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Merger Mania
WSJ: Party Line: The Battle for MCI Takes Another Twist
WSJ: GTE Bid Leaves Street Buzzing
WSJ: Baby Bells Remain Bystanders in Phone Takeover Wars
WP: Analysts Say if Money Talks MCI Will Snub Worldcom
WP: GTE Joins Bidding War For MCI
NYT: Anatomy of a Bid: Less From GTE May Mean More
NYT: GTE Joins Bidding For MCI, Offering $28 Billion In Cash
NYT: Lucent to Buy Internet Servicer

Arts
NYT: A Towering European Addition To the Skyline of Electronic Arts

Cable
WSJ: Why Microsoft Wants to Hook Into Cable TV

Internet
NYT: BMI Develops Robot to Monitor Online Music Sales

Internet Regulations
NYT: Ban Online Gambling? Australia Would Rather Tax It

Public Television
WP: Public TV's Distress Call

Universal Service
FCC: Third Report & Order on Universal Service, Schools, and Libraries

** Merger Mania **

Title: Party Line: The Battle for MCI Takes Another Twist
Source: Wall Street Journal (A1)
http://wsj.com/
Author: John Keller & Steven Lipin
Issue: Mergers
Description: WorldCom? That's last week's news. GTE has made an all-cash $28
billion offer to purchase MCI. GTE has been saying that it could make it
alone in the telecom wars even as other big mergers were announced. CEO
Charles Lee has changed the tune: "This is a great target opportunity. MCI
jump-starts our strategy. We can still go it alone, but with MCI, we can
move to where we wanted to be four to five years sooner." Bankers and
analysts will now have to figure out what bid for MCI is best: British
Telecom, WorldCom, or GTE.

Title: GTE Bid Leaves Street Buzzing
Source: Wall Street Journal (C1)
http://wsj.com/
Author: Susan Pullman
Issue: Mergers
Description: The race is on, analysts say, for telecoms to become
"vertically integrated;" to be able to offer not just local and long
distance service to residential and business customers, but Internet access
as well. The question is: Who will get there first? Analysts think that AT&T
is falling far behind: it has no local service strategy and no Internet
strategy. They think AT&T should have paired up with GTE which is now
bidding for a takeover of MCI.

Title: Baby Bells Remain Bystanders in Phone Takeover Wars
Source: Wall Street Journal (B4)
http://wsj.com/
Author: Leslie Cauley
Issue: Mergers/Telecommunications Regulation
Description: Another major development in the $170 billion phone industry
and once again the Baby Bells are on the sidelines watching. "It's not fair.
It's not right," groused a SBC executive in response to the GTE bid for MCI.
"We would love to be able to act totally on what we believe is best for our
company and our customers, rather than being restrained by restrictions,"
another Bell executive said. The local telephone companies are upset because
the FCC will not let them into in-region long distance.

Title: GTE Joins Bidding War For MCI
Source: Washington Post (A1)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/WPlate/1997-10/16/
Author: Mike Mills
Issue: Mergers
Description: MCI Corp. got another buy out proposal of $28 billion dollars
from GTE Corp. GTE offered $40 in hard cash for every MCI share in hopes of
quashing Worldcom's surprise bid of $30 billion in stock-only currency. GTE
is the country's largest provider of local telephone service and also
proposed creating a new local, long distance, and online superpower.
Analysts anticipate British Telecom, who made the initial bid, to drop out
of what can be termed an "80's style hostile takeover battle." "MCI has
cream-of-the-crop consumer and business customers," said Brian Adamik, an
analyst for the Boston-based Yankee Group. "That looks very attractive to GTE."

Title: Analysts Say if Money Talks MCI Will Snub Worldcom
Source: Washington Post (A15)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/WPlate/1997-10/16/
Author: Jerry Knight
Issue: Mergers
Description: Investment analysts are asking this question of the bidding war
that Worldcom, BT, and now GTE, have sparked around the aquisition of MCI:
Would you rather have cash in the bank to invest any way you like or own
stock in a company you don't know much about? GTE offered $28 billion, or
$40 in cash for every MCI share, in hopes of beating Worldcom's $30 billion
stock-as-currency bid. Investors would have to pay federal capital gains
taxes on profits immediately after selling MCI stock for cash. A swap of MCI
shares for Worldcom stock would be tax-free, but investors would have to pay
taxes sooner or later upon selling their Worldcom shares. Ivan Arteaga, an
analyst at Gabelli & Co., said, "Cash is cash. From an investor's
perspective, the cash is important even though you have a tax issue." GTE is
expected to come up with the cash by selling bonds or borrowing from banks.
Worldcom's shares are worth more right now than GTE's cash offer, but what
if Worldcom's stock falls?

Title: Anatomy of a Bid: Less From GTE May Mean More
Source: New York Times (D1, D21)
http://www.nytimes.com/yr/mo/day/business/index.map?271,168
Author: Floyd Norris
Issue: Mergers
Description: GTE, the latest company to make a bid for MCI, may be offering
the best overall proposal that MCI has seen to date. While Worldcom's bid
is higher in price, their offer is in the form of stock. This raises the
question of whether Worldcom's shares are fairly priced. "If they are
overpriced, then most MCI shareholders are likely to be disappointed in the
long term." With GTE's bid being offered in the form of cash, their proposal
is possibly better for MCI's shareholders as a group.

