Benton RSS Feed

FCC
B&C: FCC Caught In Political Crossfire
B&C: FCC in Congress's Sights
TelecomAM: Congressman Criticize FCC On House Floor At Behest Of Bells

Telephony
FCC: Report to Congress on Universal Service
B&C: AT&T Using Cable To Get Into Local Telephony

Internet
WP: The Internet Is Finding A Home on the Hill
WSJ: Cruising Web's Fast Lane via Cable

Television
B&C: DTV Debut May Suffer From FCC Delay
B&C: McCain Backs Local-into-Local

Security/Intellectual Property
WP: Trying to Keep a Lock on Company Secrets

Technology
NYT: New Company Seeks Wider Role for Old Technology
NYT: Next Electronics Breakthrough: Power-Packed Carbon Atoms
NYT: French Company Hopes to Make Its 3-D Tool A Web Standard

** FCC **

Title: FCC Caught In Political Crossfire
Source: Broadcasting&Cable (p.18)
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/
Author: Chris McConnell
Issue: Free Time for Candidates
Description: The White House wants the FCC to write new rules on free
political airtime. Congressional leaders want the commission to keep its
hands off. And both are forcing the new FCC commissioners to choose sides in
the political fray. Predictably, commissioners so far have divided on the
issue along political lines. Democrats Gloria Tristani and Susan Ness,
joined by William Kennard have voiced support for at least launching a
proposal on free or reduced-cost airtime for candidates. Kennard also
announced plans to propose a political broadcasting requirement the morning
after Pres. Clinton called for such a measure. Republican commissioners
Harold Furchtgott-Roth and Michael Powell have objected on the grounds that
the FCC lacks authority to mandate free time.

Title: FCC in Congress's Sights
Source: Broadcasting&Cable (p.20)
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/
Author: Paige Albiniak
Issue: FCC
Description: The FCC will start to slim down and speed up this year if the
House and Senate Commerce Committees will have their way. Several members of
Congress plan this year to examine whether the FCC is badly organized,
spends too much money, employs too many people and works too slowly. Last
week, Senate Comm. Subcommittee Chairman Conrad Burns said he plans
oversight hearings to examine four FCC bureaus -- Common Carrier, Wireless,
Mass Media and Cable. He also plans an oversight hearing on FCC
reauthorization. A Burns spokesman said, "One of the reasons [we are holding
this hearing] is because abuse [by the FCC] of the public interest mandate
is so flagrant that it needs to be addressed."

Title: Congressman Criticize FCC On House Floor At Behest Of Bells
Source: Telecom AM---2.17.98
http://www.telecommunications.com/am/
Issue: Competition/FCC
Description: At the request of BellSouth and Ameritech, a series of
Members of Congress have begun criticizing the FCC's implementation of the
Telecom
Act. The Members, many of whom do not hold telecom-related committee
posts, have disparaged the Commission's denial of Bell long distance
applications, saying that competitive local companies have refused to
provide residential services and that the FCC has imposed a much more
complicated regulatory framework than that envisioned by Congress. "Where is
the telecommunications competition that Congress promised the American
people two years ago?" Rep. Howard Jones asked. "Did the dog eat it? Is it
in the mail? Or has the FCC frittered it away with detail?"

** Telephony **

Title: Report to Congress on Universal Service
Source: FCC
http://www.fcc.gov/Bureaus/Common_Carrier/Public_Notices/1998/da980280.html
Issue: Universal Service
Description: The Federal Communications Commission will hold an En Banc on
Thursday, February 19, 1998, from 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 pm, in Room 856 at 1919
M. Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. The En Banc is in connection with the
Report to Congress on Universal Service required by statute. At the En Banc,
the Commission will hear from panels of experts addressing issues regarding
various definitions in the 1996 Act, as well as the payment and receipt of
Universal Service contributions by information service providers and
telecommunications carriers. The En Banc will also be carried live on the
Internet at http://www.fcc.gov/realaudio/.

Title: AT&T Using Cable To Get Into Local Telephony
Source: Broadcasting&Cable (p.13)
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/
Author: Price Colman & John Higgins
Issue: Telephony/Competition
Description: AT&T's pending investments in ( at )Home Corp. and
Tele-Communications Inc. will pave the way for the nation's largest
long-distance provider to enter the local telephone markets --- but not in
the conventional way. Instead, AT&T is focusing on Internet Protocol
telephony as a way to tap the growing hunger among residential customers for
second lines. By capitalizing on the IP telephony trend, AT&T hoped to cut
down on the billions of dollars in access charges it pays to local exchange
companies. IP telephony also sidesteps most regulations that accompany local
"powered" telephony, including 911 requirements and network outage parameters.

** Internet **

Title: The Internet Is Finding A Home on the Hill
Source: Washington Post (A13)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/WPlate/1998-02/17/070l-021798-idx.html
Author: Bill McAllister
Issue: Media & Politics
Description: One of the conclusions of a recent survey -- conducted by
American's Center for Congressional and Presidential Studies -- is that a
growing number of Capitol Hill lawmakers are regularly surfing the Net.
"Republicans are proving to be more computer friendly than Democrats, and
senators are more likely to be found at their video screens than
representatives. More than 90 percent of the 270 offices surveyed reported
they used both the Internet and email message systems." The survey is slated
for release today.

Title: Cruising Web's Fast Lane via Cable
Source: Wall Street Journal (B1)
http://wsj.com/
Author: Steve Stecklow
Issue: Infrastructure
Description: Lately, there has been a lot of press about plans to offer
residential customers high-speed access to the Internet using
existing telephone lines. One new technology, ADSL, promises to offer
"lightning-fast Internet access" at "speeds up to 250 times faster than
standard modems." The telephone service side of US West plans to roll out
ADSL this year. However, at the moment, MediaOne, US West's express
service, doesn't offer remote access. As a result, some customers won't want
to use it for e-mail since they can't access it from their office or on the
road. Also, it doesn't easily let you put up your own Web pages. MediaOne
says both services will be available in the near future.

