General Dynamics will open SpacePlex facility Feb. 15 in Las Cruces, N.M. New operations center will provide satellite command and control services, network operations and ground station support for up to 100 satellites.
Houston-based Immobiliser is introducing wireless vehicle tracking and control system using Internet and GPS technology to protect and monitor vehicles in Tex. GPS Vision service will start service there as part of national rollout. Vehicle owners across world can track and control their vehicles on Internet with GPS Vision powered by advanced technology from Motorola and MCI WorldCom SkyTel 2-way paging network. Wireless Internet technology is being provided by Elite Logistics.
New FCC Chmn. Powell laid out broad agenda Tues., stressing need for competition, deregulation and regulatory restraint. Agency should take “judicious” rather than “quasi-legislative” role, he said in his first news conference, citing examples in which FCC’s job primarily was to implement policy. While declining to discuss specifics of priorities such as streamlining FCC procedures, he repeatedly sounded theme of allowing competitive forces in market to take hold. “I do not believe that deregulation is like the dessert that you serve after people have fed on their vegetables as a reward for the creation of competition,” he said. Deregulation is critical to facilitate competition, “not something to be handed out after there’s a substantial number of players in the market,” he said.
Ore. task force formed by state legislation last year to study PUC operations and recommend changes to this year’s legislature concluded that there was no need for major structural changes in agency for job of managing transition to competition from monopoly in telecom and energy. Task force did recommend PUC put in writing its extensive set of administrative precedents and issue explicit written guidelines for staff in conducting contested cases. Putting administrative precedents and procedures into written form will ensure decisionmaking processes appear fair to all parties, task force said in report to legislature. Group said telecom and energy industries would continue to be mixed bag of monopoly and competitive services. Report urged PUC to concentrate on developing appropriate policies to minimize lag between evolving competition and amount of regulation, including more alternative regulation options for both monopoly and competitive service segments.
Disney media properties’ net profit decreased 8% to $590 million in quarter ended Dec. 31 and company’s net loss related to its Internet Group increased 32% to $253 million, it said. Media revenue grew 6% to $2.9 billion and Internet revenue 9%. Results included decline at ABC TV because of soft ad market, lower ratings and higher program costs, it said. Operating profit from cable networks edged up 3% to $324 million, although results were down at ESPN. Internet results included write-off of $182 million. Overall, Disney had net profit of $63 million in quarter, down from $278 million year ago, largely because of accounting changes that resulted in one-time charge of $278 million for quarter. Overall revenue rose to $7.3 billion from $6.8 billion.
Two leading Senate supporters of e-rate program met Tues. with Education Secy. Roderick Paige and said later he was “receptive” to their concerns but didn’t make any commitments. Sen. Snowe (R-Me.) said she asked Paige to “reconsider” Bush Administration’s proposal to fold e-rate into technology block grants to states. “I appreciate the understanding Secretary Paige and the Administration have demonstrated about the e-rate program,” Snowe said. “He was receptive to our concerns.” Also attending was Sen. Rockefeller (D-W.Va.)
Strict satellite export controls cost U.S. commercial satellite manufacturers revenue, jobs and market share in 2000, according to survey released by Satellite Industry Assn. (SIA) Tues. Survey concentrated on Cal., home of 4 largest satellite manufacturers in U.S., including Space Systems/Loral and Boeing. Study said manufacturers building telecom satellites lost $1.2 billion in contracts and more than 1,000 jobs in year as result of controls. U.S. companies lost 30% of global market share, dropping to 45% with 13 new orders for U.S.-built geostationary satellites vs. 16 new orders for European-built birds.
Officials of Orbcomm and supplier companies were denying Tues. that company was about to run out of money, despite industry rumor that it could close down within days for lack of cash. Orbcomm COO Carol Hannah in brief interview would say only that “there are issues we are dealing with” and company was “working every angle we can” to secure financing. She refused to speculate on how long it could survive if financial needs weren’t met in timely fashion. “That’s not an appropriate question to be asking me,” Hannah said.
Mich. PSC gave incumbent telcos until March 7 to file plans for expeditiously enlarging local calling areas, as required by Mich. Telecom Act of 2000, with objections or comments on plans due March 16. Law requires that local calling areas be expanded to include calling areas immediately adjacent to current local calling zones. PSC is leaving it to telcos to propose specific boundaries of new expanded calling areas. Agency ruled that law didn’t permit local rate increases because of calling area expansion, but did allow rate adjustments where expansion put customer into higher rate group. Law allows incumbent telcos other than Ameritech and Verizon to petition for exemption from expanded-calling requirement, and PSC set March 7 deadline for such applications. In separate action, Verizon asked Mich. PSC for permission to restructure its rates in return for immediately terminating its $3.50 state subscriber line charge. Restructuring would shift revenues to residential service from business, with residential rates rising up to 16% while business rates decline 3%. Verizon and Ameritech are suing in federal court to overturn state telecom act’s provision abolishing their state subscriber line charges. Verizon continues to bill its charge pending outcome of lawsuit. It said proposed rate restructuring would allow it to avoid most of $34 million revenue shortfall it would suffer if its subscriber line charge were abolished. But consumer interests say granting Verizon’s request effectively would move subscriber line charge into company’s basic rates, contrary to intent of legislature.
FTC Chmn. Robert Pitofsky said he didn’t believe his agency had jurisdiction to settle Instant Messenger (IM) issue in AOL takeover of Time Warner (TW). He said AOL-TW would be able to reject some ISPs for cable service, but not on ground that it would cut into AOL-TW profit. He said at American Bar Assn. (ABA) Antitrust Litigation and E-Commerce meeting in Washington that space limitations could prevent all ISPs that wanted from getting onto AOL-TW system. Pitofsky said the AOL-TW deal was a 3-level vertical action: (1) AOL on ISP level. (2) TW on content level. (3) TW on cable and broadband level.