Title: GTE Joins Bidding For MCI, Offering $28 Billion In Cash
Source: New York Times (A1, D21)
http://www.nytimes.com/index.map?441,143
Author: Seth Schiesel
Issue: Mergers
Description: Yesterday, GTE, the nations third-largest local telephone
company, made an unsolicited bid to buy MCI for $28 billion in cash.
Outside of the financial side of the three offers they have received, MCI
must weigh the different sort of telecommunications that would be created
depending on whose proposal they decide to go with. If they agree to BT's
bid, their alliance would focus on serving large multi-national
corporations. If MCI goes with Worldcom's offer, they would be assisting
Worldcom in expanding their "core constituency of small and
medium-sized American business customers for local, long-distance and
Internet services." And if they decide to accept GTE's bid, MCI would be
helping GTE to increase their consumer clientele in the long-distance
service realm. According to Bryan Van Dussen, a telecommunications analyst
for the Yankee Group, a high-technology consulting firm in Boston,
"acquiring MCI would give an even larger near-term edge to GTE. GTE wants
to be a national player again, and, strategically, this obviously positions
them to achieve that." MCI did not comment other than saying that their
board would meet again in the near future to review their options.

(WHEW!!!)

Title: Lucent to Buy Internet Servicer
Source: New York Times (D7)
http://www.nytimes.com/yr/mo/day/news/financial/lucent.html
Author: Bloomburg News
Issue: Mergers
Description: Lucent Technologies Inc. announced yesterday that it would buy
Livingston Enterprises Inc., makers of remote-access concentrators, "which
are used by Internet service providers to link telephone lines into the
global computer network," for $650 million in stock. Their purchase moves
Lucent "into one of the fastest growing segments of the computer-networking
business."

** Arts **

Title: A Towering European Addition To the Skyline of Electronic Arts
Source: New York Times, CyberTimes
http://www.nytimes.com/library/cyber/mirapaul/101697mirapaul.html
Author: Matthew Mirapaul
Issue: Arts
Description: With more artists than ever using cutting-edge technology to
create their work, the Center for Art and Media Technology, in Karlsruhe,
Germany, will open their doors on Saturday as one of the best examples to
date of art institutions working to keep up with electronic culture. Called
the ZKM, short for Zentrum fur Kunst and Medientechnologie, its 1918
structure has been "completely reconfigured, renovated, wired and equipped
to provide abundant acreage for their already substantial and still growing
collections of electronic art, multimedia displays and virtual-reality
installations." This huge facility also contains "extensive research
facilities, a design school and a multimedia library." "What is special is
that ZKM tries to put new art into a context and a history. It is a brave
and bold move, and I think it will influence many people to move in this
direction." said interactive artist Lynn Hershman.

** Cable **

Title: Why Microsoft Wants to Hook Into Cable TV
Source: Wall Street Journal
http://wsj.com/ (B1)
Author: David Bank
Issue: Cable/Infrastructure
Description: Microsoft is willing to write some pretty big checks to make
sure its software runs cable TV Internet access. The company is negotiating
investing $1 billion in TCI, the nation's largest cable operator. Microsoft
has already invested $1 billion in Comcast Cable and purchased WebTV for
$425 million. The software giant wants to dominate interactive services to
the home just as it has dominated business-based personal computers. The
cable industry is weary of a Microsoft takeover and Oracle wants to take
advantage of that and get its software onto cable boxes.

** Internet **

Title: BMI Develops Robot to Monitor Online Music Sales
Source: New York Times, CyberTimes
http://www.nytimes.com/library/cyber/week/101697music.html
Author: David Bauder
Issue: Internet
Description: Whose big brother is watching who? In an effort to monitor
transmission and sales of music on the Internet, BMI, the music licensing
agency, announced yesterday that it has developed a "Web robot". Their
invention works as a "lightening-fast Web surfer to identify sites that use
music and how often computer users visit them." Potentially, the "Web
robot" can be used to "keep track of the most popular music bought or
transmitted on the Web, sort of a cyber top 10" as well as being a possible
precursor to messy copyright battles.

** Internet Regulation **

Title: Ban Online Gambling? Australia Would Rather Tax It
Source: New York Times, CyberTimes
http://www.nytimes.com/library/cyber/week/101697gambling.html
Author: Jeri Clausing
Issue: Internet
Description: "While American politicians are struggling to find a way to ban
or at least restrict online gambling, Australian lawmakers have drafted a
plan that would introduce legislation simultaneously to tax and regulate
online gambling." Brian Farrell, manager of gambling operation and auditing
with the Victorian Casinos and Gaming Authority in Melbourne said, "Over the
years, every time we have had trouble with illegal forms of gambling --
phone book gambling, unlicensed casinos -- what we've done is provide a
well-regulated alternative for people to access. That means the unlicensed
activity drops to a relatively low level of significance. That same theory
applies to the globalization of the Internet." Australia's approach is in
direct contrast with the United State's approach to online gambling. Jim
Haney, a spokesman for the National Association of Attorneys General
lobbying to ban Internet gambling in states that outlaw gambling, pointed
out that "Gambling is a unique enterprise in the United States in that we
have really allowed each state to set its own gambling policy. Internet
gambling upsets that scheme of local control and local decision making."
Haney added: "Certainly, it is difficult to enforce state and federal laws
when indeed you are dealing with an international communications system.
However, the people in Australia, to the extent that they are targeting the
citizens of Wisconsin, must comply with Wisconsin law. If they are
distributing child pornography to this state, they cannot expect to escape
prosecution for violating our gambling laws." (place your bets now...)

