MERGERS
FCC Approves MCI-WORLDCOM Merger with Conditions (FCC)
FCC Approves Merger of WORLDCOM and MCI (Telecom AM)
Purchase of MCI Completed (WP)
INTERNET
US West To Bill Internet Service Providers for Access Fees
(Telecom AM)
NBC Puts Its Firepower Behind Snap! (WSJ)
TELEVISION
CBS, CNN Resume Their Discussions On Possible Pooling of News
Operations (WSJ)
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MERGERS
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FCC APPROVES MCI-WORLDCOM MERGER WITH CONDITIONS (FCC)
FCC APPROVES MERGER OF WORLDCOM AND MCI (Telecom AM)
PURCHASE OF MCI COMPLETED (WP)
Issue: Mergers
The FCC conditionally approved WorldCom's purchase of MCI on September 14,
removing the last hurdle for completion of the deal. In an unanimous vote,
with FCC Commissioner Gloria Tristani dissenting in part, the FCC placed two
conditions on the merger: (1) MCI must complete the sale of its Internet assets
to Cable & Wireless before completing the merger. (2) The transfer of MCI's
direct broadcast satellite (DBS) license to WorldCom is subject to the outcome
of pending applications for review of the license that was granted to MCI.
The Commission said it approved the merger because the combined company will
be able to enter the local phone market "more quickly than either company
could do on its own." It also said the merger is consistent with the
"pro-competitive, de-regulatory" framework of the Telecom Act and will
produce "tangible benefits to consumers." Tristani said she dissented
because she wanted the FCC to impose "some sort of" reporting requirement to
monitor the company's progress in the local market.
[SOURCE: FCC]
http://www.fcc.gov/Bureaus/Common_Carrier/News_Releases/1998/nrcc8061.html
http://www.fcc.gov/Bureaus/Common_Carrier/Orders/1998/fcc98225.txt
http://www.fcc.gov/Bureaus/Common_Carrier/Orders/1998/fcc98225.wp
[SOURCE: Telecom AM]
http://www.telecommunications.com/am/
[SOURCE: Washington Post (D3), AUTHOR: Mike Mills]
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/WPlate/1998-09/15/059l-091598-idx.html
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INTERNET
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U S WEST TO BILL INTERNET SERVICE PROVIDERS FOR ACCESS FEES
Issue: Internet
U S West September 11 told companies that use Internet Protocol (IP) telephony
to complete long distance calls that they must begin paying access charges. The
announcement came two weeks after BellSouth notified IP telephony providers
that it is going to start charging them access fees. U S West said that the
action
will close a "loophole" by requiring IP-based providers to pay their "fair
share." Providing IP-based phone-to-phone long distance service "does not
qualify for the access-charge exemption that currently applies to Internet
service
providers," U S West said. "These companies should pay their fair share, as
required by federal law," said Mark Roellig, U S West's executive vice
president. "These charges are vital for funding local phone service for
people in rural and other high-cost communities."
[SOURCE: Telecom AM]
http://www.telecommunications.com/am/
NBC PUTS ITS FIREPOWER BEHIND SNAP!
Issue: Internet
Tonight, during the network news show "Dateline", NBC will launch a major
advertising campaign. The network spot will not promote one of fall season's
new shows, this promo is for NBC's new Internet search engine Snap! NBC,
which owns 19 percent of Snap!, is hopping that it's brand name will go a
long way in helping the little known service compete with better known
engines like Yahoo! and Excite.
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal (B8), AUTHOR: Sally Beatty]
http://wsj.com/
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TELEVISION
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CBS, CNN RESUME THEIR DISCUSSIONS ON POSSIBLE POOLING OF NEWS OPERATIONS
Issue: Television/ Journalism
In an effort to cut costs, CBS and Time Warner Inc.'s CNN are considering
the idea of pooling some of their newsgathering resources. Mel Karmazin,
President of CBS, has articulated desire to trim cost from the network's
$400 million annual budget. An alliance with CNN could help defray news
costs in the same way that NBC has spread its news costs over it's MSNBC and
CNBS cable networks.
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal (B8), AUTHOR: Kyle Pope]
http://wsj.com/
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