person or company from knowingly sending
unsolicited commercial e-mail to a Washington resident if it contains false
or misleading information. The ruling is the latest in a string of
decisions in which a federal or state judge has concluded that a state's
attempt to regulate Internet activities within its own borders ran afoul of
the Constitution's commerce clause. The commerce clause grants Congress the
authority to "regulate commerce . . . among the several states." "If this
argument is taken seriously, it threatens to wipe out all state regulation
of Internet transactions," whether the local laws seek to control spam,
gambling, children's access to online pornography or any number of things,
said Jack Goldsmith, a professor at the University of Chicago Law School.
Goldsmith predicted that the issue will eventually be decided by the Supreme
Court. "It's going to be fascinating," he predicted. "The current justices
tend to be pro-states' rights, and they're going to be sympathetic to some
of these state regulations."
[SOURCE: CyberTimes, AUTHOR: Carl S. Kaplan]
(http://www.nytimes.com/library/tech/00/03/cyber/cyberlaw/24law.html)
1,600 WEB SITES WARNED IN FRAUD INQUIRY
Issue: Internet
The Federal Trade Commission has put 1600 Web sites on notice for alleged
fraud. The sweep was a cooperative effort between the FTC and over 150 law
enforcement agencies from some 28 countries. It tracked sites that offer
get-rich-quick opportunities, including lotteries, work-at-home
opportunities, off-shore investments and anything that "looks too good to be
true," said Jodie Bernstein, director of the FTC's Bureau of Consumer
Protection. "Today's sweep demonstrates the commitment of regulators
worldwide to join forces and work together to keep the Internet safe and
secure," said Dick Walker, director of the Securities and Exchange
Commission's division of enforcement. Since the first such sweep, in 1997,
more and more dubious sites have been netted, resulting in numerous court
cases from the state level up. The unwelcome attention also causes the sites
to cease their activities voluntarily, an FTC staff lawyer, Paul Luehr,
said, about 40 percent of the sites that have warned as a result of the
sweeps has shut down or moved when officials check back on them.
[SOURCE: Cyber Times, AUTHOR: Jeri Clausing]
(http://www.nytimes.com/library/tech/00/03/cyber/articles/24scam.html)
SEE ALSO: FTC SAYS WEB SWEEP UNCOVERS 1,600 SITES WITH GET-RICH SCAMS
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal (A12), AUTHOR: Dow Jones]
(http://interactive.wsj.com/articles/SB953834577748926150.htm)
INTERNATIONAL
US, JAPAN CLASH OVER COST OF FEES CHARGED BY NTT
Issue: International
The US is threatening to bring a telecommunications case against Japan to
the World Trade Organization after talks with the Nippon Telegraph &
Telephone corp. about reducing "interconnection fees" broke down. US
negotiators want a 41% reduction in "interconnection fees" while Japan has
proposed a 22.5% reduction to be phased in over four years. The US claims
that their demands are aimed at increasing Internet use in Japan, thereby
opening new opportunities for American telecommunication and Internet
companies. This view isn't supported by many executives, who feel that Japan
is a leader in Internet access via mobile phone. As a response to the NTT's
currently high interconnection fees, many companies are rushing to set up
rival high-capacity networks. "It's not a questions of NTT putting up
barriers - it's a question of whether we can make money given all the
competition" said Sunobu Horigome, a Sony Corp. executive.
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal (A17), AUTHOR: Peter Landers]
(http://interactive.wsj.com/articles/SB953838586947137354.htm)
HUGHES ELECTRONICS AGREES TO PROVIDE SATELLITE-BASED WEB SERVICE ACROSS
INDIA
Issue: International
Hughes Electronics reached an agreement in which they, in partnership with
India's S. Kumars Group, will set up kiosks at coffee houses, restaurants
and other retail sites in India to provide Internet access to millions of
subscribers, throughout rural areas, who don't have their own computer or
home telephone service. The S. Kumar Group will supply and deploy 50,000
community-access terminals and Hughes will provide their satellite-based
DirectPC technology. The project is intended to demonstrate the
effectiveness of using such terminals to offer Internet access in primarily
rural regions that lack extensive ground-based transmission facilities such
as telephone or cable-lines. "We see this as a model for offering these
types of services, [in other parts of the globe]" said Pradman Kaul,
chairman of Hughes Network Systems. The deal is expected to be announced in
conjunction with President Clinton's current visit to India.
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal (B4), AUTHOR: Andy Pasztor]
http://interactive.wsj.com/articles/SB953857686801419608.htm
--------------------------------------------------------------
(c)Benton Foundation 2000. Redistribution of this email publication -- both
internally and externally -- is encouraged if it includes this message.
--------------------------------------------------------------
The Benton Foundation's Communications Policy and Practice (CPP)
(www.benton.org/cpphome.html) Communications-related Headline
Service is posted Monday through Friday. The Headlines are highlights
of news articles summarized by staff at the Benton Foundation. They
describe articles of interest to the work of the Foundation -- primarily
those covering long term trends and developments in communications,
technology, journalism, public service media, regulation and philanthropy.
While the summaries are factually accurate, their often informal tone does
not represent the tone of the original articles. Headlines are compiled by
Kevin Taglang (kevint( at )benton.org), Rachel Anderson (rachel( at )benton.org),
Jamal Le Blanc (jamal( at )benton.org), and Nancy Gillis (nancy( at )benton.org) -- we
welcome your comments.
The Benton Foundation works to realize the social benefits made possible
by the public interest use of communications. Bridging the worlds of
philanthropy, public policy, and community action, Benton seeks to shape
the emerging communications environment and to demonstrate the value of
communications for solving social problems. Through demonstration
projects, media production and publishing, research, conferences, and
grantmaking, Benton probes relationships between the public, corporate,
and nonprofit sectors to address the critical questions for democracy in
the information age. Other projects at Benton include:
Connect for Kids (www.connectforkids.org)
Open Studio: The Arts Online (www.openstudio.org/)
Destination Democracy (www.destinationdemocracy.org/)
Sound Partners for Community Health (www.soundpartners.org/)