** Public Television **

Title: Public TV's Distress Call
Source: Washington Post (B9)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/WPlate/1997-10/16/
Author: Paul Farhi
Issue: Broadcast Budget Issues
Description: Public TV broadcasters have asked the gov't for $771 million
to help cover the cost of converting the stations to new digital
broadcasting technology. The convert to digital will offer stations the
potential to transmit multiple programs simultaneously. The FCC has set a
deadline of 2003 for public stations to make the switch. If they don't, they
could risk losing their right to use the airwaves, according to Bob Coonrod,
president of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. With digital
broadcasting, public stations could run day long programs for preschoolers,
instructional shows for elementary school students, and job training shows
for adults all at once.

** Universal Service **

Title: Third Report & Order on Universal Service, Schools, and Libraries
Source: FCC
http://www.fcc.gov/Bureaus/Common_Carrier/Orders/1997/fcc97380.html
Issue: Universal Service
Description: "In this Order, we adopt a filing window period that begins on
the date that the Schools and Libraries Corporation and the Health Care
Corporation begin to receive applications for support. We also conclude that
the administrative corporations will determine the length of the window and
resolve other administrative issues necessary to implement our decision to
adopt a window filing period consistent with our guidance set forth below.
Therefore, we amend sections 54.507(e) and 54.623(c) of our rules to
implement this change. In addition, we delegate authority to the Chief,
Common Carrier Bureau to resolve unanticipated technical and operational
issues relating to the new universal service mechanisms that may arise in
the future."
*********

** Sorry for the unedited version that was posted earlier this morning. **

Baby Bells Win Court Battle vs FCC
WSJ: FCC Out of Bounds on Pricing Rules for Local-Phone Market,
Court Finds
NYT: Local Bells Win a 2nd Victory to Block Rivals

Jobs
NYT: New Breed of Worker Transforms Raw Information Into Knowledge

Advertising
WSJ: Chrysler Drops Its Demand for Early Look at Magazines

Internet
WP: Should Children Be Kept Offline?

InfoTech
WSJ: Air Waves
WSJ: The Ability to Pull A Disappearing Act is Just Disappearing
WP: Va. Computer Repair Cost Doubles

Competition
WP: AT&T Joins Wireless Phone Fight

Lifestyles
NYT: Toy Makers To Sponsor Design Lab At M.I.T.

** Baby Bells Win Court Battle vs FCC **

Title: FCC Out of Bounds on Pricing Rules for Local-Phone Market, Court Finds
Source: Wall Street Journal
http://.wsj.com/ (B17)
Author: Leslie Cauley & John Wilke
Issue: Telephone Regulation
Description: The Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals in St. Louis ruled that the
Federal Communications Commission could not force Baby Bells to lease and
then "recombine" network parts at a 70% discount to rivals. The Bells
successfully argued that the rivals -- mainly long distance carriers --
would just be reselling service and therefore should not qualify for the
discounts. FCC Chairman Reed Hundt has vowed to appeal all the way to the
Supreme Court. He said that the ruling allows Bells "to subvert competition"
and may mean that consumers will not have a choice for their local phone
service.

Title: Local Bells Win a 2nd Victory to Block Rivals
Source: New York Times (D1, D22)
http://www.nytimes.com/yr/mo/day/news/financial/fcc-phone-competition.html
Author: Seth Schiesel
Issue: Telecommunications
Description: In St. Louis yesterday, a Federal appeals court threw out
regulations that were intended to promote competition with local telephone
companies. This is a major blow to long-distance phone companies that were
planning to get involved in local telephone markets. Analysts believe that
the court's decision could force long-distance companies to spend billions
of extra dollars to build their own local networks.

** Jobs **

Title: New Breed of Worker Transforms Raw Information Into Knowledge
Source: New York Times, CyberTimes
http://www.nytimes.com/library/cyber/week/101597knowledge.html
Author: Matt Richtell
Issue: Jobs
Description: There is a growing number of employees whose job is to take
overwhelming masses of information and transform it into something that is
tangible, accessible and useful. These 'knowledge managers' are part of one
of the hottest trends in the business world. This study of knowledge
management "evolved from the need of companies to manage resources more
effectively in a hyper-competitive, global economy," said Robert E. Cole,
professor of business administration at UC Berkeley. Another reason for
this growing trend, outside of information being so plentiful, is that the
US economy is increasingly service based. But instead of selling material
products, the top competitors are now selling ideas. The new products offer
consumers systems that will aid them in finding answers. For example, "The
biggest problem is that people don't know what they're looking for," said
Peter Tierney, chief executive officer of Inference. "They'll say, 'I'm
having a problem with my computer.' Then the system will say, "Well, here's
a list of problems. Which most resembles the problem you're having?'"
"Given how many Americans work in fields where the products are ideas, it is
fair to say that many of us are knowledge workers already. Says one San
Francisco Bay Area futurist: 'If you have trouble explaining to your mother
what you do, you're probably a knowledge worker, too.'"

** Advertising **

Title: Chrysler Drops Its Demand for Early Look at Magazines
Source: Wall Street Journal
http://.wsj.com/ (B1)
Author: G. Bruce Knecht
Issue: Advertising
Description: Last year, Chrysler spent $1.1 billion in advertising. $270
million was spent on advertising in 350 magazines and Chrysler had asked for
pre-notification of controversial articles in editions they had placed ads.
After two publishing-industry groups urged members to reject Chrysler's
demands, the company has backed off and says that it will not request
pre-notification nor read any that comes unsolicited. Other companies, like
Chicago-based Baby Bell Ameritech, request pre-notification and do not plan
to change policy because of Chrysler's change of heart.

