Newsbytes - Internationa…ews 1983 May to 1994 June/Newsbytes - International Computing Industry News 1994 Edition - May 1983 - June 1994 - Wayzata Technologies (5045) (1994).iso/mac/Text/Mac Text/1993/nb930120

Text File | 1993-01-20 | 73KB | 1,611 lines

(NEWS)(UNIX)(SFO)(00001)

Sun Opens Poland Office 01/20/93
MOUNTAIN VIEW, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A, 1993 JAN 20 (NB) -- Overseas
sales are an important part of Sun Microsystems' business strategy.
Six months after Newsbytes reported that Fortune magazine had ranked
the company the top US exporter, as a percentage of total sales,
the firm has opened an office in Poland.

According to the company, the new office, located in Warsaw, will
provide "local sales, service and marketing support directly to its
distributors, value-added resellers, and customers in Poland and the
Baltic States." Sun says it now has 13 offices in Europe.
Jerome Fidelin has been named country manager of the new office
in Warsaw.

Tim Dwyer, vice president of intercontinental operations, says
he's seen a dramatic increase in demand for Unix-based systems
in this region, and this has created a need for establishing a
direct service and support organization for Sun's SPARC/Solaris
systems.

International Data Corp., estimates that more than 50 percent of
1991 multi-user shipments in Poland were systems based on Unix.

Said Dwyer, "We also want to build on the excellent relationships
with customers established over the last few years by our local
partners, and to make Sun systems an integral part of the
developing Middle European market."

Areas specifically targeted by the company include banking and
financial services, education, telecommunications, and the
government.

The company says that it has recently won sales contracts
for more than 100 SPARCstation and SPARCserver systems
with the University of Mining and Metallurgy in Cracow, and the
Polish Border and Immigration Service at Warsaw's Okecie
Airport.

Indeed, more than 50 percent of Sun's revenues come from the
international markets. Sun also claims offices in Australia,
Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Finland, France, Germany, Hong Kong,
Hungary, Italy, Japan, Korea, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand,
the People's Republic of China, Singapore, Spain, Sweden,
Switzerland, Taiwan, the United Kingdom.

Fortune magazine's June 29, 1992, issue had named Sun
Microsystems the number one US exporter, as a percentage of total
sales.

Total Sun sales for the 1991 calendar year were listed as
$3.259 billion, of which 49.3 percent or $1.606 billion was from
outside the United States. In terms of overall export dollars, Sun
moved to the number 19 spot in 1991, from the number 30 spot
in 1990, behind companies many times larger in size.

(Ian Stokell/19930119/Press Contact: Susanne Vagadori,
415-336-0529, Sun Microsystems Computer Corp.)


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(LAX)(00002)

 ****Intel's Grove Predicts Lower Prices, New Products 01/20/93
SANTA CLARA, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1993 JAN 20 (NB) -- Intel
President Andrew Grove promises that his company will reduce
prices on its Intel486 microprocessor and release 25 new
versions of the chip.

Intel made his remarks originally in an interview with the Wall
Street Journal, company representatives said. Intel has already
promised the next generation of its microprocessor line, the P5,
will ship this year.

Intel helped spur the record earnings it reported by reducing
prices on its microprocessor line last year. The move was
seen as a competitive shot at Cyrix and Advanced Micro Devices,
which are producing competing processors. However, record personal
computer sales this last year have propelled Intel into the number
one semiconductor manufacturer slot worldwide.

The company's stock is surging with stock prices climbing to well
over $100 a share.

Intel is facing a potential downside, as competitors have
complained to the FTC, whose two-year investigation is
expected to come to a conclusion shortly. Newsbytes previously
reported allegations of illegal "patent tying" and alleged
threats of allocation cuts of necessary components only
Intel makes to original equipment manufacturers using other
than Intel microprocessors.

As to what may come of the investigation, speculation runs from the
FTC doing nothing to the agency forcing Intel to share its technology.
For now, however, Intel is at the crest of the wave with nothing but
growth in sight.

(Linda Rohrbough/19930119/Press Contact: Pam Pollace, Intel,
tel [phone], fax [phone])


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(TOR)(00003)

Systemhouse Buys Up 2 Firms 01/20/93
OTTAWA, ONTARIO, CANADA, 1993 JAN 20 (NB) -- SHL Systemhouse Ltd.
has announced acquisitions in the United States and Canada. The
company acquired Benson, Douglas & Associates, Inc., a computer
services firm based in Cary, North Carolina, and consulting firm
Rockwood Informatics Corp. of Fredericton, New Brunswick.