** Television **

Title: DTV Debut May Suffer From FCC Delay
Source: Broadcasting&Cable (p.12)
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/
Author: Chris McConnell
Issue: Digital TV
Description: FCC Commissioners hoped their new digital TV rollout plan would
give viewers in the top markets an early glimpse at high-definition pictures
on Nov. 1. Now officials are seeing those hopes threatened as they haggle
over their plan for matching each TV station with a channel for DTV. Some
broadcasters said last fall that they needed the final table by Jan. 2 to
make the early construction schedule. With the commission six weeks behind
that target, several broadcasters are questioning whether they will be able
to meet the Nov. 1 deadline. "There are problems," says one industry source,
pointing to both the lack of a final allotment table and continuing problems
in securing spots in some markets for a DTV transmitting antenna.

Title: McCain Backs Local-into-Local
Source: Broadcasting&Cable (p.14)
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/
Author: Paige Albiniak
Issue: Satellite
Description: EchoStar Comm. last week gained another ally in its fight to
legally provide all customers -- via satellite -- with their market's local
television stations. Senate Commerce Committee Chairman John McCain plans to
introduce legislation that would allow direct broadcast satellite providers
to offer so-called local-into-local service. McCain has broad support for
the measure among members of his panel. Before McCain can go forward in the
satellite arena, he will have to sort out jurisdictional issues with Senate
Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch.

** Security/Intellectual Property **

Title: Trying to Keep a Lock on Company Secrets
Source: Washington Post (D1,D4)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/WPlate/1998-02/17/080l-021798-idx.html
Author: Sharon Walsh and Robert O'Harrow Jr.
Issue: Security/Intellectual Property
Description: As corporations store more vital information on computers, and
as access to computers becomes more universal, there is a growing concern
about such information becoming a prime target for international spies.
Using today's technology, companies can analyze vast amounts of data
obtained from competitor's computers to discern patterns, long-term plans,
and even analytical models of the company itself. The Justice Department has
devoted an entire section to computer crimes, called the Computer Crime and
Intellectual Property section. In addition, the Economic Espionage Act of
1996 is expected to be used to prosecute computer crime originating from
foreign sources. "Computer networks are vital to our economy and our safety,
and their security should be one of law enforcement's and industry's highest
priorities," said Mary Jo White, US attorney for the Southern District of
New York. "Certainly we are seeing more and more of this,' said William
Perez, the FBI's acting section chief for financial crimes. "There's no
doubt that's one of our greatest concerns. The Internet opens the world. You
don't have to be very sophisticated to do it. Nowadays, everything is point
and click."

** Technology **

Title: New Company Seeks Wider Role for Old Technology
Source: New York Times (D6)
http://www.nytimes.com/library/cyber/week/021798wire.html
Author: John Markoff
Issue: Infrastructure
Description: Andrew Heller, a designer at IBM, said that on Wednesday he
will announce the formation of a new company, Innovative Network
Technologies, Inc. The company, to be based in Austin, TX, that will develop
technology that enables high-speed computer communications over telephone
lines and existing building wiring. Heller said that the technology is based
on 30-year-old research with analog communications that was all but
abandoned in the 1960s. The advancement should offer low-cost, high-speed
alternatives to today's digital networks.

Title: Next Electronics Breakthrough: Power-Packed Carbon Atoms
Source: New York Times (C1,C5)
http://www.nytimes.com/library/cyber/week/021798molecule.html
Author: Malcolm W. Browne
Issue: New Technology
Description: Scientists predict that an elegantly geometrical molecule
called a single-walled carbon nanotube, is about to ignite a revolution in
electronics, computers, chemistry and new structural elements. Physicists
have proved that it is possible to create relatively large electronic
devices, that are currently incorporated in silicon-based chips, on an
atomic and molecular scale. "A single electron in a single-wall carbon
nanotube could function as a microminiature transistor." Nanotubes, only one
50,000th the thickness of a human hair, were discovered in 1991 by Dr. Sumio
Iijima of NEC Fundamental Research Laboratories in Tsukuba, Japan. Several
reports show that nanotubes can perform the same electronic functions as
vastly larger silicon-based devices. Thus, a computer based on nanotube
devices could be extremely fast, compact and powerful.

Title: French Company Hopes to Make Its 3-D Tool A Web Standard
Source: New York Times (CyberTimes)
http://www.nytimes.com/library/cyber/euro/021798euro.html
Author: Bruno Guissani
Issue: Internet Technology/International
Description: Philippe Ulrich, art director and founder of Cyro Interactive,
one of the best-known European video developers, based in Paris, has been
working over the past 18 months developing a new 3-D programming language
called SCOL (Standard Cryo On Line). Ulrich said that SCOL, which was
introduced last week at Milia, a multimedia convention held in Cannes, will
allow even beginners to create 3-D sites "with ease." "The Web is about to
turn into a virtual world. It will soon become a three-dimensional parallel
world. SCOL will now let people create new 3-D online spaces where they can
invite their guests, show and sell their products, or play games," said
Ulrich. SCOL is a hybrid of the multi-platform programming language JAVA and
of Silicon Graphics' VRML, which is considered one of the best ways to
develop 3-D representations but need powerful computers driven by skilled
programmers. SCOL, on the other hand, can allow a user to develop a 3-D Web
site in 30 minutes using a normal desktop PC.
*********
Did everyone enjoy their weekend?