** Internet **

Title: Should Children Be Kept Offline?
Source: Washington Post (B1)
http://washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/WPlate/1997-10/15/0841-101597-idx.html
Source: Washington Post (B1)
Author: Victoria Benning
Issue: Internet Regulation
Description: Fairfax County officials have proposed a policy that would
allow them to bar children younger than 13 from using the Internet in public
libraries. Under the policy considered, a child's parents or guardians would
have th right to notify the library system that they don't want him or her
given access to the 'Net. Children 13 or older would have unrestricted
access. This proposal is a compromise between those who want the libraries
to have tougher Internet restrictions and those who see any limits as a form
of censorship. The plan's author, Charles A. Fegan, who is also a member of
the Fairfax County Library's Board of Trustees, said, "I don't believe in
censorship at all...this is a way of facing up to that reality and giving
parents an opportunity to get involved."

** InfoTech **

Title: Air Waves
Source: Wall Street Journal
http://.wsj.com/ (A1)
Author: Jeff Bailey
Issue: Satellites
Description: Seven-foot-wide satellite dishes -- in the early 90's so
popular that they were named the state flower of Louisiana -- are no one's
favorite anymore with the introduction of 18" dishes. Door-to-door salesmen
used to sell the big dishes at $2,000 - $5,000 a pop in rural areas, signing
people on to long payment schedules. For big-dish buyers, "it was a jolting
lesson in the rapid obsolescence of consumer electronics." But it was just
as an unpleasant lesson for the consumer-finance industry.

Title: The Ability to Pull A Disappearing Act is Just Disappearing
Source: Wall Street Journal
http://.wsj.com/ (A1)
Author: Cynthia Crossen
Issue: Privacy
Description: Ever get that old, romanticized urge to just dump your life and
begin a new one as a new person? Well forget it in an age of sophisticated
security systems and the availability of so much personal data available via
computers. "Sure, you can disappear if no one's looking for you," says the
president of a firm that finds missing persons. "But if someone is energetic
enough in trying to find you, they can probably find you."

Title: Va. Computer Repair Cost Doubles
Source: Washington Post (B5)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/WPlate/1997-10/15/124|-101597-idx.html
Author: Ellen Nakashima
Issue: Info Tech
Description: Legislative auditors warned today that Virginia will have to
come up with $100 million to retool ther computer systems for the year 2000.
They warned that driver's licenses could go unrenewed, tax refunds could go
un mailed, and criminal background checks unmade. The problem stems from
dated information stored in state computers with only two digits for the
year. "The next governor's going to be accountable for any breakdowns in the
state computer systems," said Philip Leone, director of the Joint
Legislative Audit and Review Commission. "...it's not glamorous, but it's
the price of providing the citizens of Virginia high-quality services." But,
Va. isn't alone with this problem: Maryland will have to pay $101 million to
fix their systems, while D.C. hopes to spend $25 million to fix theirs.

** Competition **

Title: AT&T Joins Wireless Phone Fight
Source: Washington Post (C13)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/WPlate/1997-10/15/0481-101597-idx.html
Author: Mike Mills
Issue: Competition
Description: AT&T Corp. has officially joined the wireless phone market,
hoping that their status as an all-digital network will put them on top. In
a market crowded by Bell Atlantic Mobile, Cellular One, Nextel, and Sprint
Spectrum, analysts say AT&T will probably compete based on service details
rather than rates. AT&T phones communicate using the binary code of
computers, which adds features like anti-eavesdropping security, extended
battery life, caller i.d., paging, and short e-mail messages. The most
unique quality of the service is the phone's ability to work in either an
"analog" or digital mode. Users can "roam" anywhere nationwide and be able
to connect with an AT&T digital network, or a local cellular carrier.

** Lifestyles **

Title: Toy Makers To Sponsor Design Lab At M.I.T.
Source: New York Times (D10)
http://www.nytimes.com/library/cyber/week/101597toys.html
Author: John Markoff
Issue: Lifestyles!
Description: The M.I.T. Media Lab plans to announce today a five-year
research project to design "smart toys". The project, called Toys of
Tomorrow, will be underwritten by four leading toy and entertainment
companies. "There is no question in my mind that going into the new
millennium technology will fundamentally change the way children play," said
Jill Barad, chief executive of Mattel. And Michael Hawley, a professor at
the Media Laboratory who will direct the project, said "rapid change in the
toy industry is perfectly matched to the pace of technological change in the
computer industry." Hmmmmm, still holding onto those "Star Wars Action
Figures?"
*********

Arts and Humanities
WP: Arts Termed Elitist

Campaign Finance Reform
NYT: California To Put Campaign Donations On-Line
WP: TV Stations Curtail Discount Ads for Virginia Campaign

Online Services
NYT: Online Music Retailer Begins Campaign
WSJ: CompuServe to Unveil On-Line Service for Business
and Professional Users

Technology
NYT: Wearable Computers, The User Interface Is You
WP: Memory Bank for the World's Climates

