DIGITAL DIVIDE
Hispanics Are Narrowing the Digital Divide (NYT)
The Man Who Gives Computers to Kids (WP)
BROADCASTING
LPFM Application Forms Are Now Available (FCC)
Class A Television Service (FCC)
INTERNET
Role In Net Control Up For Vote Everyone Online Can Help Elect 5
Board Members (USA)
Children and the Internet Forum (NSBA)
AOL Introduces Net Appliance Line (NYT)
E-COMMERCE
That Online Religion With Shopping, Too (NYT)
Report of the Advisory Commission on Electronic Commerce (House)
Postal Service Unveils E-Payment Program (WP)
PRIVACY
Businesses Criticize US - EU Privacy Pact as Hurdle to Global
E-Commerce Efforts (WSJ)
'Digital Storm' Brews at FBI (WP)
Wireless Telecommunications Sourcing and Privacy Act (House)
MERGERS
WorldCom, Sprint Face Skeptics (WP)
ANTITRUST/REGULATION
Judge Orders Fast-Track Remedy in Microsoft Antitrust Case (NTY)
Dismantle Microsoft, With Care
Techies Fear Microsoft Trickledown (USA)
DIGITAL DIVIDE
HISPANICS ARE NARROWING THE DIGITAL DIVIDE
Issue: Digital Divide
Cheskin Research, a California market research firm in Redwood Shores,
California, released a 150-page report today that says the digital divide is
narrowing for Hispanics and that Hispanic home PC computer purchases far
outstrip that of the general population. Titled "The Digital World of the
U.S. Hispanic," the report is based on a telephone survey of 2,017 Hispanic
households in February. Among the findings is that 42 percent of the
nation's 9.3 million Hispanic households have a computer -- representing a
68 percent increase over 1998. The general population had a corresponding 43
percent increase. The report also finds that economics still plays a large
role in ownership. Part of the reason for the large increase in computer
purchases among Hispanics, said Felipe Korzenny, a principal at Cheskin
Research, is "a very strong motivation of not being left behind." Mr.
Korzenny added that innovative sales techniques could get more computers
into the homes of Hispanics. One company, La Curacao, goes door to door,
offering credit to low-income Hispanics with no credit history. "I tell
computer executives that if they would partner with these companies and sell
computers that way they could sell hundreds per day," he said.
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Katie Hafner]
(http://www.nytimes.com/library/tech/00/04/circuits/articles/06hisp.html)
THE MAN WHO GIVES COMPUTERS TO KIDS
Issue: EdTech/Digital Divide
Phil Shapiro, an instructional technology coordinator for the Arlington
County (VA) Schools, is making a personal effort to narrow the digital
divide by refurbishing donated computers and giving them to low-income
students. Shapiro believes that old, outdated, computers are better than no
computers at all, because these computers still allow students to become
familiar with keyboards, software and problem-solving. Arlington County
Schools requires third-grade students to learn how to type. In donating
refurbished computers Shapiro hopes to help the young students, who
otherwise wouldn't have access to a computer at home, feel more comfortable
as they're being introduced to basic computer skills in the classroom.
Shapiro hopes that the computers he refurbishes will help prevent low-income
children from falling behind their more affluent peers.
[SOURCE: Washington Post (B3), AUTHOR: Emily Wax]
(http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A22151-2000Apr6.html)
BROADCASTING
LPFM APPLICATION FORMS ARE NOW AVAILABLE
Issue: Radio
Application for Construction Permit for a Low Power FM Broadcast Station is
available in Acrobat (pdf) format. Form 318 is available online
(http://www.fcc.gov/mmb/prd/lpfm/) and through the FCC's Forms webpage.
Applications will be accepted only in designated filing windows. The
Commission will be accepting applications in five waves -- evenly divided
among the 50 states, as well as U.S. possessions and territories -- over the
next year. Applications will be accepted during a five-day filing window
that will be announced in a Public Notice to be issued at the end of April
-- 30 days prior to the first day of the filing window, which will be at the
end of May. When information is available on when to file applications for
low power radio stations it will be posted on the Commission's LPFM website
at www.fcc.gov/lpfm or available by phone from the FCC at 1-888-CALL-FCC.
