INTERNET
AOL at 13 Million: Finally A 'Mass Market' (CyberTimes)
AOL Passes 13 Million Subscribers (Telecom AM)
Patent for Online Patents (CyberTimes)
MERGERS/RADIO
Riding Radio Merger Wave, Chancellor Will Buy Capstar (NYT)
CBS Plans Spinoff to Bolster it's Stock (ChiTrib)
Intermedia Forsees Additional Deals To Provide Data Service To Baby
Bell (WSJ)
FCC
Telecom Officials Complain of FCC Slowdown (Telecom AM)
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INTERNET
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AOL PASSES 13 MILLION SUBSCRIBERS (Telecom AM)
AOL AT 13 MILLION: FINALLY A 'MASS MARKET'?(CyberTimes)
Issue: Issue: Online Services
America Online (AOL) announced Aug. 27 that it had exceeded 13 million
members worldwide. AOL's system can now handle 750,000 simultaneous users,
up from 400,000 last year. The latest software update for AOL was released
July 30 and has been downloaded by 5 million members already. Bob Pittman,
president-COO, said the adoption of the new software is the "fastest-ever
adoption rate of any online product." (Kegger tonight at Steve Case's, man)
[SOURCE: Telecom AM]
http://www.telecommunications.com/am/
[SOURCE: New York Times (CyberTimes), AUTHOR: Lisa Napoli]
http://www.nytimes.com/library/tech/98/08/cyber/articles/28aol.html
PATENT FOR ONLINE PATENTS
Issue: E-Commerce/Intellectual Property
As mentioned in a summary earlier this week, the U.S. Patent and Trademark
Office awarded Nat Goldhaber, the founder of CyberGold Inc., a patent for
online "attention brokerage." This move has fueled a debate over the use of
patents in the Internet age. Some see patents as a reward for creativity.
Others see the government as awarding patents to protect innovative business
models, and they fear that this will stifle competition in electronic
commerce. "This is a very significant trend," said Mark Lemley, a law
professor at the Univ. of Texas who specializes in intellectual property. He
said he finds patents disturbing, especially when they cover online business
models. What particularly troubles Lemley and other critics is that if
companies can obtain patents for business models then other potential
competitors could be kept from getting into the game which in turn could
hamper competition.
[SOURCE: New York Times (CyberTimes), AUTHOR: Matt Richtel]
http://www.nytimes.com/library/tech/98/08/cyber/cyberlaw/28law.html
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MERGERS/RADIO
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RIDING RADIO MERGER WAVE, CHANCELLOR WILL BUY CAPSTAR
Issue: Radio/Merger
Radio merger mania started about two years ago with deregulation. It has now
reached a new level with Chancellor Media Corp. announcing yesterday that it
plans to buy Capstar Broadcasting Corp. for $2.3 billion in stock plus
nearly $1.8 billion in assumed debt. The combined company would surpass CBS
as the nation's largest chain of radio stations. Chancellor would have 463
stations with more than 65 million listeners in 105 markets and revenues of
about $2.3 billion. [What?!? diverse local ownership? what is that?]
[SOURCE: New York Times (C4), AUTHOR: Allen R. Myerson]
http://www.nytimes.com/yr/mo/day/news/financial/chancellor-capstar.html
CBS PLANS SPINOFF TO BOLSTER ITS STOCK
Issue: Ownership
CBS Corp will sell ~20% of its radio and outdoor advertising operations by
year-end in an initial stock offering. The spinoff will be renamed Infinity
Broadcasting -- the name of the radio company before CBS purchased it from
Mel Karmazin, now president and COO of CBS, for $3.8 billion. Mr. Karmazin
will be chairman and CEO of Infinity Broadcasting. While the stock market
plunged 300 points yesterday, CBS stock rose $2.06. CBS was purchased by
Westinghouse for $5.4 billion in 1995. The combined company then decided to
concentrate on its media holdings and sell off its industrial operations.
Gaines writes, "Now the company has decided that all media aren't the same,
and a second split is under way."
[SOURCE: Chicago Tribune (Sec 3, p.3), AUTHOR: Sallie Gaines]
http://chicagotribune.com/textversion/article/0,1492,SAV-9808280376,00.html
INTERMEDIA FORESEES ADDITIONAL DEALS TO PROVIDE DATA SERVICES TO BABY BELLS
Issue: Telephony
Intermedia Communications Inc., a telecommunications company that offers a
full range of services, from long-distance to Internet access, is planning
partnerships with more of the Baby Bells once it is granted regulatory
approval for it's agreements with Ameritech and US West. David Ruberg,
Intermedia's chairman, and chief executive, says that the company would like
to provide data-transmission services for BellSouth, SBC and Bell Atlantic
as well. "We see no reason why we can't partner with the other three as
well," says Ruberg.
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal (B5A), AUTHOR: Craig Karmin]
http://wsj.com/
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FCC
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TELECOM OFFICIALS COMPLAIN OF FCC SLOWDOWN
Issue: Regulation
"A lot of folks perceive the Commission as not functioning well," Cellular
Telecommunications Industry Association Senior VP Brian Fontes said of the
Federal Communications Commission. He's not alone in his opinion. FCC
operations have slowed and important decisions have been delayed, industry
officials say. "Industry representatives attributed the slowdown to a
variety of factors -- heightened congressional demands that require
time-consuming reports, the arrival of four new commissioners at once, more
differences of opinion among commissioners than in the past and lack of
strong leadership," TelecomAM reports.
[SOURCE: Telecom AM]
http://www.telecommunications.com/am/
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The Benton Foundation -- and especially the co-writers of Headlines -- would
like to thank Betsy Puckett for her hard work and dedication over the last
year. Today is Betsy's last day and we wish her all the best in her new
position.
"Bye, Betsy. We miss you already!"