Universal Service
TelecomAM: GAO Says FCC Exceeded Its Legal Authority on Universal Service
TelecomAM: Bill Requiring Blocking For Universal Service Funds Wins Praise

Competition
TelecomAM: Bell Atlantic Says Wholesaling Is 'Critical' To Its Growth
WSJ: Judge Postpones Long-Distance Clearance for Bell
NYT: Judge Postpones Telecom Order
FCC: Telecom Act is Destined to be a Great Success

Internet/Online Services
WSJ: A Web Pioneer Does a Delicate Dance With Microsoft
WSJ: PolyGram Establishes Panel to Focus On Internet Effects
WSJ: Kodak to Buy Stake in PictureVision In Bid to Lift Internet Photo
Business
WSJ: Apple Technology Picked by Panel To Be a Standard
NYT: Standard Group to Adopt QuickTime Format
WSJ: AOL and Hong Kong Firm Form On-Line Venture

Television
WP: Top Cable Firm to Raise Its Rates
FCC: Protect Children From Harmful TV Violence

Spectrum
WP: In Next FCC Auction, the Wealthy Will Get the Discount
NTIA: Spectrum Reallocation Report

Merger
NYT: Software Maker Seeks Services Concern in $8.4 Billion Bid
WP: Software Giant Makes Bid To Expand Into Services

** Universal Service **

Title: GAO Says FCC Exceeded Its Legal Authority on Universal Service
Source: Telecom AM -- 2/12/98
http://www.telecommunications.com/am/
Issue: Universal Service
Description: The General Accounting Office (GAO) says that the Federal
Communications Commission exceeded its legal authority when it ordered the
National Exchange Carriers Association (NECA) to create the corporations
that administer new universal service benefits for schools and libraries
(Schools and Libraries Corp http://www.slcfund) and rural health care
providers (Rural Health Care Corp). GAO responded to a November 28 inquiry
by Sen Ted Stevens (R-AK). The Government Corporation Control Act (GCCA)
requires a federal agency to have "specific statutory authority" to
establish a corporation. Section 254 of the Telecommunications Act of 1996
created the new universal service programs, but it was silent on how they
should be administered. Sen Stevens said that Congress supported the concept
of universal service, but the FCC took "general support" and created a much
larger program than Congress had envisioned. A FCC spokeswoman said the GAO
report is a "legal issue" that "will ultimately be resolved." [Related sites
-- GAO http://www.gao.gov, NECA http://www.neca.org, The New Definition
of Universal Service http://www.benton.org/Updates/summary.html]

Title: Bill Requiring Blocking For Universal Service Funds Wins Praise
Source: Telecom AM---feb. 12, 1998
http://www.telecommunications.com/am/
Issue: Universal Service/Legislation
Description: Legislation requiring schools and libraries that receive
universal service support to use Internet blocking programs won support from
Senators of both parties and industry reps. At a Commerce Committee hearing,
Assoc. for Interactive Media President Andrew Sernovitz said he was
"testifying for the Internet industry" in endorsing the bill.

** Competition **

Title: Bell Atlantic Says Wholesaling Is 'Critical' To Its Growth
Source: Telecom AM---feb. 12, 1998
http://www.telecommunications.com/am/
Issue: Competition
Description: Bell Atlantic is committed to being a "carrier's carrier,"
Chairman-CEO Ray Smith said. Smith also said wholesaling services to
competitive local carriers generated $6 billion in revenue last year. Bell
Atlantic wholesales its lines "not just because the Telecom Act requires it,
but because it's critical to our growth," Smith said. He said the company
has 500 wholesale customers --- "our best customers." The company's creation
of this separate unit and its volume of wholesale business demonstrates that
Bell Atlantic is "exceeding" its requirements for opening local markets to
competition, according to Smith. He predicted the FCC would let BA into long
distance in New York this year.

Title: Judge Postpones Long-Distance Clearance for Bell
Source: Wall Street Journal (B10)
http://wsj.com/
Author: Stephanie N. Mehta
Issue: Competition/Long Distance
Description: U.S. District Court Judge Joe Kendall, stayed his New Year's
Eve ruling, which tore down key parts of the Telecom Act. That ruling said
the Baby Bells were being unconstitutionally prohibited from entering the
long-distance business. Judge Kendall's latest move comes on the eve of
expected action by the
Oklahoma Corporation Commission, where commissioners are expected to
evaluate SBC Comm. plans to get into the long-distance business. The Bell
filed the lawsuit questioning the Telecom Act's constitutionality, and had
hoped that Judge Kendall's original decision would have allowed SBC to begin
offering long distance services early this year.

Title: Judge Postpones Telecom Order
Source: New York Times (Business Index From the Associated Press)
http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/f/AP-Telecom-Ruling.html
Author: Associated Press
Issue: Competition/Long Distance
Description: U.S. District Court Judge Joe Kendall, of Wichita Falls, TX,
has decided to postpone implementing his Dec.31 ruling, which struck down
key elements of a 1996 telecommunications law, that would have given at
least three regional Bell companies a clear path to compete in the
long-distance business. SBC took the case to court with Bell Atlantic and US
West joining the suit. They have not decided what their next legal step will
be. FCC Chairman William Kennard said that Kendall's action means that
the 1996 telecommunications law governing entry into the long-distance
business and his agency's enforcement of it remain "in full force."

Title: Telecom Act is Destined to be a Great Success
Source: FCC
http://www.fcc.gov/Speeches/Tristani/spgt802.html
Author: Commissioner Tristani
Issue: TelecomAct of 1996
Description: In delivering an "inside the beltway" perspective on
telecommunications in Washington to a Joint Session of the Puerto Rico
Legislature, FCC Commissioner Gloria Tristani today noted that "Any
discussion of telecommunications in Washington begins with the
Telecommunications Act of 1996." She said that, measured against realistic
expectations, "I would say...[the Act] has been a modest success so far, and
it is destined to be a great success." She said this was because of the
Act's commitment to competition and universal service. [Remarks available in
Spanish http://www.fcc.gov/Speeches/Tristani/spgts802.html]

** Internet/Online Services **

Title: A Web Pioneer Does a Delicate Dance With Microsoft
Source: Wall Street Journal (B1)
http://wsj.com/
Author: Kara Swisher
Issue: Merger/Antitrust
Description: RealNetworks, who has popularized the use of real-time audio
and video on the Web, now stands squarely in the path of the strategy that
has drawn Microsoft into trouble with antitrust regulators: emulating
innovative products, integrating them into its operating systems and then
giving them away free. RealNetworks' daunting task is to prove it can do a
better job of outmaneuvering Microsoft than Netscape. Rob Glaser, owner of
RealNetworks, insists he and the software giant can coexist. "I learned an
amazing amount from Bill. We knew we could either compete head-on like
Netscape or do something a lot more interesting." His strategy is known
internally as "coopetition." He sold a nonvoting 10% stake to Microsoft for
$30 million, and licensed RealNetworks' technology to Microsoft for another
$30 million. Microsoft also agreed to bundle RealNetworks' software with
Internet Explorer.

