Broadband Week Direct - Daily News 9/13/00

Today's report from Web Editor Susan Rush

• More AOL-Time Warner Concessions
• Jackie For President
• Sprint: On The Broadband Wireless Fast Track
• Ford Goes High Speed
• Broadband Briefs

More AOL-Time Warner Concessions

Can anyone please all of the people all of the time? America Online and Time Warner believe they can, but officials at the Federal Communications Commission, the Federal Trade Commission and the European Union are scrutinizing their every move. The latest reports coming out of the FCC suggest that under one possible condition AOL may be forced to open up its instant-messaging service to competitors within six months of gaining the FCC's approval for the merger. If AOL agrees such a concession, the Internet giant would have to allow users of AOL's service to exchange messages with rival services. That has been a bitter point of contention over the past year, with AOL taking the highly publicized step of cutting off access to users of rival IM software such as Microsoft's.

The AOL-TW duo has vowed to open its cable lines to competitors -- instant messaging is a relatively new topic breeched by the FCC. Both AOL and Time Warner remain confident that the merger will go through as planned this fall.

Jackie For President

"True democratic process must be interactive. The talk must go on," says Jackie Strike, U.S. presidential candidate. Strike encourages open dialogue with voters about hot political issues like gun control, social security and campaign finance reform. I know what you are thinking, a presidential candidate that doesn't skirt the issues? Well, don't let this straightforwardness rock your world, Jackie only exists in the streaming video world of the Web.

"Jackie is the first presidential candidate to use the dynamic progression streaming of our 'VuppetChannel' browser extension," explains noDNA CEO, Olaf Schirm. "This channel transmits Jackie in 3D right onto your desktop, ensures that Jackie's appearance and actions cannot be tampered with by third parties and provides body movements, facial expressions and lip-sync speech in real time." Jackie was created by noDNA, which means no "real" biological being, Boettcher Hinrichs and Webpilots.

Sprint: On The Broadband Wireless Fast Track

Sprint is trying to maintain the fast track for its broadband wireless services rollout, a key to the company's efforts to penetrate quickly the residential and SOHO business market. The latest: Sprint is buying 16,000 Wireless Broadband Routers from key vendor Hybrid Networks to support the planned launch of the multichannel multipoint distribution service-based networks in new markets. Hybrid's new router converts data from personal computers to signals that are transmitted over radio frequencies, enabling two-way wireless high-speed Internet access. The router has an IP address capacity of up to 60 public or private addresses.

In August, Sprint filed a series of applications for two-way multichannel multipoint distribution service licenses with the Federal Communications Commission. If approved, Sprint will expand its Sprint Broadband Direct service into 45 additional U.S. markets. The service is already being offered in Tucson and Phoenix. Insight Research Corp. has forecast that U.S. revenue from the MMDS technology Sprint is using will increase from $232.2 million this year to $938.3 million in 2004. Revenue from a competing wireless broadband technology, local multipoint distribution service, may grow from $21 million in 2000 to $676.8 million in 2004.

Ford Goes High Speed

Ford Motor Company will offer DSL service to 178,000 of its U.S. employees. Covad Communications and Big Net will partner to provide the high-speed DSL connections and Efficient Networks will provide its SpeedStream DSL customer premise equipment. The DSL program is an extension of a previously announced Ford program to offer employees a People PC computer, a color printer and dial-up Internet Service for $5 a month. The high-speed service option is available to all employees enrolled in the Internet access program for an additional small fee.

Broadband Briefs:

3Com wins a contract to install its plug-and-play Ethernet-over-VDSL network in 1000 Beach's Vancouver condos. 1000 Beach expects half of its 254 units to sign on for high-speed Internet access.
Juno Online Services expands its DSL Internet offering in 39 U.S. markets. Sacramento, Las Vegas and Columbus, Ohio are among the new cities. Through an alliance with Hughes Network Systems, Juno is gearing up to offer fixed-satellite broadband services in the near future.
In a deal worth $155 million, SAVVIS Communications will use Optera Optical Internet solutions from Nortel Networks to build an optical fiber backbone network connecting 50 U.S. and Canadian markets.
Tellium secures a $350 million supply deal with Cable & Wireless. The optical networking start-up will supply its networking gear to the telecommunications company over the next five years.
Metromedia Fiber Network signs separate, multi-state deals with several ILECs, including BellSouth, SBC Communications and GTE (now a part of Verizon), to provide dark fiber directly to the carriers' central offices.
Hughes Space Communications agrees to build at least three more satellites and revamp 11 other existing spacecraft for New ICO. The modifications will enable New ICO to offer the satellite equivalent of third-generation, high-speed wireless services.
New Edge Networks expands its DSL Internet service to Oklahoma. The service will be offered to commercial and residential customers in Claremore, Muskogee, Sapulpa and Tulsa.
Film Scouts tabs Evoke Communications as its exclusive provider of streaming media for movie trailers and events such as star interviews on its movie-based Web site.