Four-year-old Benson, Douglas offers strategic planning,
programming, and systems integration services with a focus on
Unix, client/server technology, open systems, and pen-based
technology. It will be integrated into Systemhouse's Mid-Atlantic
Region. All staff of BD&A -- more than 60 people -- will join
Systemhouse, and the company's offices in Cary and Atlanta will
be retained, said Corey Torrence, vice-president and general
manager at Systemhouse Inc. in Arlington, Virginia.

Rockwood Informatics focuses on software development for
government clients. Its 21 professional and support staff will
join Systemhouse, company officials said. Rockwood's head office
will become the New Brunswick office of Systemhouse.

Terms of the agreements were not disclosed. However, Systemhouse
said it expects annual sales of about $2 million from Rockwood
and about $4 million from BD&A initially.

Systemhouse, which sells outsourcing, systems integration, and
other computer services, had revenues of just under C$750 million
in 1992 and has more than 3,600 employees.

(Grant Buckler/19930118/Press Contact: Corey Torrence,
Systemhouse, 703-276-0500; Stan Kurylowicz, Systemhouse, 613-236-
9734; Gary Tuck, Benson, Douglas & Associates, 919-467-3357)


(NEWS)(IBM)(TOR)(00004)

IBM Adds 3 PS/1s 01/20/93
SOMERS, NEW YORK, U.S.A., 1993 JAN 20 (NB) -- The IBM Personal
Computer Company has added a new PS/1 model based on Intel Corp.'s
33-megahertz 486DX processor.

There will be a version of the new PS/1 Model 78 for each of the
three PS/1 lines: the PS/1 Essential line, aimed at the small
business market and sold through office supplies stores; the PS/1
Expert line, sold to more advanced PC users through computer
superstores; and the PS/1 Consultant line, offered through mass
merchandisers for those who do business or school work at home.
The lines differ in the channels through which they are sold and
in some of the software packaged with them.

Each Model 78 machine comes with eight megabytes of memory and a
211-megabyte hard drive. The package also includes a Super VGA
color monitor, a keyboard, a mouse, and a modem.

The DOS 5.0 operating system and Microsoft Windows 3.1 come pre-
loaded on the machines, along with Microsoft Works for Windows
integrated software and the Prodigy and Promenade online
information services.

The PS/1 Essential model also includes QuickBooks accounting
software, QuickPay, and the Express Publisher desktop publishing
package. The PS/1 Expert line includes Address Book Plus,
Calendar Creator Plus, and Text Appeal. The PS/1 Consultant line
includes Quicken for Windows accounting software and The New
Print Shop, a package for creating banners and signs.

The new models are available now across the United States, a
spokesman said.

(Grant Buckler/19930119/Press Contact: Ralph Hammock, IBM, 914-
642-5464)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(TOR)(00005)

Cognos President Leaves 01/20/93
OTTAWA, ONTARIO, CANADA, 1993 JAN 20 (NB) -- Jeff Papows,
president and chief operating officer of Cognos since 1989,
has resigned from the company. Rob Zambonini, formerly senior
vice-president of business management and development, will
replace him.

Michael Potter, chairman and chief executive, said the move was a
"mutual decision" related to recent poor performance at Cognos.
But he said it was not simply a matter of blaming Papows for the
company's problems. The real point, Potter said, was to change
the company's reporting structure so that all operations would
report to one executive.

In the past, research and development, product marketing, and
finance reported directly to Potter while other functions
reported to Papows. Now, all units will report to Zambonini, who
in turn will report to Potter. Potter described Zambonini as "a
very broadly skilled executive" with a strong technical
background as well as business and sales ability.

According to Cognos, Zambonini oversaw the move into Unix,
AS/400, and personal computing, and more recently has developed
business strategies for the firm's business units.

Cognos' products include application development software for a
variety of computer systems, including PCs, Unix machines and
proprietary operating systems from IBM, Digital Equipment,
Hewlett-Packard, and Data General.

The company has lost money in the last two quarters as it
attempts to make the transition from the proprietary operating
systems where its business began to Unix and the IBM AS/400
system.

"We've actually had some good success in these individual market
segments," Potter said, "but we really haven't done a good job of
making that transition."

In its third quarter, ended November 30, Cognos lost C$6.9
million, including restructuring costs, on revenues of C$37.6
million. This compared with net income of C$2.2 million on
revenues of C$35 million in the same period a year earlier. The
company also lost money in the second quarter.

Revenue in fiscal 1992, which ended February 29, was C$145.2
million, up slightly from C$137.3 million in the prior year. Net
income was C$5.2 million.

(Grant Buckler/19930119/Press Contact: Lyse Teasdale, Cognos,
613-783-6800; Michael Greeley, Cognos, 617-229-6600)


(NEWS)(GOVT)(DEN)(00006)

NASA Simulation Center Installs Supercomputer 01/20/93
EAGAN, MINNESOTA, U.S.A., 1993 JAN 20 (NB) -- The National
Aeronautics and Space Administration's Ames Center, located at
Moffett Field in Mountain View, California, has announced it has
ordered a second Cray Research Y-MP C90 supercomputer.

The C90 is Cray's top-of-the-line system, with 16 processors and one
billion words of memory. The Ames Center will have sole use of the
new system, which will be delivered later this quarter. Cray
Research spokesperson Marti Schmieder told Newsbytes the system
would be used for aerodynamic simulation of aircraft. Schmieder
said that it is Cray's policy not to disclose the value of
contracts, but said the average price of a C90 system is $30
million.

NASA says the new system will replace a Cray-2 system which it
acquired in 1988, and will support the Numerical Aerodynamic
Simulation (NAS) user community comprised of hundreds of federal,
private industry, and university scientists throughout the US.

Just last week Cray Research announced it had received another order
for a C90 system which is also to be installed at Moffett Field for
Ames Research Center users. Schmieder told Newsbytes that system was
destined for use in computational fluid dynamics and computation
chemistry applications in aeronautic research.

NASA also purchased a Y-MP 2E dual processor that was installed in
the fourth quarter.

(Jim Mallory/19930119/Press contact: Mardi Schmieder, Cray Research
612-683-3538)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(DEL)(00007)

Tandem Bags $13M Order From Bombay Stock Exchange 01/20/93
BOMBAY, INDIA, 1993 JAN 20 (NB) -- After about six years of
deliberation, Tandem Computers, through its Indian distributor Wipro
Infotech, has finally clinched the Rs 40 crore ($13.33 million) order
for providing the computer system that would act as the central trading
computer (CTC) in the Bombay Stock Exchange.

The purchase decision by BSE, which is as a part of its four phase
Rs 73 crore ($24.33 million) computerization program, had turned
controversial with the two bidders dropping their prices almost to a
half during the final round of bidding.

The BSE, which began its evaluation process in 1986, had by April
1992 shortlisted five manufacturers: Tandem, DEC, Hewlett-Packard,
Unisys, and NCR. The list was subsequently pruned to Tandem and DEC.
While Tandem had offered its Cyclone, with 12 central processor
system, Digital cited its Vax 6000 model 640 model. The BSE system
will cater to a multi-tier, quotation-driven system, with 2,500
terminals connected up.

When the bids were first opened Tandem and Digital had bid Rs 96
crore ($32 million) and Rs 56 crore ($32 million) respectively. Given
the BSE budget (which incidentally includes not merely hardware, but
software as well), the evaluation committee is understood to have
informed Tandem to bring down its price to stand in the competition.
This sparked a price war. But even now, the Tandem price at Rs 40
crore ($13.33 million) is much higher than Digital bid (Rs 26.9
crore, $8.96 million). However, the BSE committee has accepted the Rs
13 crore ($4.33 million) additional burden given "the technical
superiority, past experience and other support that Tandem has
offered."

Wipro Infotech (also the distributor for Sun in India) has been an
active player in the stock exchange computerization. Last year it
bagged a Rs 3 crore ($1 million) order to supply Sun workstations to
the BSE. The order consisted of a total of 50 SPARCservers and one
4/470 system. This is supplementary to BSE's already existing base of
3,000 PCs and an ICL mainframe.

The 19,000-square-foot computerized trading ring of BSE has already
been commissioned. Tata Telecom has been entrusted with the task of
setting up the telecommunication facilities. The ring will come
equipped with 24 data entry terminals, where the latest prices
will be flashed to monitors both inside the ring and also in
respective broker offices. The Display Information Drive system is
the core of BSE's computerization as all the information from the
ring will be disseminated through it. The system will be hooked onto
50 gateways, located at different floors of the exchange building.
Each gateway (supplied by Wipro) will be further hooked onto 16
Trader Work Stations (TWS), that are located in individual broker
offices.

The BSE's output in terms of computer print-outs is around 4 million
lines a day and data processing currently takes 16 hours per day to
finish. The aim is to reduce the paper work considerably. But the
more important benefit will be increasing business. "The ideal is
the Kualalampur Exchange, where volumes increased by 200 percent
after computerization," said a BSE official.

(C.T. Mahabharat/19930120)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00008)

International Telecom Update 01/20/93
ATLANTA, GEORGIA, U.S.A., 1993 JAN 20 (NB) -- Motorola continues
to widen its lead in the international cellular equipment race.
The company announced an expansion contract to provide equipment
to the cellular system of Shanghai, China, capable of handling a
total of 40,000 subscribers. Included are a number of cellular
switches from DSC Communications. Motorola has since signed a
joint-venture to sell Northern Telecom switches.

Motorola also won a $28 million contract from Qatar to build a
digital cellular system under the European GSM standard. GSM, a
French acronym meaning Groupe Speciale Mobile, is related to the
Time Divison Multiple Access, or TDMA, digital cellular system
now being installed in some US markets, although the two are
not compatible. The Qatar network will use switches from Siemens,
and will cover the country with over 20 cell sites and 2 switches
-- subscriber capacity is 20,000. The system is due online by
next January and will be operated by Qatar's Q-Tel state-owned
monopoly. It's the eighth GSM award for Motorola, and first
outside Europe.

Ericsson of Sweden, meanwhile, did win a relatively small $13
million contract from Telecom Argentina to expand the systems in
the northern states of Santiago del Estero, Salta, Entre Rios and
Tucuman. The contract is worth $13 million and extends through
September. The contract itself was signed with Ericsson's Italian
unit, as well as its small Argentine subsidiary, but the company
said it aims to establish a permanent network construction
company in the country eventually.

Telecom Argentina also signed an $8 million pay telephone contract
with Intellicall of Dallas, Texas. That kind of contract remains
important, since most people cannot afford cellular service and
cannot get wired phone service. The pay phone contract calls for
300 phones, operated either with credit cards or chip-based
"smart cards." Profit-taking has hurt Argentine stock prices in
recent days, but both Telecom and its southern compatriot,
Telefonica, have posted gains.

Also in Latin America, TelMex of Mexico won $120 million in
credit to have Europe's Arianespace consortium launch two
satellites. The French export credit agency, Coface, backed the
notes, presumably to get the European launch consortium the
deal. The first bird goes up later this year. TelMex, like the
two Argentine phone units, was privatized a few years ago. While
the Argentine companies are managed by European companies,
TelMex is run with help from Southwestern Bell of the US, which
has a 10 percent stake in the firm and recently announced a move
of its headquarters from St. Louis to San Antonio in hopes of
exploiting the Latin phone market.

Finally AT&T, which was taken off the credit watch list of Duff
& Phelps, a major US bond rating agency, following the
successful $3.8 billion buy of a major stake in McCaw Cellular,
was rumored to be among the bidders for part of Italy's ItalTel
telephone equipment company, now owned by the government. AT&T's
most recent foreign acquisition was in the Ukraine, where it is
building switches and rebuilding the former Soviet state's
telephone infrastructure. AT&T's goal is to get 50 percent of its
revenue outside the US -- presently it's getting 35 percent.
Other companies in the running for Italtel, according to the
local press, are Alcatel Alsthom of France and Siemens of
Germany.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19930119/Press Contact: David Pinsky, Motorola
708-523-2841; Ericsson, Kathy Egan, 212/685-4030)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(TYO)(00009)

Japan - Low-Cost Fax Modem Developed 01/20/93
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1993 JAN 20 (NB) -- Tokyo-based computer parts firm
Microcore will release this week a small low-cost modem which it
claims is the smallest fax modem in Japan.

Microcore's latest modem, called the MC24FA5-P, measures
11.8 x 9.1 x 2.5 cm and weighs 160g. The modem operates either
by an AC adaptor or removable batteries. It is slightly larger
than a cigarette package. This fax modem is retail priced at 34,800 yen
($280), which represents the least expensive modem in Japan. This
fax modem supports MNP Class 5, CCITT's V42bis and MNP Class 10 V42.
The fax part supports A4-size G3 fax standard. It also supports
fine-transmission mode.

The data modem supports 2,400 baud rate data transmission.
Besides the CCITT standard, the modem also supports Bell 212A and
103. The device can be used for NEC's best-selling personal computer
the PC-9801 but a DOS/V version of the device will be released later.

Microcore expects to ship 50,000 this year and is distributing
telecommunication software for purchasers free of charge.

(Masayuki "Massey" Miyazawa/19930118/Press Contact: Microcore, +81-
3-3448-0811, Fax, [phone])


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(MOW)(00010)

Russian Financial Times Via E-Mail 01/20/93
MOSCOW, RUSSIA, 1993 JAN 20 (NB) -- The Financial Izvestia weekly,
the joint publication of London Financial Times and Moscow-based
Izvestia, is available through electronic mail.

The service is offered by the Information Telecommunication Centre of the
Legpromsyrie trading company under agreement with the newspaper's
editorial office in Moscow. The complete feed includes the full text of
all articles published in this new Russian language newspaper, as well as
financial and statistical tables on the commodities and financial
markets.

The service was tested last month and is available immediately.

According to Valery Bardin, of Relteam, an expert on Russian information
service development, a number of other newspapers, including Commersant
daily, Nega, and press services like Postfactum and Interfax, have their
digests or complete editions available for Relcom network
subscribers, usually for a nominal fee. Their online venture, however,
has been hampered by the lack of a countrywide billing and
collection service for information providers, and the still poor
efforts to set up this kind of infrastructure, he says.

(Kirill Tchashchin/19930119/Press & Public Contact: Legpromsyrie,Yuri
Tokarev, phone [phone]; fax [phone]; e-mail
[e-mail])


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(DEN)(00011)

Ohio Will Track Child Immunizations By Computer 01/20/93
COLUMBUS, OHIO, U.S.A., 1993 JAN 20 (NB) -- The state of Ohio says
it will use a $390,000 grant to set up a statewide computer system
designed to ensure that Ohio children get their immunizations. The
state hopes to use the system to register children at birth and
track them until preschool.

Ohio Governor George Voinovich says the system, funded by a grant
from the Aetna Foundation, will result in both healthier children
and lower health care costs. The state says of the 160,000 children
born annually, only slightly more than half get the shots they need
by the age of two to protect against diseases such as measles and
rubella. Voinovich says his goal is to raise the statewide average
to 90 percent by the end of the decade.

The system calls for each newborn to be assigned a tracking number.
Each time the baby receives an immunization the health care
provider enters the number by phone into the computer system, which
will keep track of when the next shot is due. If an infant misses a
shot date, the computer notes it, and an attempt will be made to
contact the parent or guardian and let them know where they can take
the child to get the shot. "We have the facilities," says the
governor. "We've got to reach out and make sure people come in."

According to Aetna Health Plans of Ohio President Robert Treend,
each $1 spent on vaccines for measles, mumps and rubella saves $14
in later treatment. Getting shots will also allow for more regular
health checks, says Treend. "Too many children are outside the
health-care system and not getting the routine checks they need."

(Jim Mallory/19930118/Press contact: Robert Treend, Aetna Health
Plans of Ohio, 216-348-7740)


(NEWS)(IBM)(BOS)(00012)

VisionQuest Coming for Notes & Windows, Plus Mac & Unix 01/20/93
AUSTIN, TEXAS, U.S.A., 1993 JAN 20 (NB) -- Collaborative
Technologies Corp. (CTC), has announced Windows and Lotus Notes
versions of its VisionQuest group decision-making software, and
Newsbytes has learned that Mac and Unix versions are also on the
agenda.

Previously available for DOS only, CTC's LAN-based tool uses
techniques like brainstorming, voting on priorities, and
ranking alternative courses of action to help organizations cut
decision-making time from weeks or months to hours or minutes.

Dell Computer and the Marriott hotel chain are among the product's
many current customers, said John M. Kupik, director of CTC's
Northeast region, in an interview with Newsbytes. Dell uses
VisionQuest to select product names, while the Marriott employs the
tool for budgeting, writing job descriptions, and a variety of
other matters.

According to Kupik and other officials, the new VisionQuest for
Windows offers even speedier consensus-making than the DOS version,
while VisionQuest for Notes enables two-way exchange of information
with the Lotus groupware program. The Windows and DOS editions of
VisionQuest are fully compatible with one another.

The Notes version of the product will ship at the end of January,
and the Windows edition in February, stated Kupik. "Then, we'll be
marching toward Unix and Mac, because that's where many of the top
decision-makers are going," he commented.

Unlike the DOS edition, VisionQuest for Windows allows most
functions to be accessed from anywhere in the program, said Don
Petersen, vice president of technical operations for CTC. Petersen
explained to Newsbytes that each "consensus tool" in the Windows
edition appears as a separate window consisting of several
sub-windows.

The sub-windows consist of the instruction for the activity, the
data used in the activity, and an "explosion" window for displaying
the full text of a lengthy item.

Users can have several exercises, or windows, open at the same
time, he reported. In addition, text can be transferred from one
activity to another via the Windows clipboard. A folder icon
within VisionQuest for Windows is designed to ease information
cataloguing and retrieval.

The new VisionQuest for Notes works with VisionQuest 2.11 or later,
Notes 2.0 or later, and Windows. After entering VisionQuest from
within Notes, a user is able to transfer data between the two
programs, Petersen told Newsbytes. For example, ideas that have
been generated in common document development within Notes can be
imported into VisionQuest for rating or ranking.

Decisions reached from within VisionQuest can then be sent back
into Notes for database storage and enterprise-wide distribution.
When data is transferred from VisionQuest into Notes, Doc Links and
keyword categories are created within the Notes database.

CTC's upcoming move to platforms beyond DOS and Windows is based on
research showing that Macintosh and Unix are both gaining ground in
the corporate sector, said Kupik, a former sales and marketing
executive for the Gartner Group. The Macintosh's rise in
popularity is attributable to its ease of use, he told Newsbytes.

(Jacqueline Emigh/19930118/Press contact: Cindy Golisch, S&S
Public Relations, tel [phone])


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(BOS)(00013)

Standardization Under Way For ArcNet LANs 01/20/93
SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS, U.S.A., 1993 JAN 20 (NB) -- At the start of
1992, Datapoint made a major splash in the LAN market with
the introduction of ArcNet Plus. A year later, as the company's
25th anniversary year begins, officials seek to stir the waters of
public awareness around standardization of the original ArcNet, one
of the earliest LAN architectures.

In an interview with Newsbytes, Robert Hollingsworth, marketing
director, said that ANSI's standardization of ArcNet last fall has
helped to spur sales for Datapoint, the company that first
created ArcNet. Now, the ArcNet Trade Association is poised to
bring a second standard before ANSI, and to pursue ISO
standardization in Europe after that, he told Newsbytes.

Initial standardization activities deal with the original ArcNet,
Hollingsworth stated. But once that standardization has been fully
achieved, efforts will shift to ArcNet Plus. ArcNet boosts
transmission speed to 20 Mbps from ArcNet's limit of 2.5 Mbps and
also adds the ability to work with UTP (unshielded twisted pair)
wiring.

The latest standard proposal, RFC 1201, is the brainchild of
Novell, he said. RFC 1201 would add an ODI driver to the original
ArcNet intelligent hub, making the architecture more "open" by
achieving compatibility with the OSI (Open Systems Integration)
protocol.

RFC 1201 will probably go out for comment in March, and the entire
standardization process will probably take a year, he predicted.
"That's how long it took us the first time around," he noted.

Attempts to standardize ArcNet in Europe will come soon afterward,
he told Newsbytes. "ISO standardization is probably even more
important, because 85% of our end user business is in Europe," he
reported.

Datapoint, a producer of ArcNet intelligent hubs and LAN adapters,
has 13 international subsidiaries, nine of them in Europe, he said.
The company also works with distributors throughout Europe and the
Asia Pacific.

Standardization helps to legitimize any technology, he suggested.
FDDI, Ethernet and Token Ring, three standardized architectures,
have been overshadowing ArcNet in recent years within North
America. Industry observers have attributed the transition to the
slow speed of the original ArcNet, in contrast to 10 Mbps for
Ethernet, 4/16 Mbps for Token Ring, and 100 Mbps for the even newer
FDDI technology.

Still, ArcNet has maintained some strong adherents on both sides
of the Atlantic. As of mid-1992, prior to passage of the first
ANSI standard, ARCnet held an 11% share of the US LAN market,
according to InfoCorp. The lower cost of ArcNet, in comparison to
Ethernet, has often been cited as a big selling point.

Hollingsworth emphasized that ArcNet is only the second standard,
after FDDI, that has been based on an existing product. "The
others have been based on specifications drawn up before a
product was even built," he told Newsbytes.

(Jacqueline Emigh/19930115; Press contact: Patricia M. Coble,
Datapoint, tel [phone])


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(SFO)(00014)

Lotus' Calendering, Scheduling Strategy 01/20/93
CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1993 JAN 20 (NB) -- Lotus
Development Corp. has outlined its plans and ideas for what a
calendaring and scheduling program should be like. Based on what
the company currently has in Organizer and cc:Mail, Lotus is
positioning its future direction as a marriage between PIMs (Personal
Information Managers) and group needs.

Lotus' system works as follows. Let us assume that user
A wishes to schedule a meeting with people B, C, and D. A would
find a convenient time and venue for the meeting and would designate
the needed attendance of B, C, and D. A's Organizer would then use
cc:Mail, or any other VIM (Vendor Independent Messaging)-compliant
mail system that A has, to send out meeting invitations to B, C,
and D.

For their part, B, C, and D would receive the mail message on their
mail systems. After reading the meeting invitation, they decide
whether to attend the meeting, decline to attend, or delegate
attendance at the meeting to someone else. Let us assume
that B decides to attend, C declines, and D delegates to E who
accepts. Regardless of the choice selected, the response takes the
form of a mail message that is sent back to A's mail address.

A can check the status of his meeting at any time by calling up a
dialog box. This dialog box will contain a list of the prospective
attendees and their status. The status will be indicated via icons.

Although Lotus' strategy is to support any VIM mail system and not
require any specific software on the receiving end, it is apparent
that cc:Mail and Organizer will form a comprehensive set of tools
that will operate in a seamless fashion. Lotus has not announced
any kind of a timeline during which this strategy will take effect
although the company is hinting at several more announcements
over the next few months.

(Naor Wallach/19930120/Press Contact: David Grip, McGlinchey & Paul
for Lotus, 617-862-4514/Public Contact: Lotus Development Corp., 617
-577-8500)


(NEWS)(APPLE)(SYD)(00015)

Australia - Logical Solutions Buys Avante Systems 01/20/93
CANBERRA, AUSTRALIA, 1993 JAN 20 (NB) -- Logical Solutions,
Australia's largest seller of Apple Computer products, has
strengthened its position by purchasing Avante Systems of Canberra.
The buy-out will double Logical Solutions' Canberra sales, pushing
it into first place for that city in front of former leader Approved
Systems.

According to Richard Beswick of Logical Solutions, the purchase of
Avante represented a pay-out of "a couple of hundred thousand
[dollars]," with no debts acquired. Logical Solutions inherits
Avante's strong relationships with several government agencies and
departments, including Health, Housing and Community Services and
the Department of Primary Industries and Energy. Logical Solutions'
Canberra sales now account for almost 50 percent of Apple equipment
sold in that city, a market estimated at AUS$30M. Although performing
strongly in Canberra, Avante was forced into receivership recently due
to debts from its Sydney, Adelaide, and Melbourne operations.

Robert Kaye, Logical Solutions' managing director, said of the buy-
out, "Acquiring Avante Systems is an important part of our strategy
to increase our penetration of the government sector and will be
underpinned by our strong emphasis on service and system
integration." Almost all of Avante's Canberra staff will be
maintained, and Avante's former Canberra manager, Lyn Cooper, has
been appointed Logical Solution's area sales manager.

(Sean McNamara/19930119/Press & Public Contact: Richard Beswick,
phone in Australia [phone])


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(DEL)(00016)

Tour India With A Desktop Guide 01/20/93
NEW DELHI, INDIA, 1992 JAN 20 (NB) -- The recently formalized
relationship between Nucleus Software Group (NSG) of New Delhi
and the North Carolina-based Intelligent Information Systems
is designed to distribute in the US and India, Yatri (Your Automated
Tourist Infodesk), and Xplore India software.

The roughly Rs 1.5 lakh-costing Yatri offers data on places of
interest, how to reach them, accommodation available, climatic
conditions, shopping places, banks, and exchange centers.

Xplore India gives information on tourist-interest facts like places,
flights, medical and hospital facilities, tour plans, and festivals in
the country. The package has four modules, each for Rs 8,900. But the
entire set costs Rs 19,000. Both packages have graphics and hypertext
capabilities.

It took 11 person-years to develop the two packages. The launch
was put off by three months since input from a 15-member expert panel
were to be incorporated.

NSG has arranged for dealers in Dubai and Singapore to take care
of business with tour promoters in West Asia and the Far East.

(C.T. Mahabharat/19930118)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(TYO)(00017)

Hitachi Links With Cross Point Solutions On ICs 01/20/93
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1993 JAN 20 (NB) -- Hitachi has signed an agreement
with Cross Point Solutions in the US concerning the manufacture
and sale of field programmable gate arrays. With this agreement,
Hitachi will produce the gate arrays under the brand name of Cross
Point Solutions.

Hitachi will start producing Cross Point Solutions' gate arrays
at its own plant this March. Initially, 1,000 units per month
will be manufactured and supplied to Cross Point Solutions.
By the end of the year, Hitachi will raise production to
10,000 units per month. Also, Hitachi will market some of the
chips in Japan under the brand name of Cross Point Solutions
starting in September.

Field programmable gate arrays are like application-
specific ICs. These ICs are programmable by users, and have
features similar to those of mask gate arrays.

Hitachi and Cross Point Solutions will also jointly develop
ASIC chip products including gate array design tools in the
future. The term of this agreement will be five years.

Cross Point Solutions has agreements with other Japanese firms
including ASCII and NEC, and with Fujitsu concerning production
of field programmable gate arrays. Market demand for these
application specific ICs is rapidly increasing in Japan.

(Masayuki "Massey" Miyazawa/19930118/Press Contact: Hitachi, +81-
3-3258-2057, Fax, [phone])


(NEWS)(APPLE)(TYO)(00018)

Japan - Ichitaro Developed For Mac, Unix 01/20/93
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1993 JAN 20 (NB) -- Just System has developed
prototype versions of its best-selling Japanese word processor
Ichitaro for Apple Computer's Macintosh and Unix computers.
Just System's Ichitaro version 5.0 will be released for MS-DOS-
based personal computers, including NEC's, in February.

According to the Nikkan Kogyo newspaper, the Mac and Unix
programs have already been developed, and Just Systems is currently
testing their compatibility with existing version of the program.
However, actual release of these programs for the Macintosh and Unix
computers will come this fall.

Just System says version 5.0 has an easy-to-use graphical
user interface and extremely powerful and faster word processing
features.

Ichitaro was initially released in 1985, and comes in a variety of
versions including a notebook edition. About 1.2 million
packages of this phenomenally popular program have shipped, making
it the de facto standard Japanese word processor.

(Masayuki "Massey" Miyazawa/19930118/Press Contact: Just Systems,
[phone], Fax, [phone])


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(DEL)(00019)

Indo-French Datacom Net Award To Alcatel 01/20/93
NEW DELHI, INDIA, 1993 JAN 20 (NB) -- Alcatel CIT has won the
contract for a value-added network from Satcom, an Indian
government company. The network will connect 50 companies in
India, subscribing to the Indo-French microwave digital
data communication link with France's Transpac public data
transmission network.

Known as Cesia link, the Indo-French network is scheduled to be
operational by May 1993. At the Indian end, the network will be
operated by Satcom Services, an autonomous body, under the Department
of Electronics. Cesia, a French public sector information technology
company, will manage a closed user group in Europe. The company will
also provide consultancy and value-added services. The link will not
only help software transfer, but can be used for voice, fax and image
transmission.

The high speed link promises to accelerate software development in
India in partnership with European firms. "Two French companies alone
outsource software worth 500 million Francs (Rs 250 crore) from
outside," says Jean V. Salmona, chief executive of Cesia. Talking
about software exports opportunities in Eastern Europe, he quotes
Hungary, where 160 large telecom, steel, and oil firms generated
profits only after computerization.

Individual 64 kbps streams from customer radio terminals will be
multiplexed to a 1 Mbps stream at Videsh Sanchar Nigam Ltd. premises
for transmission to Europe. Subscribers can hire 2.4 to 64 kbps
synchronous point-to-point leased data lines or X.25 access to
overseas package networks at speeds from 2.4 to 9.6 kbps.

The link will soon be extended to North America and the Middle East.
In the first phase, base stations are proposed to be set up in Delhi,
Bombay, and Bangalore. Later, Madras, Pune and Calcutta will also be
covered under the network.

(C.T. Mahabharat/19930116)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(LAX)(00020)

Fujitsu's Pen Computer Aimed At Forms Market 01/20/93
SANTA CLARA, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1993 JAN 20 (NB) -- Fujitsu
Personal Systems has announced a new pen-based portable
computer, the 325Point.

The company says the 325Point weighs three pounds, is tablet-
sized at 8.7- by 11.7- by 1.2-inches, and offers eight hours of
battery life with rechargable Nicad or Nimh batteries.

The unit is aimed at companies which are converting paper forms
to computerized forms such as those involved in consumer
packaged goods, utilities, pharmaceuticals, transportation, and
health care. The units are for non-office workers who need
to carry small computers that are easy to use and will run at
least a full work shift without changing batteries.

Based on the Advanced Micro Devices AM386SXLV microprocessor
the unit operates at 25 megahertz (MHz), offers 4 megabytes
(MB) of memory upgradable to 8 MB or 12 MB, a choice of solid-
state disk or 1.8-inch hard disk card, and two Type I/II/III
PCMCIA version 2.0 credit-card sized slots.

The 325Point also offers a 9.4-inch (diagonal) transflective
liquid crystal display (LCD) with video graphics array (VGA)
display support at 640 x 480 resolution. Interface ports
include a built-in point-to-point serial infrared link,
standard RS232 serial and parallel ports, a keyboard, and a
floppy disk drive port.

Users have the option of running pen operating systems
including such as Windows for Pen Computing by Microsoft,
Pendos by CIC, and PenPoint by GO. Application development
environments for the 325Point are supported by Slate
Corporation's Penapps, Grid Systems' Penright! Pro, