Digital TV
NTIA: Meeting of the Advisory Committee on Public Interest
Obligations of Digital Television Broadcasters
Internet
NYT: FTC to Survey Web Sites on Privacy
NYT: In Online Debate, Candidates Focus on Issues Without Spin
WSJ: Hewlett Receives Approval to Export Encryption System
NYT: Library Suite Becomes Key Test Of Freedom to Use the Internet
Telephony
WSJ: Hughes's DirectTV Satellite Service Sets Marketing Deals
With Bell Atlantic, SBC
WP: Cutting the Ties That Bind the Web
WSJ: Belo's Dallas Station Is First to Transmit An HDTV Broadcast
NYT: Congress Moving Quickly to Try to Curb Cell Phone Abuses
Microsoft
WP: Microsoft to Allow Promotion of Other Firms' Web
Browsing Software
WSJ: Sun and Microsoft Battle In Court Over Java Software
** Digital TV **
Title: Meeting of the Advisory Committee on Public Interest Obligations
of Digital Television Broadcasters
Source: National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA)
http://www.ntia.doc.gov/pubintadvcom/pubint.htm
Issue: Digital TV
Description: The Advisory Committee on Public Interest Obligations of
Digital Television Broadcasters, appointed by President Clinton, is meeting
in Los Angeles, CA today to study and recommend "what public interest
responsibilities should accompany the broadcasters' receipt of digital
television licenses. A RealAudio stream of today's meeting can be accessed
at: http://www.usc.edu/dept/annenberg/events/events.html
** Internet **
Title: FTC to Survey Web Sites on Privacy
Source: New York Times (CyberTimes 2/28/98)
http://www.nytimes.com/library/tech/98/02/cyber/articles/28ftc.html
Author: Jeri Clausing
Issue: Privacy
Description: The Federal Communications Commission will survey 1,200
commercial Web sites to analyze the "extent to which they are disclosing
policies for collecting and using personal information online" as part of
its privacy report to Congress, due on June 1. The FTC said Friday that they
will also determine how many sites offer the consumer a choice in how their
personal information is used. The report will be used in part to decide
whether industry self-regulation is doing enough to protect privacy online.
Title: Library Suite Becomes Key Test Of Freedom to Use the Internet
Source: New York Times (D1,D11)
http://www.nytimes.com/library/tech/98/03/biztech/articles/02library.html
Author: Amy Harmon
Issue: Regulation/Libraries
Description: A group of citizens have filed a suit against the Loudoun
County, VA public library board citing that their effort to bar obscene
material from the Internet accessed at the county's six library branches is
an unconstitutional form of government censorship. Patrons say that the
filtering program the board decided on, X-Stop, cannot tell the difference
between obscene material and other information about sexually-related topics
such as; sexual education, breast cancer, and gay and lesbian rights.
With more than three-quarters of the nation's libraries now connected to the
Internet, the case is expected to serve as a "litmus test of a library's
First Amendment obligation to its patrons."
Title: Hewlett Receives Approval to Export Encryption System
Source: Wall Street Journal (B10)
http://wsj.com/
Author: Don Clark & Nick Wingfield
Issue: Encryption
Description: Hewlett-Packard received U.S. gov't. approval to export a
strong encryption technology to customers in five countries, and announced a
partnership with IBM to share data-security technologies. The computer maker
said it received approval to export a version of its VerSecure technology
with an encryption key that is 128 bits in length, a level of
data-scrambling complexity that is considered virtually unbreakable. H-P's
technology must be activated for renewable one-year periods by designated
agencies in each country. Users aren't required to use a key recovery system
now, but foreign governments could do so in the future as users apply to
renew the encryption capability.
Title: In Online Debate, Candidates Focus on Issues Without Spin
Source: New York Times (CyberTimes)
http://www.nytimes.com/library/tech/98/03/cyber/articles/02minnesota.html
Author: Rebecca Fairley Raney
Issue: Politics/Internet Use
Description: Candidates for Minnesota governor participated in an online
debate over the past couple of weeks where their challenge was to answer a
question in 300 words or less. Every other day for the past two weeks, 11 of
the 12 candidates responded to questions about the environment, education,
taxation and government involvement in the Internet. Voters could read the
candidates responses by accessing a Web site created by Minnesota
E-Democracy, a non-profit group that sponsored the online debate, or by
receiving them via email. One candidate, Jesse Ventura, said the cost of
online campaigning was right, "It's reaching a huge amount of people at a
very low price." Gordon Picket, treasurer for the Democratic-Farmer-Laborer
Party in rural northeastern Minnesota said that the online debate will help
his party decide who it will support. "In the past, we've looked for clear
positions from candidates. The online debate is adding a useful touch, It's
worth the candidates time." The only candidate who did not participate
announced his candidacy after the online debate had already started. You can
access Minnesota E-Democracy's Web site at:
http://www.e-democracy.org/1998/response1.html
** Telephony **
Title: Hughes's DirectTV Satellite Service Sets Marketing Deals With Bell
Atlantic, SBC
Source: Wall Street Journal (B10)
http://wsj.com/
Author: Frederic M. Biddle
Issue: DirectTV/Satellites
Description: Hughes Electronics plans to announce long-term marketing deals
with Bell Atlantic and SBC Comm. The agreements will partly replace an
ill-starred 1996 pact with AT&T that expired in Dec., though the new
partners won't take an equity stake in DirectTV. The outcome of the latest
alliance will be closely watched by industry players, including several
other Baby Bells that are talking to DirectTV about similar agreements.
Title: Cutting the Ties That Bind the Web
Source: Washington Post (Bus.Section pgs5,6)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/WPlate/1998-03/02/004l-030298-idx.html
Author: Mike Mills
Issue: Wireless
Description: The cellular industry is promising to significantly improve its
networks over the next few years. Until recently, many consumers had not
given much thought to wireless machines and the data they translate. But as
wireless companies continue to improve upon the speed in which a user can
access and receive information, more Internet addicts are "going wireless"
over cellular phone networks. "What the consumer would like to see is
something that closely simulates what they see over their PC," said Dave
Oros, founder of Aether Technologies LLC a wireless data group. "Five years
from now I honestly believe that everybody who has a cell phone will have
some kind of wireless data application coming across it." Industry officials
agree, saying that outside of speed what the consumer really needs in order
to spur their interest is a new gadget, based on Web technology, that will
capture the buyer's imagination.
Title: Belo's Dallas Station Is First to Transmit An HDTV Broadcast
Source: Wall Street Journal (B3D)
http://wsj.com/
Issue: HDTV
Description: A.H. Belo Corp.'s Dallas TV station, WFAA, became the nation's
first to transmit high-definition digital signals on a nonexperimental
basis. The station turned on its digital transmitter at 2:17 p.m. Friday
with a test pattern. It then simulcast its regular programs, which aren't
produced in HDTV quality. Several times during the weekend the station's
new channel broke away from the programs of its analog channel to
show recorded high-definition programs. Few, if any, people saw the shows,
however. No major TV manufacturers are selling TVs that can pick up HDTV
signals until this fall. WFAA will place HDTV receivers in its station lobby
and at a shopping mall this week.
Title: Congress Moving Quickly to Try to Curb Cell Phone Abuses
Source: New York Times (D6)
http://www.nytimes.com/library/tech/yr/mo/biztech/articles/02cellphones....
Author: Jeri Clausing
Issue: Regulation
Description: Last week, Congress passed a bill to outlaw so-called cloning
devices, which make it possible for someone to charge phone calls to someone
else's account. This move was made in an effort to reduce cellular phone
fraud and eavesdropping.
** Microsoft **
Title: Microsoft to Allow Promotion of Other Firms' Web Browsing Software
Source: Washington Post (A8)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/WPlate/1998-03/02/064l-030298-idx.html
Author: Rajiv Chandrasekaran
Issue: Microsoft
Description: A Microsoft spokeswoman said yesterday that Microsoft has
decided to revise business deals it made with approximately 40 Internet
service providers to allow them to promote Internet browser software made by
other companies. This move comes at a time when U.S. and European officials
are continuing to look into Microsoft's business practices.
Title: Sun and Microsoft Battle In Court Over Java Software
Source: Wall Street Journal (B8)
http://wsj.com/
Issue: Legal Issues
Description: In San Jose, CA, Sun and Microsoft squared off in federal court
in a legal battle over the Java programming technology. A ruling on the most
major issues is expected to be delayed until at least September. Sun sued
Microsoft in October of this past year, claiming that Microsoft broke its
contract with Sun by releasing and incompatible version of the Java technology.
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