MERGERS
Viacom Agrees To Buy CBS, Creating A Media Behemoth (WSJ)
LOBBYING
Technology Lobbyists Setting Up Texas Outpost (CyberTimes)
TELEPHONY
Phone Pricing War Prompts A Record Number of Calls (WSJ)
Vodafone Says Its Talking To Bell Atlantic (WP)
INTERNET
What Effect Will Web Have on Inflation? (WSJ)
On Web, Newspapers Never Sleep (WP)
Gauging Reach of Cyberspace In Asia is Tricky (WSJ)
MERGERS
VIACOM AGREES TO BUY CBS, CREATING A MEDIA BEHEMOTH
Issue: Mergers
Viacom Inc. announced it will acquire CBS Corp. for $37 billion via a stock
swap, creating a media entity that will include the CBS Network, Paramount
Pictures and several major cable networks such as MTV, Nickelodeon, Country
Music Television and the Nashville Network. The newly merged company will be
called Viacom. The decision to acquire CBS comes one month after the Federal
Communications Commission relaxed television-station ownership rules. Viacom
owns a station group and a 50% stake in the UPN Network, which will face an
uncertain future in light of government rules preventing one company from
owning more than two networks. CBS and Viacom were split apart three decades
ago under federal rules aimed at preventing networks owning their own
programming. Those government rules were eliminated a few years ago. Sumner
Redstone, the current chairman and chief executive of Viacom Inc., will hold
the same position in the newly merged company. CBS' Mel Karmazin will serve
as president and chief operating officer. The announcement comes a few weeks
after reports that CBS was considering buying Viacom. NBC remains the only
major network without a tie to a studio. News Corp owns the Fox network and
last month Disney announced the merger of its ABC network and its
TV-production studio.
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Steven Lipin, Martin Peers, Kyle Pope]
(http://interactive.wsj.com/articles/SB936702804225569051.htm)
See Also:
VIACOM TO ACQUIRE CBS
[SOURCE: Washington Post, AUTHOR: Dow Jones Business News]
(http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/business/daily/sept99/viacom07.htm)
LOBBYING
CAPITOL DISPATCH: TECHNOLOGY LOBBYISTS SETTING UP TEXAS OUTPOST
Issue: Lobbying
Technology companies are becoming increasingly aware of the importance of
involvement in the political process. To give greater voice to their
concerns, Silicon Valley's influential political action group, the
Technology Network, has plans to open its first state chapter -- in Texas.
Tech Net Texas, like its parent organization, will focus on building
relationships between technology executives and lawmakers. While the new
chapter initially plans to focus on federal policy, state issues are
expected to be of growing importance. "States are increasingly important to
the technology industry because they deal with issues like education,
workforce development, tax policy," said Phil Ritter, senior vice president
for Texas Instruments.
[SOURCE: CyberTimes, AUTHOR: Jerry Clausing]
(http://www.nytimes.com/library/tech/99/09/cyber/capital/07capital.html)
TELEPHONY
PHONE PRICING WAR PROMPTS A RECORD NUMBER OF CALLS
Issue: Telephony/Competition
A price war among the nations major long-distance companies has resulted in
an unprecedented number of calls from customers seeking to take advantage
of the recent offers. MCIWoldcom, Sprit and AT&T have been bombarded with
so many inquires about their new long-distance price plans, that some call
centers have had trouble keeping up with demand. Analysts, worried about
the impact of the low-prices on the companies' profits, say the long distance
industry is experiencing one of its largest shake-ups since Sprint offered
its 10-cent calling plan four years ago. MCI, which offered a new 5-cent
calling plan three weeks ago, and Sprint are eager to cut into AT&T's 60%
share of the long-distance market. In the past few weeks alone, MCI has
reported adding over one million new customers.
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal (Interactive), AUTHOR: Rebecca Blumenstein]
(http://interactive.wsj.com/articles/SB936649296213635469.htm)
VODAFONE SAYS ITS TALKING TO BELL ATLANTIC
Issue: Mergers/Telephony
Vodafone AirTouch PLC of Britain is discussing the possibility of a joint
venture with Bell Atlantic Corp. The deal would make Vodafone, the world's
largest mobile phone company, a major national wireless provider in the US.
A deal with Bell Atlantic Mobile, which serves 6.6 million mobile phone
customers in 18 states, mostly on the East Coast, would give the British
company access to the East Coast and the coveted New York area, making it a
key player in the US market. Vodafone currently serves 29 million wireless
customers worldwide, 9 million in the western and mid-western sections of
the US through Vodofone's AirTouch. Vodafone officials said there was a 20
percent to 30 percent chance of the deal going through. A deal with Bell
Atlantic would enable Vodafone to compete against Sprint PCS and AT&T Corp.,
the largest networks for wireless telecommunication in the US.
[SOURCE: Washington Post p.E1, AUTHOR: Yuki Noguchi]
(http://www.nytimes.com/library/tech/99/09/circuits/articles/02lear.html)
See Also:
VODAFONE SAYS IT IS DISCUSSING U.S. ALLIANCE WITH BELL ATLANTIC
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, p.A19, AUTHOR: Gautam Naik]
(http://interactive.wsj.com/articles/SB936651094458616550.htm)
INTERNET
WHAT EFFECT WILL WEB HAVE ON INFLATION?
Issue: E-commerce
The Bureau of Labor Statistics, which calculates the U.S.'s consumer price
index, seems to be missing the e-commerce revolution. For example, the
current sample calculated includes online retailers that existed in
1996, but not necessarily those launched since. The three years not
calculated by the Bureau misses a period of Internet growth where e-commerce
transactions grew from almost zero in 1996 to $43 billion in 1998, according
to Forrester Research. Forrester also forecasts e-commerce doubling annually
during the next five years to reach $1.3 trillion in 2003. The issue of
whether or not those numbers and e-commerce could be used as a tool to fight
inflation could be one of the biggest debates of the next decade. Economists
theoretically agree that business conducted through the Internet leads to
greater price competition among suppliers but differ on how far-reaching
this effect has on inflation. Internet enthusiasts believe that the ease
with which consumers can compare prices on the Web is shifting the power
relationship between retailers and consumers -- putting the power back into
consumers' hands. "Information, as Machiavelli pointed out, is really the
source of power...all that is now in the hands of the consumer," says Jay
Kingley, a partner with Diamond Technology Partners, an Internet consulting
firm based in Chicago. Kingley believes there are several Web sites that
allow consumers to gain leverage in pricing and join forces with other
consumers. But analysts say, in order for the Web to be a deflationary tool,
it must offer cost cutting and distribution improvements to suppliers for
e-commerce transactions.
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, A17C, AUTHOR: Michael Casey]
(http://interactive.wsj.com/articles/SB936650027257686920.htm)
ON WEB, NEWSPAPERS NEVER SLEEP
Issue: Journalism
Newspapers are generating news 24 hours/day via their online sites, with
many print reporters doing double duty writing for newspapers and online
editions. The trend towards 24 hour news coverage on newspapers' Web sites
is the result of competition from newswires and online news services that
provide updates at regular intervals throughout the day. MSNBC, BBC, Fox
News, Headbone.com, the Weather Channel and Yahoo all utilize news updates
from the Associated Press, Reuters or their own writers. In July, according
to figures compiled by the firm Media Metrix, the New York Times site drew
2.7 million visitors, followed by USA Today (2.5 million), The Washington
Post (1.7 million), the Los Angeles Times (1 million) and the Wall Street
Journal (976,000). The majority of visitors to newspaper Web sites don't
subscribe to the paper version. With news having become an online commodity,
major newspapers are trying to extend their reach by serving up "branded"
news from their own staffers. At some of the major newspapers, reporters are
not compensated for writing two versions of a story. Staff writers have
expressed concern that writing dual stories could cut into their reporting
time. Others are worried about giving away competitive information, although
the papers say they generally don't plan to scoop themselves by running
investigative pieces on the Web. Media analysts question whether the lure of
publishing at a moment's notice will lead to sloppiness. Additionally, for
some smaller newspapers with strictly regional appeal, the Internet romance
may be fading a bit.
[SOURCE: Washington Post p.E1, AUTHOR: Howard Kurtz]
(http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/business/feed/a27228-1999sep7.htm)
GAUGING REACH OF CYBERSPACE IN ASIA IS TRICKY
Issue: International/Internet Demographics
Depending on whom you ask, the number of people online in Asia could be 39
million or 17 million. The Internet in Asia is becoming one of the fastest
growing industries -- but an accurate formula to count users has not been
found. Neilsen ratings had Asian users at 500,000 in 1996, but International
Data Corp.(IDC) did not have Asians at that number until 1998. One analyst
said that everyone has their own agenda so the numbers tend to reflect such.
Joe Sweeney, e-commerce research director with the Gartner
Group, said that ISP's, for example, inflate the number of users, as many of
the accounts are no longer active. Pete Hitchen of IDC said that governments
also tend to give inflated numbers in hopes of being seen as net savvy and
connected. Asia seems to be too large to get actual numbers and analysts say
that companies looking to come into the Asian market should be careful, as
there does not seem to be an accurate way of finding the number of online users.
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, B11A, AUTHOR: Connie Ling]
(http://www.wsj.com)
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