JOURNALISM
Newspaper Group Launches Campaign (WP)
As the On-line World Grows, So Do Newspapers (ChiTrib)
ANITTRIST
AT&T: Too Big Once Again? (WP)
Case Against Microsoft Supported (WP)
Baby Bells Fail To Get Supreme Court To Review Bar to Electronic
Publishing (WSJ)
WIRLESS
Area Code for Wireless Urged (SJ Merc)
Glitches Surface as Iridium Phone Go to War (WSJ)
INTERNET
China Needs E-Commerce Rules, Regulator Says (SJ Merc)
Time Warner Closing Pathfinder (NYT)
Spouses Taking Cyber-Chat to Court (WP)
INTERNET/TELEPHONY
AT&T and N.T.T. in Phone Venture (NYT)
TELVISION
Fox Affiliates Preparing to Battle Plan That Would Cut Ad Revenue (WSJ)
JOURNALISM
NEWSPAPER GROUP LAUNCHES CAMPAIGN
Issue: Old Media vs. New Media
The Newspaper Association of America announced Monday its intent to help
newspapers improve readership with an $11.5 million marketing plan to win
new readers and win back those who have switched to other media. The
association, a nonprofit organization representing the country's $54 billion
newspaper industry, announced the five-year marketing plan at its annual
conference in San Diego. The primary goals of the Readership Initiative
campaign, to be headed by former Coca-Cola marketing czar Sergio Zyman, are
to find ways to stop readers from defecting to other media and to make
newspapers a part of every advertiser's media plan.
[SOURCE: Washington Post (Online), AUTHOR: Minerva Canto (Associated Press)]
(http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/WAPO/19990427/V000397-042799-idx.html)
AS THE ON-LINE WORLD GROWS, SO DO NEWSPAPERS
Issue: New vs Old Media
Yesterday, Editor & Publisher issued a report that says daily and weekly
newspaper circulation has grown over the last two years. In that same
period, the number of newspaper Web sites has doubled to more than 950.
Daily newspapers are facing increased competition from weekly and spaciality
publications that Jones compares to the competition the broadcast networks
are getting from cable channels. "There is so much out there that people
have found they don't need to pay to get their news anymore," said Ian
Anderson, research director at Editor & Publisher. Much of this is not
surprising, said newspaper analyst John Morton, president of Morton Research
Inc. in Silver Spring (MD). "Alternative newspapers attract a younger reader
that the dailies don't get," Morton said, "and community newspapers tend to
grow with the economy and decline with the recessions. The free weeklies are
solely dependent upon advertising revenue, and when the ad market softens
these papers usually cut back on their distribution. So much of this
reflects the economy, and that's been pretty strong for a long time."
[SOURCE: Chicago Tribune (Sec 3, p.3), AUTHOR: Tim Jones]
(http://chicagotribune.com/textversion/article/0,1492,SAV-9904270158,00.htm)
ANITRUST
AT&T: TOO BIG ONCE AGAIN?
Issue: Competition/Broadband
The old Ma Bell may be making a bid to become "Ma Cable," after AT&T's
surprise, $58 offer for cable giant MediaOne Group last Thursday. AT&T,
which once controlled the copper wires in people's homes, is moving to
control more and more of the coaxial cables that cable companies have run
into homes. By controlling the broadband pipe, they can handle rivers of
electronic data, including phone calls. AT&T already is the owner of the
nation's second-largest cable TV company (TCI) and owns a small part of the
largest (Time Warner). Competitors and critics say that with the MediaOne
bid, AT&T has gone too far. Robert W. Doyle Jr., a former antitrust lawyer
for the Federal Trade Commission says, "AT&T will have greater control over
[cable TV] hardware and software than anybody has ever had before." He says
that could harm competitors by keeping them off networks or by jacking up
prices. AT&T's long-range vision is to make cable the conduit for delivering
most of the household information services of the next century and claims it
needs a large cable "footprint" to compete with the "Baby Bells."
[SOURCE: Washington Post (E1), AUTHOR: Paul Farhi]
(http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/business/daily/april99/ATT27.htm)
CASE AGAINST MICROSOFT SUPPORTED
Issue: Antitrust
Executives from Packard Bell NEC, the nation's fifth largest computer maker,
complain about restrictions they face from industry-giant Microsoft in newly
released transcripts from depositions in the Microsoft antitrust case. Mark
Donahue told lawyers that Packard Bell NEC over the summer had asked to
remove Microsoft's list of Internet providers within Windows and substitute
its own for "financial reasons." Microsoft refused. The government contends
that such actions limit choices for consumers. The 270 pages of testimony
released Monday are the first in a series of transcripts of more than 90
depositions taken in preparation for the trial that are to be made public
this week. The trial is currently in a lengthy recess. [Rebuttal arguments
are scheduled to begin on May 10, but the Post says delays in an unrelated
case being heard by the same judge means it probably will not resume at that
time.]