A Low Power FM applicant's guide is also available
(http://www.fcc.gov/mmb/prd/lpfm/lpfmguide.pdf)
[SOURCE: FCC]
(http://www.fcc.gov/mmb/prd/lpfm/)
CLASS A TELEVISION SERVICE
Issue: Television
The FCC has released the Report and Order creating a Class A television
service.
[SOURCE: FCC]
(http://www.fcc.gov/Bureaus/Mass_Media/Orders/2000/fcc00115.pdf)
INTERNET
ROLE IN NET CONTROL UP FOR VOTE EVERYONE ONLINE CAN HELP ELECT 5 BOARD
MEMBERS
Issue: Internet
Do you want a say in who controls the primary database that tells computers
connected to the Net how to find one another? If yes, go to the Internet
Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers site (ICANN) to register to vote
in this November's elections. Anyone with an e-mail address and a fixed
postal address anywhere in the world is entitled to a ballot. Some believe
that most of ICANN's substantive policies have already been decided and that
the election process is merely for show, says Karl Auerback, a tech
executive who is afraid ''people will mistake ICANN's faux democracy for the
real thing.'' Jerry Berman from the Center for Democracy and Technology in
Washington DC disagrees, "The election was set up to make sure that (the
Internet community's)interests were taken up. It's supposed to be about
technical issues, but ICANN could end up making important policy issues
affecting how the Internet is run."
[SOURCE: USA Today (3D), AUTHOR: Elizabeth Weise]
(http://www.usatoday.com/usatonline/20000406/2117349s.htm)
CHILDREN AND THE INTERNET FORUM
Issue: Internet
A week has passed since the National School Boards Foundation (NSBF)
released it's national survey of children's use of the Internet. Unlike
previous research that contends that the Internet isolates people, or
sensationalized news reports that evoke fear of pornography and pedophiles,
or, at the other end of the spectrum, claims that the Internet is a force
for all things good, this survey supplies hard data about how families are
using the medium. The survey also provides a basis for a national
discussion, which is why the NSBF is hosting a forum this week at
www.edvancenet.org. (Follow the "Community Center" link.) Here is your
chance to comment on the report's findings -- too glowing? missed the mark?
just right? -- and help shape the national debate.
(You could link to news coverage in today's Washington Post
or Ed Week http://www.edweek.org/ew/ewstory.cfm?slug=30net.h19)
[SOURCE: National School Boards Foundation]
(http://www.edvancenet.org)
AOL INTRODUCES NET APPLIANCE LINE
Issue: Internet
America Online has joined with Gateway in introducing a line of small
Internet "appliances" that will let people tap into the World Wide Web
without a PC. AOL officials said the new appliances, some of which are
expected to be shipped for delivery before the Christmas season, will use
the upstart Linux operating system and feature the new Netscape 6 browser.
The two companies are introducing hree small devices: a counter-top
appliance that may be used in kitchens; a wireless Web pad that can fit
inside a briefcase; and a desktop device that serves as a lower-cost
alternative to the personal computer. The devices feature wireless or
traditional keyboards.
[SOURCE: New York Times (Online), AUTHOR: Reuters]
(http://www.nytimes.com/library/tech/00/04/biztech/articles/06appliance.html
)
E-COMMERCE
THAT ONLINE RELIGION WITH SHOPPING, TOO
Issue: E-Religion
As the Web has grown, so too have religious sites. They now include the
homepages of churches, synagogues and mosques, but also for-profit portals
like Beliefnet and the imminent Faith.com and SpiritChannel.com. (In what is
just about the most priceless quote ever,) Steve Waldman, the journalist who
started Beliefnet in January, said that his site is " not all that different
than the sex sites on the Web. Religion is really important to people, the
way sex is." Catholic theologian Tom Beaudoin, says that "The Internet is an
invitation for people who are skeptical. They feel released and can ask the
religious questions they want to explore. I've received e-mails at 3 a.m.
from people who haven't stepped inside a church in years." Many for-profit
sites are mutifaith focused but SpiritChannel.com, goes beyond traditional
denominations to include New Age Spirituality. Created by Issac Tiggret,
founder of the Hard Rock Cafe and the House of Blues, Spirit Channel wants
to become the "first holistic lifestyle brand," a press release says.
[SOURCE: New York Times (E1), AUTHOR: Lori Leibovich]
(http://www.nytimes.com/library/tech/00/04/circuits/articles/06reli.html)
REPORT OF THE ADVISORY COMMISSION ON ELECTRONIC COMMERCE
Issue: E-Commerce
Live audiocast of today's House Telecom Subcommittee hearing.
[SOURCE: House of Representatives]
(http://com-notes.house.gov/cchear/hearings106.nsf/12b6a0781fa86e88852567e50
07558f4/090e61ffe054bd8d852568b800692cce?OpenDocument)
POSTAL SERVICE UNVEILS E-PAYMENT PROGRAM
Issue: E-Commerce
The U.S. Postal Service yesterday launched its a program that allows
consumers to pay their bills electronically. The new service, a joint
venture between the Post Office, CheckFree Corp. and CheckFree Corp. and
YourAccounts.com, will have the no-nonsense name of eBillPay. In addition to
allowing customers to pay their bills electronically, the service will cut a
check to allow users to pay bills to companies that do not accept electronic
payment. The Post Office is betting, along with many banks, credit card
companies, and other various dot-coms, that the number of Americans who pay
bills online will jump from the barely 5 percent that are currently
estimated to do so, to include many more. The service will be free fir the
first six months. After that, it will cost either $6 for 20 payments (and 40
cents for each additional payment) or $2 with a 40 cent charge for each
payment.
[SOURCE: Washington Post (E2), AUTHOR: Stephen Barr]
(http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A20926-2000Apr5.html)
PRIVACY
BUSINESSES CRITICIZE US - EU PRIVACY PACT AS HURDLE TO GLOBAL E-COMMERCE
EFFORTS
Issue: Privacy/E-commerce
General Electric, Seagram, Home Depot and Aflac are just some of the
companies that are part of the newly formed National Business Coalition on
E-Commerce and Privacy which is objecting to a new privacy pact between the
U.S. and the European Union. The pact requires U.S. companies, when dealing
with European consumers, to observe stringent EU rules for disclosing
consumer data. If they observe the rules, they obtain "safe harbor" from
prosecution or litigation by EU governments. In arguing against the deal on
trade grounds, the coalition noted that the U.S. has no such law on its
books, nor do many other countries. "The safe harbor agreement in effect
establishes a nontariff trade barrier in that a U.S. person cannot do
business with the EU unless that person agrees to play by EU rules. This
trade barrier will disadvantage U.S. companies in relation to their
competitors in other areas which do not have to abide by the principles of
the EU directive," said the coalition in a letter to the Commerce
Department. The group said the U.S. government should solicit further input
from U.S. companies and undertake more study of the deal, as well as consult
Congress. It should put off enforcement of the rules "at a minimum for a
period of at least two, or preferably three, years."
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal Interactive, AUTHOR: Glenn Simpson]
(http://interactive.wsj.com/articles/SB954968119196052057.htm)
'DIGITAL STORM' BREWS AT FBI
Issue: Privacy
The FBI is seeking $75 million in budget appropriations to update its
court-sanctioned telephone and cellular phone data collection systems. One
is called "Digital Storm" and allows agents to monitor telephone calls and
analyze computerized recordings. The FBI is also looking to create a system
that would provide the "foundation for an up-to-date flexible digital
collection infrastructure" for wiretaps and an "enterprise database" that
would enable agents to analyze and share a huge amount of data via a secure
World Wide Web network. FBI officials said the bureau's information
technology systems are aging and need to be updated to keep pace with
criminal activities that occur both on the Internet and offline. But civil
liberties activists, legislators and legal specialists claim that the
bureau's proposal could erode constitutional protections that limit
government searches. For example, the FBI estimates that the technological
advances would so improve the ability to conduct wiretaps that the number of
approved taps would increase by 300 percent over the next decade. Deputy
Assistant Director Edward Allen played down that number.
[SOURCE: Washington Post (A1), AUTHOR: Robert O'Harrow Jr.]