**Arts and Humanities**

Title: Arts Termed Elitist
Source: Washington Post (E4)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/WPlate/1997-10/14/065|-101497-idx.html
Author: Jacqueline Trescott
Issue: Arts & Humanities
Description: A new study from the NEA titled "American Canvas" has warned
that the arts world is elitist, classist, financially unstable, and neither
as democratic or as popular as it should be. This report was issued by
outgoing NEA Chairman Jane Alexander, which also said that the audience for
the nonprofit arts remain "highly skewed" because the arts community has
failed to expand its audience beyond the older, wealthier, educated, and
white patrons who predominated at the beginning of the century. Even though
the report chastises the arts community, its also contains examples of
successful partnerships and programs that NEA hopes will be adopted by more
groups to prove the central importance of the arts in local communities. But
the report still emphasized that "the arts community itself bears a measure
of responsibility for the marginalization of the nonprofit culture...the
arts community neglected those aspects of participation, democratization and
popularization that might have helped sustain the arts when the political
climate turned sour."

**Campaign Finance Reform**

Title: California To Put Campaign Donations On-Line
Source: New York Times, CyberTimes
http://www.nytimes.com/library/cyber/week/101297disclosure.html
Author: Rebecca Fairly Raney
Issue: Campaign Finance Reform
Description: By the year 2000, voters in California will be able to find out
who is giving money to which candidate via the Internet. In the Online
Disclosure Act of 1997, a law that Gov. Pete Wilson signed on Saturday, the
public will be able to access state contribution data online. "Voters now
have more information about legislation, political currents and changes in
government than ever before because of the Internet," Wilson said in a
statement released by his office on Saturday. "This is fundamentally
democratic and I am pleased to sign this bill." Secretary of State Bill
Jones said: "The voters have been saying 'show me the money.' Beginning
with this next election cycle they will finally be able to see the money for
themselves."

Title: TV Stations Curtail Discount Ads for Virginia Campaign
Source: Washington Post (A1)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/WPlate/1997-10/14/128|-101497-idx.html
Author: Spencer S. Hsu
Issue: Campaign Finance Reform
Description: WJLA-TV (ch. 7), WRC-TV (ch. 4), WUSA-TV (ch. 9), and WTTG-TV
(ch. 5) have informed Virginia's candidates for governor, James Gilmore III
(R) and Donald Beyer Jr. (D), that they'll limit air-time purchases by the
campaigns by roughly 40% between now and the Nov. 4 election. WLJA-TV cited
open-market competition and limited audience interest in the Va. campaigns
among MD. and D.C. viewers. "It's a very, very healthy market economically,
so it's tough for anybody to get TV time," said Terry Connelly, WJLA's
president and GM, who also said that Washington's
stations are raking in profits well above last year. William D. Dolan III,
Virginia's Democratic nominee for attorney general, said, "These people are
looking at political debate with the same commercial eye that they look at
selling sausage. It's a terrible thing."

**Online Services**

Title: Online Music Retailer Begins Campaign
Source: New York Times (D10)
http://www.nytimes.com/library/cyber/week/101497cdnow.html
Author: Stuart Elliott
Issue: Online Services
Description: CD Now, an online music retailer, has begun a $10 million
campaign to make consumers more comfortable with the idea of shopping online
and thus stimulate sales. This is just one of several campaigns, sponsored
by companies like Amazon.com and I.B.M., that are attempting to demystify
"e-commerce". Many of these campaigns are using both traditional and
interactive media to get their message across.

Title: CompuServe to Unveil On-Line Service for Business and Professional Users
Source: Wall Street Journal (B6)
http://wsj.com/
Author: Jared Sandberg
Issue: Online Services
Description: CompuServe is expected to unveil a new Web-based online service
aimed at business and professional users. Revenue will be derived from a mix
of advertising, subscription, and pay-per-use fees. CompuServe is feeling
the heat, losing customers to the Internet and will face tough competition
from services already on the Net like Yahoo!, Mining Co, and Encyclopedia
Britannica (which is expected to announce today a new Internet guide to
finding targeted information online). CompuServe's future is uncertain
because it was purchased by America Online in a deal earlier this year. [See
CompuServe's website at http://world.compuserve.com/]

**Technology**

Title: Wearable Computers, The User Interface Is You
Source: New York Times, CyberTimes
http://www.nytimes.com/library/cyber/week/101497wearable.html
Author: Lisa Napoli
Issue: Technology
Description: Yesterday, 400 explorers from around the world gathered in
Massachusetts for the first-ever International Symposium on Wearable
Computers. Defenders of the wearable computer insist that these devices are
being created to liberate us, not confine us. These computers, that are
being designed in all types of shapes and forms, are being created to make
our lives easier in the workplace, at home and in everyday life.

Title: Memory Bank for the World's Climates
Source: Washington Post (A15)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/WPlate/1997-10/14/038|-101497-idx.html
Author: Randolph E. Schmid
Issue: Technology
Description: The Nat'l Climatic Data Center hold's the nation's memory of
weather. "The climate is a resource of the country and the government needs
to be able to describe climate and its effect on commerce and the economy,"
said Ken Davidson, the acting director of the center. Located high in the
mountains of North Carolina, the center is constantly contacted by
researchers, lawyers, businesses, and students. Answering 917,000 queries
last year, lawyers are the biggest customers (28%) for requests concerning
climate conditions that may or may not have contributed to an accident. The
center was created in 1951 and combines civilian and military records.
*********

Universal Service: Schools and Libraries
FCC: Workshop on Schools and Libraries Application Forms