[SOURCE: Washington Post (Online), AUTHOR: Ted Bridis (Associated Press)]
(http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/WAPO/19990427/V000299-042799-idx.html)
BABY BELLS FAIL TO GET SUPREME COURT TO REVIEW BAR TO ELECTRONIC PUBLISHING
Issue: Antitrust
The Supreme Court has decided not to review a complaint, by BellSouth and U
S West, that the Telecommunications Act of 1996 violates their First
Amendment rights by not letting them enter the electronic publishing
business. The 1996 Act requires that Baby Bells must use separate subsidies
if they want to provide electronic publishing services. The Bells argued
that the law was unconstitutional because other local telephone companies
were not subject to the same requirements.
SOURCE: Wall Street Journal (A24), AUTHOR: Robert S. Greenberger]
(http://wsj.com)
WIRELESS
AREA CODE FOR WIRELESS URGED
Issue: Wireless
In an effort to gain control of what it calls "the ongoing number crisis we
face," the California Public Utilities Commission is asking the Federal
Communications Commission to waive its ban on establishing different area
codes for different technologies or services. The goal for the CA PUC is to
be allowed to consider establishing separate area codes for wireless phones
and pagers. It's one of several potential solutions being considered to stem
that tide of new area codes that have coursed into California in recent
years. California had 13 area codes in 1997 but will have 26 later this
year. Officials predict the state will need another 15 by the end of 2002.
Wireless carriers have opposed the idea of a wireless-only area code, saying
it could confuse customers and put companies at a disadvantage. The FCC,
which has rejected previous requests for waivers to the policy, may not
reply to the California proposal for 6 to 12 months.
[SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News, AUTHOR: Deborah Kong]
(http://www.mercurycenter.com/svtech/news/indepth/docs/codes042799.htm)
GLITCHES SURFACE AS IRIDIUM PHONE GO TO WAR
Issue: Wireless
Iridium satellite telephones, touted as the ultimate mobile "communicate
virtually anywhere in the world" phones, are getting a high intensity test
run as the crisis intensifies in the Balkans. Journalist and air workers
using the phones, however, are less than impressed with the expensive new
technology. Users find that the phones do not function well indoors or in
cities. "If people don't use it properly, it won't work," said Michelle Lyle
a spokesperson for the company. The World Food Program, a United Nations
agency, has tested the phones in Africa and Eastern Europe, and has decided
not buy any more. "The idea is beautiful," said Gianluca Bruni, WFP senior
communications coordinator. "But it's new technology. The product doesn't
quite do what they wanted."
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal (B18), AUTHOR: Hugh Pope and Quentin Hardy]
(http://wsj.com)
INTERNET
CHINA NEEDS E-COMMERCE RULES, REGULATOR SAYS
Issue: Electronic commerce/International
Avoiding monopolies and combating fraud, gambling and illegal entertainment
are goals requiring the establishment of rules for Chinese electronic
commerce, according to Zhang Jing, director of the State Administration for
Industry and Commerce. "The government should implement strict rules to
eliminate these players and allow legitimate players into the market," Zhang
told the World Economic Forum's China Business Summit in Beijing.
Information technology executives said there are a laundry list of obstacles
to the development of China's tiny e-commerce industry, from a lack of
credit cards to high Internet fees and snail's-pace access.
[SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News, AUTHOR: Reuters]
(http://www.mercurycenter.com/svtech/news/breaking/merc/docs/007742.htm)
TIME WARNER CLOSING PATHFINDER
Issue: Internet/Publishing
Time Warner plans to shut down Pathfinder -- a cyberspace outpost that lumps
together all Time Warner magazines online: Time, Fortune, Money, and
Entertainment Weekly. It will be phased out over the next 6 months and
replaced with "hub sites" that combine related magazines and link with other
Time Warner owned sites, like CNN and CNNfn. Each hub is created to go after
a more precisely targeted audience. Jeffrey Coomes, vice president of
marketing at Time says replacing Pathfinder is a response to how readers are
using the sites -- skipping the Pathfinder site and going directly to the
magazine home pages. Lisa Allen, a senior analyst at Forrester Research, a
marketing research firm in Cambridge MA, says that dismantling of Pathfinder
is long overdue. "The success of a site like Pathfinder is about creating a
specific online entity. It doesn't mean throwing up a group of magazines on
one home page and having people drill down to the magazines." A pioneer,
Pathfinder faced issues of
intellectual property and fears that sales of print magazines would go down.
Mark Mooradian, a senior analyst at Jupiter Communications, says the demise
of Pathfinder is paving the way for more editorial control of consumers. For
Time Warner, this means E-commerce -- direct marketing efforts that combine
content with commerce. Ms. Allen of Forrester Research said that Time Warner
finally recognizes that traditional magazine publishing approach doesn