(http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A20426-2000Apr5.html)
ANTITRUST/REGULATION
JUDGE ORDERS FAST-TRACK REMEDY IN MICROSOFT ANTITRUST CASE
Issue: Antitrust
Judge Thomas Penfield Jackson set a "fast track" schedule today intended to
conclude the proceedings in the Microsoft antitrust case and impose a remedy
roughly by the end of May. Now, with a deadline looming, the state attorneys
general and the Department of Justice are considering against asking the
judge to break up the company, several officials said today. Under the plan
announced Judge Jackson, the state and federal governments must submit their
remedy proposal to the judge no later than April 28, and Microsoft is to
offer its reply on May 10. A hearing would begin on May 24. Additionally,
Judge Jackson could recommend that Microsoft's appeal be filed directly to
the Supreme Court once the proceedings in his court are over
[SOURCE: New York Times (A1), AUTHOR: JOEL BRINKLEY]
(http://www.nytimes.com/library/tech/00/04/biztech/articles/06soft.html)
DISMANTLE MICROSOFT, WITH CARE
Issue: Antitrust
[Op-Ed] Charles Ferguson, the founder of a Tech company that was sold to
Microsoft, and author of "High Stakes, No Prisoner: A Winner's Tale of the
Internet Wars," argues that "for the good of both consumers and industry, a
major structural solution is called for," on the question of Microsoft.
Ferguson writes that competing software companies who have called for
Microsoft being broken up into "Baby Bills," full service companies that
would compete, much as the former Bell Operating companies did, "are
interested in their own good, not the world's." The author suggests that the
only reasonable solution to the Microsoft case is to split the company along
"technological" lines; creating an operating system company, an applications
company, and an Internet company. This would provide each company with "
incentives to discipline the other." Furguson claims that if one of the
companies behaved poorly, the others could seek new partners with whom to do
business.
[SOURCE: Washington Post (A23), AUTHOR: Charles Ferguson]
(http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A20897-2000Apr5.html)
TECHIES FEAR MICROSOFT TRICKLEDOWN
Issue: Internet Regulation
In the wake of this week's antitrust ruling against Microsoft, some
technology companies are worried the judge's decision could heighten
government scrutiny of the industry on issues ranging from privacy to how a
company runs its business. Rob Enderle, an industry watcher with Giga
Information Group predicts that "At ome level, the government is going to
want to fix the broad problems" affecting the industry by enacting
legislation or requiring oversight. Issues such as Net security, privacy and
encryption have become important to many policymakers. And though technology
companies are grappling for their own solutions, government is getting
impatient. The industry that stricter oversight or regulation could
potentially threaten innovation. "IF the government gets in the position of
designing software and specifying what types of features to have in what
software, it will be devastating" to innovation, said Jonathan Zuck,
president of the Association for Competitive Technology, which represents
9,000 companies, including Microsoft.
[SOURCE: USAToday (3B), AUTHOR: Deborah Solomon]
(http://www.usatoday.com/usatonline/20000406/2117416s.htm)
MERGERS
WORLDCOM, SPRINT FACE SKEPTICS
Issue: Mergers
MCI WorldCom and Sprint spent yesterday morning before a committee at the
Federal Communications Commission, defending their claim that a merger of
the two companies would benefit consumers by not forcing them to choose
between former Bell companies and cable companies like AT&T or Time Warner
for their telecommunications services. MCI WorldCom and Sprint contend that
their licenses to offer high speed Internet access and local phone service
over the wireless technology known as MMDS would allow them to increase
competition by offering it as an alternative to the traditional phone, DSL
and cable services of the others. Moreover, the two companies contend that
they will be able to get the service to market more efficiently if allowed
to merge. This claim raised questions. "I'm trying to understand where the
synergies might be on the local side," said Larry Strickling, chairman of
the FCC Common Carrier Bureau. Merger opponents like rival SBC and the
Telecommunications Research and Action Center, a consumer advocacy group
came out more strongly against the claims that the merger would provide
financial benefits. They pointed to the fact that MCI WorldCom and Sprint
had each separately paid more than $1 billion before the merger. The groups
asked why either company would spend that kind of money if they didn't think
it would be profitable.
[SOURCE: Washington Post (E2), AUTHOR: Peter S. Goodman]
(http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A19623-2000Apr5.html)
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