Title: PolyGram Establishes Panel to Focus On Internet Effects
Source: Wall Street Journal (B6)
http://wsj.com/
Author: Charles Goldsmith
Issue: Internet Commerce
Description: PolyGram named a board-level panel to devise a strategy for
dealing with the Internet's nascent but potentially sweeping effects on the
entertainment industry. PolyGram's move to formulate a comprehensive
Internet strategy underscores a new Internet focus for the world's $40
billion recorded music industry. The major record labels initially adopted
an arms-length approach to on-line technology but are now analyzing both the
promise of Internet-based sales and the dangers of people skirting
copyrights by downloading music off the 'Net as digital compression
technology rapidly improves. "We take it as a very, very serious matter,"
PolyGram President and CEO Alan Levy said. While he expressed doubts that
consumers would abandon traditional record stores in favor of the Internet,
"I wouldn't like to be wrong, because it could have very dire consequences
for the company."

Title: Kodak to Buy Stake in PictureVision In Bid to Lift Internet Photo
Business
Source: Wall Street Journal (B10)
http://wsj.com/
Author: Jon G. Auerbach
Issue: Merger
Description: Eastman Kodak, trying to energize its Internet-based
photography business, has agreed to purchase a majority stake in its biggest
online competitor. Kodak said it plans to announce an agreement to acquire
a 51% stake in closely held PictureVision Inc. The move signals Kodak's
determination to stick with a strategy of developing a significant
Internet-based business. Mr. Gustin, Kodak's chief marketing officer said
that the service is "very appealing...to people who get really involved
with their pictures." Kodak's Internet strategy isn't without risks, as it
is widely believed that as computer printers grow better and cheaper,
customers will eschew the photo shop altogether and print Internet pictures
at home. The company is betting that enough consumers will lack the
scanners, the printers, or the time, and would prefer to let someone else do
the work.

Title: Apple Technology Picked by Panel To Be a Standard
Source: Wall Street Journal (B10)
http://wsj.com/
Author: Jim Carlton
Issue: Standards
Description: An industry panel selected Apple Computer's QuickTime
technology as a standard in a new multimedia specification for the Internet,
providing a psychological boost to the beleaguered computer maker as well as
a rare victory over rival Microsoft. The International Standards
Organization adopted a proposal to use the QuickTime File Format by a group
of companies, comprised of Apple, IBM, Netscape, Oracle, Silicon Graphics,
and Sun. In doing so, the panel rejected a proposal by Microsoft to base the
so-called MPEG-4 specification on that company's own Advanced Streaming
Format technology.

Title: Standard Group to Adopt QuickTime Format
Source: New York Times (D5)
http://www.nytimes.com/library/cyber/week/021298apple.html
Author: Reuters
Issue: Standards
Description: Apple announced yesterday that The International Standards
Organization will use Apple Computer Inc.'s QuickTime File Format as the
starting point for developing a format for transmitting digital, audio and
video signals. The international standards body made this decision by
adopting a proposal by Apple, IBM, Netscape, Oracle, Silicon Graphics and
Sun Microsystems to use QuickTime for the MPEG-4 specification. "MPEG-4 is
an emerging digital media standard being defined by the standards body's
Moving Picture Experts Group that will enable users to view and manipulated
audio, video and other forms of digital content. The adoption of the
QuickTime file format as the starting point for the MPEG-4 standard means
that users are assured that all digital media content can be created in a
common file format that also supports real-time video and audio streaming."

Title: AOL and Hong Kong Firm Form On-Line Venture
Source: Wall Street Journal (B10)
http://wsj.com/
Issue: International/Merger
Description: AOL announced a new partnership with China Internet Corp. to
provide online services in Hong Kong, one of Asia's fastest-growing
Internet markets. The deal gives the American dial-up service provider its
third foothold in the Asia region, after Japan and Australia. AOL's Hong
Kong service will be built around its U.S. service, but will provide
additional original local content in English and Chinese. The service is
expected to be launched within a year.

** Television **

Title: Top Cable Firm to Raise Its Rates
Source: Washington Post (D3)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/WPlate/1998-02/12/127l-021298-idx.html
Author: Paul Farhi
Issue: Cable
Description: Tel-Communications Inc., the nation's largest cable TV
operator, said yesterday that it will raise its customers monthly bills by
between 5 and 5.5 percent starting in June. One of the reasons it cited for
this rate hike is the National Football League' huge new television
contracts. TCI's rate increase is three times the rate of consumer price
inflation and comes at a time when industry critics are calling for more
regulation of cable providers due to a string of similar rate hikes.
"Leading Republicans in Congress oppose new rate regulations. But FCC
Chairman William Kennard, has said some adjustments of the FCC-administered
cable price rules may be necessary."

Title: Protect Children From Harmful TV Violence
Source: FCC
http://www.fcc.gov/Speeches/Tristani/spgt803.html
Author: Commissioner Tristani
Issue: Children's Television/V-chip
Description: FCC Commissioner Gloria Tristani, in a speech to the Puerto
Rican Congress on Television Violence in San Juan, PR, said it is "First and
most clearly...the obligation of the parents to protect their children from
television and the tools to protect their children from material that they
believe is inappropriate...[and] can help make sure that parents have a good
alternative to violent programming." While parents have the primary
responsibility to protect children from inappropriate programming,
Commissioner Tristani also noted the responsibilities of the entertainment
industry to acknowledge the importance of reducing the level of violence on
programs that children watch, and of society to convey to the industry, to
children and to each other that harmful violence in such programming will
not be tolerated. [Remarks available in Spanish
http://www.fcc.gov/Speeches/Tristani/spgts803.html]

** Spectrum **

Title: In Next FCC Auction, the Wealthy Will Get the Discount
Source: Washington Post (D1,D4)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/WPlate/1998-02/12/126l-021298-idx.html
Author: Mike Mills
Issue: Spectrum
Description: Next Wednesday the Federal Communications Commission will
auction hundreds of the biggest chunks of radio spectrum ever sold. "The
licenses will allow owners to beam high-speed Internet, telephone and video
services into homes and offices nationwide. The FCC tried to ensure that
small businesses and entrepreneurs get an advantage in the bidding, through
rules that allow qualified winners big discounts off their winning bids. But
an analysis of the list of bidders shows that the discounts will mostly
benefit wealthy venture capitalists, as well as companies that are already
well established in their business. Most of the small entrepreneurial
companies that pushed hardest for a place at the auctions were shut out of
the bidding because they could not borrow money to bid for licenses."