Telephone Regulation: Pay Phones
WSJ: FCC Revises Rates Companies Must pay On Access-Code
TelecomAM: N.Y. PSC Says Bell Atlantic's Payphone Rate
Stays at 25 cents Until 2002

Internet
WSJ: Copyright Imbroglio Entangles a Work That Web Gave Away
NYT: NBC Expands the TV Model Of Local Affiliates To The Web
NYT: Committees Move Internet One Step Closer To Tax Freedom
NYT: New-Media Pamphleteers Revisit The Roots of the First Amendment

Journalism
WP: On MSNBC,. Sleaze To Please?
WP: CNN Ends Ban On Global Warming Ads
WSJ: CNN Shifts Stance On Advocacy Ads About U.N. Proposal

FCC
TelecomAM: Commissioners Say Good-bye, Little Else, At Open Meeting
FCC: FCC Seeks Comments on Public Safety Communications
FCC: Consumer Information Home Page

Mergers: WorldCom
WSJ: WorldCom's MCI Bid Gets Longer Period For Objections to Deal
TelecomAM: Director's Meeting: MCI Board to Discuss Worldcom Bid Today

Arts
NYT: Italy's Barbed Political Jester, Dario Fo, Wins Nobel Prize
NYT: From Science to Fiction, Military and
Entertainment Industries Swap Expertise

** Universal Service: Schools and Libraries **

Title: Workshop on Schools and Libraries Application Forms
Source: FCC
http://www.fcc.gov/Bureaus/Common_Carrier/Public_Notices/1997/da972152.html
Issue: Universal Service
Description: Under the Commission's rules, eligible schools and libraries
that request universal service support will be required to complete
application forms.(7) The Common Carrier Bureau and the Schools and
Libraries Corporation will hold a public workshop in order to seek input on
the form and content of the applications, as well as to provide guidance on
how to complete them and to answer questions from the public. The purpose of
this workshop is to discuss the draft applications. For purposes of
discussion, we will provide draft applications; we emphasize that these
drafts should not be used to apply for universal service funding. The
workshop will be held on Friday, October 10, 1997 from 9:00 a.m.-12:00 noon
in the Commission Meeting Room, 1919 M Street, N.W., Room 856, Washington,
D.C. 20554. Interested parties may attend the workshop. The workshop also
will be recorded on video, and copies of the videotape will be available in
the Commission's Reference Room, 1919 M Street, N.W., Room 239, Washington,
D.C. 20554. For further information about this workshop, contact Astrid
Carlson at (202) 418-7369. [For draft forms see
http://www.fcc.gov/formpage.html#470. For more on universal service
provisions for schools and libraries
http://www.benton.org/Updates/summary.html#snl or
http://www.fcc.gov/learnnet]

** Telephone Regulation: Pay Phones **

Title: FCC Revises Rates Companies Must pay On Access-Code
Source: Wall Street Journal
http://wsj.com/ (A4)
Author: Staff Reporter
Issue: Telephone Regulation
Description: The Federal Communications Commission has ordered long distance
companies to reimburse pay phone operators $0.284 for every 800 number or
"dial-around" call placed from a pay phone. An industry analyst said that
the ruling should help pay phone companies -- mostly the Baby Bells -- "get
to the level of profitability that they haven't seen in decades." AT&T
argued that the rate should be much lower.

Title: N.Y. PSC Says Bell Atlantic's Payphone Rate Stays at 25 cents Until 2002
Source: Telecom A.M .--Oct. 10, 1997
http://tpgweb( at )cappubs.com
Issue: Telephone Regulation
Description: Despite the FCC's order to end state regulation of local
payphone rates, N.Y.'s Public Servivce Commission has advised consumers that
the coin rates of all the payphones owned by Bell Atlantic New York will
remain at 25 cents until 2002. Meanwhile, the American Public Comm. Council
attacked MCI's claim that payphone deregulation would be a disaster for
consumers. MCI said that payphone providers efforts to win choice locations
would result in rates as much as $1.50 per call. APCC President Vincent
Sandusky said the deregulation will be a "good thing" by eliminating
subsidies and encouraging payphone owners to offer better features.

** Internet **

Title: Copyright Imbroglio Entangles a Work That Web Gave Away
Source: Wall Street Journal
http://wsj.com/ (B1)
Author: Thomas Petzinger
Issue: Intellectual Property/Copyright
Description: "The Front Lines" column focuses on the case of Dr. Abraham
Maslow's 1965 book "Eupsychian Management," the work that introduced the
phrases "synergy" and "enlightened management." The book was out of print
and Dr. Maslow's daughter (Ann Kaplan) acquired the publisher's copyright in
hopes of selling the work for republication. Petzinger had celebrated the
book in this same column a few months ago, so prospects seemed good. But in
1987, Sam Canon received permission from the publisher to make the entire
text available on a local bulletin board network. After getting a legal
opinion that it would be OK, Mr. Cannon transferred the work to the World
Wide Web. But Ms. Kaplan asked and then sued Mr. Cannon to remove it from
the Web. Experts believe that posting entire books on the Web actually
*improves* sales, but Ms Kaplan's suit included statutory damages that could
reach $100,000. In a compromise, Ms. Kaplan dropped the suit in exchange for
Mr. Cannon's promise that he destroy all electronic copies of the book in
his control. Ironically, the new publisher of the book may make it available
online -- to help increase sales.

Title: NBC Expands the TV Model Of Local Affiliates To The Web
Source: New York Times, CyberTimes
http://www.nytimes.com/library/cyber/week/101097nbc.html
Author: Lisa Napoli
Issue: Television/Internet
Description: On Wednesday, NBC executives announced the release of their
"Interactive Neighborhood," "a station centered approach at providing
Internet content." This concept, which is the first of its kind, is designed
to work in conjunction with local NBC affiliates to provide the public with
local and national information about different neighborhoods in the United
States. Other major networks are following suit with CBS planning to unveil
a similar venture in January and ABC with an online operation in the works.
You can access NBC's new site at http://home.nbcin.com/nbcin/home/index.html.

Title: Committees Move Internet One Step Closer To Tax Freedom
Source: New York Times, CyberTimes
http://www.nytimes.com/library/cyber/week/101097taxfreedom.html
Author: Jeri Clausing
Issue: Internet Regulation/Electronic Commerce
Description: "Three months after President Clinton called for a tax-free
Internet, Congress on Thursday began moving on bills that would impose a
six-year moratorium on local and state taxes targeting the burgeoning global
network." In order to foster continued Internet growth, supporters of the
bill, HR 1054, believe that tax exemption is needed. With over a dozen
states already imposing tolls on Internet commerce, it is feared that many
cities and states will begin to impose varying taxes on Internet
transactions. As stated by W.G. "Billy" Tauzin (R-LA), chairman of the
Commerce subcommittee, "HR 1054 is an attempt to provide a time-out before
states and localities impose their tax structures on the Internet and
Internet users. During this period, states, localities and the federal
government would work in partnership with Internet service providers and
retailers to develop a sound, fair and just taxing mechanism. In the
meanwhile, the bill adequately provides exemptions from its federal
moratorium to ensure that states and localities will not be prevented from
imposing some taxes in certain circumstances." In opposition, a number of
state and local groups, like the National Conference of State Legislatures,
the National Governors Association and the National League of Cities, view
the measure as an intrusion on their taxing authority.

Title: New-Media Pamphleteers Revisit The Roots of the First Amendment
Source: New York Times, CyberTimes
http://www.nytimes.com/library/cyber/nation/101097nation.html
Author: Jason Chervokas and Tom Watson
Issue: Old vs New Media/First Amendment
Description: The First Amendment, drafted during a time of vitriolic
pamphleteering, is being applied to a medium that our fore-fathers
never considered - the World Wide Web. Across the Web there are a few
national, but mostly local, "news" sites popping up. These community news
sites are providing the public with an alternative voice to get their
message and opinions into the public eye. However, on these sites, many
opinions are cited as fact which raises concern over what may be interpreted
by the non-critical reader. "It certainly bothers us, especially when these
extremists can take an objective, legitimate news story and carve it into
whatever form suits their conspiracy-theory-du-jour approach," said Barry
Locher, managing editor of The State Journal-Register, a newspaper published
in Springfield, IL. "It is certainly a violation of copyright as well as a
violation of ethics. But then, I doubt very much if any of these Web
publishers struggle a great deal with questions of journalistic ethics on a
regular basis." When Sherwood Shantz, a web-publisher of news from his
Washington community, was asked whether he considers himself to be a
journalist or a partisan he replied, "As to being a partisan, that would
depend on in what form it is meant. If you mean, do I believe in what I am
doing, and is it right? Yes. Am I a journalist? No. Have I joined the
ranks of journalists? If I have to be able to spell that word to get in, I
would flunk an entrance exam."

** Journalism **

Title: On MSNBC,. Sleaze To Please?
Source: Washington Post (D1)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/WPlate/10/10/
Author: Howard Kurtz
Issue: Television
Description: Much of the TV business is buzzing about the changes at MSNBC,
the show called "The News With Brian Williams" now possessing an
unmistakably tabloid feel with coverage of Princess Diana or Marv Albert on
night after night, along with all manner of violent crime. Insiders
attribute this to ratings pressures."I'm not entirely comfortable with what
passes for news these days," Williams admits. The new emphasis may reflect a
shift at the 15-month-old venture by Microsoft and NBC, whose ratings have
been disappointing. Its "Internight" show was billed as substantive talk,
but often deals with most of today's sensationalistic news stories like
Diana, Marv, and Paula Jones. "There's always ratings pressure," said Mark
Harrington, MSNBC's GM. "You want to get people to watch what you do. We're
losing money here. It's a start-up operation."

Title: CNN Ends Ban On Global Warming Ads
Source: Washington Post (D2)
http://washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/WPlate/10/10/
Author: Howard Kurtz
Issue: Journalism/Advertising
Description: CNN lifted its ban on global warming ads yesterday after
intense criticism. The network reversed the decision they made only last
week. They had canceled an ad campaign by an industry alliance. The decision
assailed a proposed U.N. treaty that would restrict fuel emissions. But, now
CNN spokesman Steve Haworth said, "We have reevaluated our position and
changed it." He said the network would resume airing the spots by the
Global Climate Information Project if the group can substantiate them.

Title: CNN Shifts Stance On Advocacy Ads About U.N. Proposal
Source: Wall Street Journal
http://wsj.com/ (B8)
Author: Sally Goll Beatty
Issue: Journalism/Advertising
Description: In another reversal, the Cable News Network will accept
advocacy ads about the United Nations' global climate-control treaty. CNN is
responding to pressure (including a full-page ad in the WSJ claiming
censorship) after it decided to refuse ads produced and paid for by the
Global Climate Information Project which has criticized the treaty. [Global
warming? they ask. Ever spent a summer in San Francisco?]

** FCC **

Title: Commissioners Say Good-bye, Little Else, At Open Meeting
Source: Telecom A.M.--Oct. 10, 1997
http://www.tpgweb( at )cappubs.com
Issue: FCC
Description: The open meeting the FCC held yesterday saw the departures
of Commissioners Rachel Chong, James Quello, and Chairman Reed Hundt. Hundt,
like the others, only praised his colleagues, including Susan Ness, who will
be the senior commissioner with the incoming freshman. The future plans of
all three are not known. The FCC also adopted an order on reconsideration
modifying its May 7 rules on access charge reform, which reduces the amount
of prescribed interexchange carrier charge assessed on Centrex lines so that
Centrex users will be assessed PICCs in amounts roughly equal to
similar-sized PBX users. [Decipher that news and win the Weekly Wonk prize].
The open meeting also included a Notice of Rulemaking on the wireless
spectrum for emergency services.

Title: FCC Seeks Comments on Public Safety Communications
Source: FCC
http://www.fcc.gov/Bureaus/Wireless/News_Releases/1997/nrwl7043.html
Issue: Regulation
Description: "The FCC adopted a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking designed to
address the Nation's public safety communications needs into the next
century. The Notice makes a range of proposals and seeks comment on a number
of issues relating to public safety communications and priority access to
wireless communications networks in emergencies."

Title: FCC Consumer Information Home Page
Source: FCC
http://www.fcc.gov/Consumers/
Issue: FCC
Description: The FCC Consumer Information Page offers information on various
consumer-related topics. You can reach the Public Service Division by
e-mail, psd( at )fcc.gov, or by phone at 202-418-0190, TTY-888-835-5322.

** Mergers **

Title: WorldCom's MCI Bid Gets Longer Period For Objections to Deal
Source: Wall Street Journal
http://wsj.com/
Author: Staff Reporter
Issue: Mergers
Description: We can't leave you without one last WorldCom story...
The Federal Communications Commission has extended the deadline for
objections to the unusual structure that which WorldCom plans to acquire
MCI. The deadline had been 12 pm today, but MCI's board isn't meeting 'til
today. The FCC established a timetable for objections that will continue
until three days after the WorldCom exchange offer commences. The offer is
expected in 30 days.

Title: Director's Meeting: MCI Board to Discuss Worldcom Bid Today
Source: Telecom A.M.--Oct. 10, 1997
http://www.tpgweb( at )cappubs.com/
Issue: Mergers
Description: Directors of MCI are to meet today to consider Worldcom's
$30 billion takeover bid. There are signs that they may be leaning towards
opening discussions that could lead to a merger. BT, with their initial $24
million bid, has said that they won't comment before MCI's response. MCI is
also considering the new place of strength in Internet communications that
the merger could produce in the form of "voice traffic" migrating to the
'Net. Worldcom has also projected first-year savings of $2.5 billion if the
merger happens, and $5 billion by the fifth. Meanwhile, shares in U.S.
telecom companies most likely to follow Worldcom's example of
merger/acquisition continue to rise, like AT&T and GTE.

** Arts **

Title: Italy's Barbed Political Jester, Dario Fo, Wins Nobel Prize
Source: New York Times, A1, A10
http://www.nytimes.com/yr/mo/day/news/arts/nobel-literature.html
Author: Celestine Bohlen
Issue: Arts
Description: Dario Fo, the Italian playwright-performer known for his
subversive satire, was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature yesterday.
This prize to Mr. Fo is among the most controversial and unexpected in the
97 year history of the award drawing guarded amazement from Italy's literary
establishment and outright dismay from the Vatican. In its announcement,
the Swedish Academy likened Fo to the "'jesters of the Middle Ages' who rely
on wit, irreverence and even slapstick humor to poke fun at authority while
'upholding the dignity of the downtrodden'. With a blend of laughter and
gravity, he opens our eyes to abuses and injustices in society and also the
wider historical perspective in which they can be placed. Fo is an
extremely serious satirist with a multifaceted oeuvre."

Title: From Science to Fiction, Military and Entertainment Industries Swap
Expertise
Source: New York Times, C1
http://www.nytimes.com/library/cyber/week/101097sfx.html
Author: Andrew Pollack
Issue: (That's) Entertainment
Description: Rocket Scientists are heading to the movies in more than one
way. Outside of catching an occasional weekend flick, a few of NASA's
engineers are trading in their lab keys for work in the digital
entertainment domain. With the sharp cut-backs in military spending, some
aerospace companies and engineers are now applying their expertise to
developing special effects for movies, theme park rides, casinos and
shopping centers. "The National Research Council issued a report last month
saying that the entertainment and defense industries share many technologies
related to computer models and simulation and could benefit from greater
cooperation." While there may be similarities between these two industries,
there are still stark differences - especially in the corporate culture.
"Even though the technology may be the same, the way the technology is used
is so different," said Eric Haseltine, who used to work for Hughes
Electronic and now heads projects developing virtual reality attractions at
Disney. "One is about storytelling and emotion, and the other is about
killing people." [Which usually end the story and the emotion right there].
It appears that the Pentagon may also be climbing on board
as they look to the entertainment industry for low-cost technology and
wonder whether military simulators can be based on similar casino
attractions. [When asked his opinion, top gun pilot Tom Cruise...]
*********
Swooooosh! We're outta here. See ya Monday.