Title: Spectrum Reallocation Report
Source: NTIA
http://www.ntia.doc.gov/osmhome/reports/bba97.html
Issue: Spectrum
Description: The Commerce Department's National Telecommunications and
Information
Administration released the Spectrum Reallocation Report. The report, which
identifies 20 megahertz of radio frequency spectrum below 3 gigahertz for
reallocation from Federal to non-Federal use, was mandated by Title III of
the Balanced Budget Act of 1997. The 20 megahertz identified for
reallocation is to be assigned by the Federal Communications Commission
(FCC) to non-Federal users through the process of competitive bidding prior
to 2002. Secretary of Commerce Daley signed the report on February 9, 1998,
in accordance with the statuatory requirements in the legislation.

** Merger **

Title: Software Maker Seeks Services Concern in $8.4 Billion Bid
http://www.nytimes.com/library/cyber/week/021298merger.html
Author: Allen R. Myerson
Issue: Merger
Description: Computer Associates International Inc., a leading maker of
business software, made an uninvited bid yesterday for Computer Sciences
Corp., a major provider of technology services. Their merger would
accelerate the consolidation of an industry where size is now equated with
survival. Charles B. Wang, Computer Associates' chief executive, said that
the addition of Computer Sciences' work force could become his ultimate
marketing tool. He said, "The 40,000-plus employees of CSC would become a
built-in channel for Computer Associates to push new product growth. There
are a lot of deals where we could take it to the next level if we had a
service arm." Computer Sciences issued a cool response to the bid last
night. Outside of two brief meetings at the request of CAI, said Van B.
Honeycutt, Computer Sciences chief executive, "Any suggestion that there
have been negotiations or agreements between the two companies is absolutely
false."

Title: Software Giant Makes Bid To Expand Into Services
Source: Washington Post (D1,D4)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/WPlate/1998-02/12/140l-021298-idx.html
Author: Elizabeth Corcoran
Issue: Merger
Description: Yesterday, Computer Associates International Inc.,
headquartered in Islandia, NY, made a bid to purchase Computer Sciences
Corp., a California company with a major Washington DC area presence, for
$8.3 billion in cash. If accepted, the merger would make Computer Associates
one of the world's largest software and services companies and would create
an information technology giant with annual revenue of more than $10 billion
and an estimated 8,000 employees in the Washington area alone. By purchasing
CSC, CAI would move into services as CSC is a consulting firm that advises
its clients on how to use technology. "If it can work, it's a great
combination," said Tony Scott, a vice president at A.T. Kearney Inc., a
management recruiting firm in Redwood Shores, CA. "The question is whether
CAI can change its focus from a 'products' company to a 'solutions'
company." Steve Dube, an analyst with Wasserstein Peralla Securities Inc. in
NY, was less enthusiastic saying that customers are more wary about a
company advising them about the "best" technology solution when they build
technology products themselves. "It's an inherent conflict," he said.
*********

Universal Service/Competition
FCC: Fair Competition & Eight Principles for Sustainable
Universal Service
TelecomAM: Yankee Group Study Predicts 50% of Apartment Dwellers Will Have
Competitive Local Choice By 2000

Internet/Online Services
WSJ: AOL to Boost Monthly Charge 10%
NYT: Bill On Internet Smut is Introduced
NYT: Arkansas Congressman Takes a Free-Speech Risk
WP: Tiny Tribe Clicks on Gray Area Looking for Green in
Web-Based National Lottery
FCC: Remarks before the WashingtonWeb Internet Policy Forum

Free Time for Candidates
NTIA: Free and Discounted Airtime for Candidates to Educate Voters

Merger
WSJ: AT&T Holds Cable-TV Talks On Net Venture

** Universal Service **

Title: Fair Competition & Eight Principles for Sustainable Universal Service
Source: FCC
http://www.fcc.gov/Speeches/Kennard/spwek803.html
Author: FCC Chairman Bill Kennard
Issue: Universal Service/Competition
Description: "The [Telecom] Act [of 1996] is all about competition. And with
the advent of competition, consumer advocates will be more important than
ever. You'll find yourselves drawn into new areas and facing new challenges.
There's no question that as markets open to create new marketing
opportunities and new products, consumers also face new risks. So I want to
talk today about how the growth of competition will change our role at the
FCC, and the role of consumer advocates...." The eight principles of
substainable universal service: "1.) Universal service reform should not
reduce the amount of explicit support that the state receives from the
interstate jurisdiction. By this, I mean that costs that previously had been
borne by the interstate jurisdiction because of the old high cost fund
should continue to be borne by federal universal service mechanisms. 2.)
States have an obligation to take all reasonable steps as promptly as
possible to reform existing intrastate universal service support mechanisms
to make them compatible with competitive local markets by making the
subsidies explicit and portable. 3.) States should continue to collect as
much of what is currently intrastate universal service support (whether
implicit or explicit) from within their own state. 4.) Where a state has
fully reformed its own universal service mechanisms and would be collecting
as much of what is currently intrastate universal service support as is
possible, additional federal universal service support should be provided to
any high cost areas where state mechanisms in combination with baseline
federal support, are not sufficient to maintain rates at affordable levels.
5.) Federal universal service support should be the minimum necessary to
achieve statutory goals. 6.) Federal and state universal support mechanisms
should collect contributions in a competitively neutral manner. 7.) Federal
and state universal service support mechanisms should encourage efficient
investment in new plants and technologies by all eligible telecommunications
carriers. 8.) Federal and state universal service support mechanisms should
promote service to historically underserved areas -- Native American
nations, for example. I believe that if guided by these principles, we can
reform our existing universal service system for the competitive age."

Title: Yankee Group Study Predicts 50% of Apartment Dwellers Will Have
Competitive
Local Choice By 2000
Source: Telecom AM---feb. 10, 1998
http://www.telecommunications.com/am/
Issue: Competition
Description: A report from the Yankee Group says that by the year 2000, more
than 50% of the households located in apartment buildings and other types of
high-density clustered communities will have a choice of local phone
providers. The report says that the major competitive local exchange carriers
(CLECs) have found local resale unprofitable and are turning to
facilities-based solutions, nearly all of which are being developed first in
the major cities where there are large residential populations in high
density apartment developments. A fiber network serving high-density
business developments can be extended profitably to nearby high-density
residential developments, the study said.

** Internet/Online Services **

Title: AOL to Boost Monthly Charge 10%
Source: Wall Street Journal (A3)
http://wsj.com/
Author: Thomas E. Weber
Issue: Online Services
Description: AOL said it will boost its monthly charge 10%, potentially
clearing the way for a wave of price increases throughout the
Internet-access industry. The move came a week after the company acquired
the subscriber rolls of its largest competitor, Compuserve. That timing
could draw renewed scrutiny of the company's pricing practices. Beginning in
April, AOL's 11 million members will pay $21.95 a month for unlimited
access, up from $19.95.

Title: Bill On Internet Smut is Introduced
Source: New York Times (CyberTimes)
http://www.nytimes.com/library/cyber/week/021098education.html
Author: Associated Press
Issue: Internet Regulation/Universal Service
Description: The Senate offered a bill yesterday that would require schools
and libraries that receive federal funding to hook up to the Internet to
restrict children's access to smutty material. The bill was introduced by
Senator John McCain (R-AZ), chairman of the Senate Commerce Committee and
ardent critic of the FCC's Internet subsidy program. If the bill goes
through, a school receiving a subsidy would have to certify that it would
use screening software to prevent children from accessing Web sites that
might contain indecent material. A library receiving a subsidy would have to
certify that of their computers available for public use, at least one
computer is equipped with screening software.

Title: Arkansas Congressman Takes a Free-Speech Risk
Source: New York Times (CyberTimes)
http://www.nytimes.com/library/cyber/week/021098congress.html
Author: Rebecca Fairly Raney
Issue: Internet Use
Description: Representative Asa Hutchinson (R-AK) is the first member of
Congress to offer an online forum on his Web site. Hutchinson hopes that
this move will encourage his constituents to engage in an "undaunted and
unedited" flow of discussion. "I don't think we're here in Congress to
control the dialogue," Hutchinson said. "I think we need unfettered access
to constituents' views." Chris Casey, author of "The Hill on the Net:
Congress Enters the Information Age" said about Hutchinson's online forum,
"It's an innovative thing to do and it's a pretty brave thing to do. Most
members would be cautious about giving up control of their Web pages.
Someone's got to take a chance and try it. I'm sure other offices will watch
this board with great interest."

Title: Tiny Tribe Clicks on Gray Area Looking for Green in
Web-Based National Lottery
Source: Washington Post (A5)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/WPlate/1998-02/10/127l-021098-idx.html
Author: Tom Kenworthy
Issue: Electronic Commerce/Gambling
Description: Members of the Coeur d'Alene Indian tribe believe that
American's love of gambling and the Internet will result in a rich explosion
of high-tech gaming. The tribe has launched U.S. Lottery, headquartered at
their 5-year old bingo hall and casino located on a two-lane road 25 miles
southeast of Spokane, WA. They are billing U.S. Lottery as "the first ever
parimutuel lottery to be accessible both by telephone and Internet." It will
be available to residents of the District of Columbia and the 33 states that
have state-run lotteries.

Title: Remarks before the WashingtonWeb Internet Policy Forum
Source: FCC
http://www.fcc.gov/Speeches/Ness/spsn803.html
Author: Commissioner Susan Ness
Issue: Internet Regulation
Description: "The FCC has indeed discovered the Internet. Don't run away in
a panic just yet. When exactly did we discover it? Was it nine months ago,
when we created the schools and libraries program to enable Internet
connectivity in every elementary and secondary school classroom in America?
Was it three years ago, when we began posting every public FCC release on
our Web site? Was it ten years ago, when we reaffirmed that "enhanced
service providers" like CompuServe and Prodigy should not be subject to
per-minute access charges like those the long distance carriers pay to local
telephone companies? No, it was even earlier than that. It was almost twenty
years ago that the FCC issued its "Computer II" rules, declaring that
enhanced service providers would NOT be regulated like telephone companies.
Vint Cerf, one of the founders of the Internet, tells me that he first
testified before the FCC on Internet issues in 1976, over 22 years ago!"

** Free Time for Candidates **

Title: Free and Discounted Airtime for Candidates to Educate Voters
Source: NTIA
http://www.ntia.doc.gov/ntiahome/fccfilings/020598whltr.htm
Author: President Bill Clinton
Issue: Free Time for Candidates/Television
Description: Text of a letter from the President to the Chairman and members
of the Federal Communications Commission on developing policies to ensure
that broadcasters provide free and discounted airtime for candidates to
educate voters. "In my State of the Union Address I called upon the Federal
Communications Commission (FCC) to act to require media outlets to provide
candidates with free and discounted airtime for campaign advertising. Free
and discounted time
will reduce the need for more campaign money, and will allow candidates to
spend less time fundraising and more time addressing the concerns of our
country....I call upon the Commission to develop policies, as soon as
possible, which ensure that broadcasters provide free and discounted airtime
for candidates to educate voters."

** Merger **

Title: AT&T Holds Cable-TV Talks On Net Venture
Source: Wall Street Journal (B6)
http://wsj.com/
Author: Leslie Cauley
Issue: Merger
Description: The nation's top cable-TV companies are in talks with AT&T
about the phone company investing in a cable-industry Internet-access
venture. The cable companies have been discussing merging Time Warner's
Internet-access unit, Road Runner, with At Home Corp. If that merger is
completed, AT&T might be interested in a partnership with the venture. The
long-distance company's investment could total as much as $1 billion, most
of it cash. In exchange, AT&T would receive new shares in the beefed-up
service.
*********

FCC
FCC: FCC Staff Proposes 31 Proceedings As part or 1998 Biennial
Regulatory Review
NYT: FCC Rule Review Assailed By a New Republican Member

Microsoft/Antitrust
WSJ: Sen. Hatch Issues Warning Microsoft May Be Building 'Proprietary
Internet'
NYT: Microsoft Shifts Web Unit to Windows Group
NYT: Senator Warns of Microsoft Dominance

Internet
NYT: U.S. Puts Junk E-Mailers on Notice
WSJ: Group Plans Ad Campaign To Promote Encryption
WSJ: Don't Expect Your Secrets To Get Kept on the Internet

Telephony
WSJ: New Standard For Modems May Spur Sales

Corporate
NYT: A Reorganization Is Expected at America Online
WSJ: Tech Firms Study Host of Netscape Deals
NYT: New Funds Halted by MCI To Joint Venture in Mexico

Legal Issues
NYT: Reuters Consultant Seen Taking Large Amounts of Data

** FCC **

Title: FCC Staff Proposes 31 Proceedings As part or 1998 Biennial
Regulatory Review
Source: FCC
http://www.fcc.gov/Bureaus/Miscell...s/News_Releases/1998/nrmc8010.html
Author: Rosemary Kimball
Issue: FCC
Description: The Commission staff has released a list of 31 proposed
proceedings to be initiated as apart of the 1998 biennial regulatory review.
The review is aimed at eliminating or modifying regulations that are overly
burdensome or no longer serve the public interest. The list was compiled
following a broad, comprehensive internal review of all existing FCC
regulations and informal input from the industry and the public through
recently held forums with the practice groups of the Federal Comm. Bar
Assoc. The Commission will continue to solicit public input as the process
continues.

Title: FCC Rule Review Assailed By a New Republican Member
Source: New York Times (C2)
http://www.nytimes.com/yr/mo/day/news/financial/fcc-review.html
Author: Seth Schiesel
Issue: FCC
Description: Harold Furchtgott-Roth, a new member of the Republican minority
on the Federal Communications Commission and a former chief economist for
the Housing Commerce Committee, criticized the commission yesterday for
failing to review its telecommunications regulations adequately. The
Telecommunications Act of 1996 requires the commission to review all of its
telecommunications regulations every two years, beginning this year. The FCC
announced Thursday that it had completed an internal evaluation and proposed
altering or eliminating 31 rules that it deemed unnecessary or overly
burdensome. But Furchgott-Roth called the commission's efforts inadequate.
Referring to the section in the act that requires the review, he said, "I
don't think it's there just to do a paper shuffle. It's there for a purpose.
Aside from simple following the law because that's what we have to do, I
think there's a real public-policy reason for that section to be there. And
I'm afraid that if there's just a selective review of a few regulation we're
not following the letter or the spirit of the law." William Kennard, FCC
chairman, said, "This is the most comprehensive review ever conducted by the
FCC. The suggestion that we would take all of the rules that govern the
agency and put them on a table and invite the public in to tell us which
ones to do away with would be a very unproductive process." Furchtgott-Roth
said he was undecided on what official action to take, if any, if Kennard
refused to significantly broaden the review.

** Microsoft/Antitrust **

Title: Sen. Hatch Issues Warning Microsoft May Be Building 'Proprietary
Internet'
Source: Wall Street Journal (B15)
http://wsj.com/
Author: John R. Wilke & David Bank
Issue: Antitrust
Description: Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch warned that
Microsoft may be trying to build a "proprietary Internet," excluding
competitors, stifling innovation and ultimately leading to government
regulation of the global network. To forestall federal meddling akin to an
"Internet Commerce Commission," Sen. Hatch said tough scrutiny is needed
now. "Vigilant and effective antitrust enforcement today is preferable to
the heavy hand of government regulation of the Internet tomorrow."

Title: Microsoft Shifts Web Unit to Windows Group
Source: New York Times (C3)
http://www.nytimes.com/library/cyber/week/020698microsoft-side.html
Author: John Markoff
Issue: Antitrust/Corporate Retrenchment
Description: In a quiet reorganization, Microsoft yesterday moved the unit
that develops its Internet Explorer web browser into the business group that
develops and markets its Windows operating system. Analysts say that
irrespective of antitrust arguments, the move made sense from a business
standpoint. "Internet Explorer is an integrated product," said David
Readerman, a financial analyst at Nationsbank Montgomery Securities Inc.
"You better integrate the reporting responsibilities."

Title: Senator Warns of Microsoft Dominance
Source: New York Times (CyberTimes)
http://www.nytimes.com/library/cyber/week/020698microsoft.html
Author: John Markoff
Issue: Antitrust
Description: Antitrust economists, legal experts and public officials
gathered yesterday at a conference titled "Competition, Convergence and
Microsoft Monopoly: The Future of the Digital Marketplace" to debate whether
government action is needed to rein in Microsoft. Senator Orrin Hatch, who
gave the morning address, talked about how aggressive antitrust enforcement
is crucial now to keep the corporate giant from taking over the Internet and
creating the need later for government regulation of the network. He said,
"I can assure you that if one company does exert such proprietary control
over the Internet, and the Internet does in fact become a critical
underlying medium for commerce and the dissemination of new and information,
rest assured that we will be hearing calls from all corners for the heavy
hand of government regulation -- for a new 'Internet Commerce Commission.'
It seems far better to have antitrust enforcement today than heavy-handed
regulation of the Internet tomorrow." The conference was sponsored by the
Progress and Freedom Foundation.

** Internet **

Title: U.S. Puts Junk E-Mailers on Notice
Source: New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/library/cyber/week/020698spam.html
Author: Jeri Clausing
Issue: Internet Regulation
Description: The Federal Trade Commission and the U.S. Postal Inspection
Service said yesterday that they have put more than 1,000 junk emailers on
notice that the agencies are monitoring unsolicited email for fraudulent
schemes. The program is the latest in an aggressive attempt by the FTC to
protect the Internet from scams. "Fraud promoters should think twice before
plying their trade on the Internet," said Jodie Bernstein, Director of the
FTC's bureau of Consumer Protection. "First, the FTC is on the Internet beat
and will follow up with spam artists who don't clean up their
correspondence. Second, many consumers are already on to them -- they know
better than to believe promises from strangers."

Title: Group Plans Ad Campaign To Promote Encryption
Source: Wall Street Journal (B2)
http://wsj.com/
Issue: Encryption/Privacy
Description: A coalition of technology companies and political groups plans
to launch a splashy advertising campaign to promote the notion that some
things are best kept secret. The group, Americans for Computer Privacy,
wants to give the public a quick lesson on encryption -- the use of complex
codes to scramble messages like e-mail and cell-phone calls -- and has hired
Goddard-Claussen to produce ads that will air nationwide next month. The
coalition also opposes efforts by the FBI and other law-enforcement agencies
to require "backdoors" on all encryption software to help police track
criminals. Ed Gillespie, an aide to Rep. Dick Armey, said "people would be
up in arms if the government said you had to give the FBI your PIN number
just in case they had to get into your bank account."

Title: Don't Expect Your Secrets To Get Kept on the Internet
Source: Wall Street Journal (B5)
http://wsj.com/
Author: Rebecca Quick
Issue: Privacy
Description: It turns out that some of the Internet's defining
characteristics -- high-tech tricks and search methods that make finding
info easy -- allow others in cyberspace to take a peek at your behavior. In
cyberspace, you may be posting notes to a few friends on an electronic
bulletin board, but even if the bulletin board is obscure, your message
could wind up archived forever in a search engine like Deja News, which
specializes in scanning bulletin boards and even allows you to look up all
the postings by one person. But some industry experts say the Internet isn't
to blame -- info ranging from credit card numbers to bank account balances
to mortgage info has always been vulnerable in the real world. But critics
point out that profit and privacy are two concepts that may not mix well in
the digital age. In the end, consumers are left questioning what reasonable
expectation of privacy they have in cyber space.

** Telephony **

Title: New Standard For Modems May Spur Sales
Source: Wall Street Journal (B15)
http://wsj.com/
Author: Frederick Rose
Issue: Telephony
Description: The Internat'l Telecom Union affirmed a standard for high-speed
computer modems, unleashing analysts' projections for big sales growth in
that market. The new standard sets a series of detailed protocols for
computer devices that transmit data over ordinary phone lines at close to
56,000 bits per second, or 56K. Analysts and market participants cheered the
standard-setting. Dataquest, Inc., a research organization, estimates that
manufacturers will ship 33 million so-called so-called 56K modems this year.
But problems remain as manufacturers wring out problems in making one
another's modems communicate. Senior analyst Lisa Pelgrim said, "It's going
to be a little messy, but we go through this with all new standards."

** Corporate **

Title: A Reorganization Is Expected at America Online
Source: New York Times (C1,C3)
http://www.nytimes.com/library/cyber/week/020698aol.html
Author: Saul Hansall
Issue: Corporate Rentrenchment
Description: America Online is expected to announce a reorganization next
week that will shift both the company's focus and executive power. The
reorganization would consolidate the power of Robert Pittman who currently
runs the company's other main division, AOL Networks. AOL Networks is
responsible for operating the company's core online services. With the
changes, he would also oversee the development of AOL's new online content,
an area that had been overseen by Ted Leonsis, the president of the AOL
Studios division. As part of its reorganization, the unit established to
nuture online programming would be dismantled, just a year and a half after
it was created.

Title: Tech Firms Study Host of Netscape Deals
Source: Wall Street Journal (B15)
http://wsj.com/
Author: Kara Swisher & Nick Wingfield
Issue: Mergers
Description: Netscape is focusing on other deals involving its World Wide
Web site and software businesses. The Internet pioneer is seeking to bolster
its position in the wake of a withering assault by Microsoft. But
anti-Microsoft allies including Sun, Oracle, and IBM are believed to be more
likely to consider other ways to financially support Netscape's Web-browser
software. The most immediate possibility is a deal to exploit the value of
Netscape's popular Web site by selling the service outright or broadening
partnerships among companies that are already affiliated with it.

Title: New Funds Halted by MCI To Joint Venture in Mexico
Source: New York Times (C18)
http://www.nytimes.com/yr/mo/day/news/financial/t06pho.html
Author: Bloomberg News
Issue: Corporate Retrenchment/International
Description: "MCI announced yesterday that it had halted plans to invest a
further $900 million in Avantel, its long-distance venture in Mexico,
declaring that current regulations made it difficult to earn a profit. MCI
and its partner in Avantel, Grupo Financiero Banamex-Accival, have already
invested $900 million in the venture which competes with the former state
monopoly, Telefonos de Mexico, or Telmex, in the $4.5 billion Mexican
long-distance market. MCI said that regulations required Avantel to pay 70
percent of its revenue to Telmex to use Telmex's network. Mexican regulators
fixed the subsidy in 1996 to protect Telmex from an expected onslaught of
international carriers seeking to enter the Mexican long-distance market."

** Legal Issues **

Title: Reuters Consultant Seen Taking Large Amounts of Data
Source: New York Times (C5)
http://www.nytimes.com/library/cyber/week/020698reuters.html
Author: Kurt Eichenwald
Issue: Legal Issues
Description: Yesterday, people briefed on the case of Reuters Holding PLC to
steal information from Bloomberg LP, said that a Manhattan computer
consultant was monitored downloading hundreds of screens of proprietary
Bloomberg data during one-day periods. The amount of information said to be
downloaded by the consultant, from Cyberspace Research Associates Inc.,
significantly exceeded the amount downloaded by other Bloomberg customers.
Bloomberg executives were said to have debated shutting down the consultants
terminal but were persuaded by law-enforcement officials to keep it active
in order for the investigation to continue.
*********
And we are outta here. Have a great weekend -- see you Monday.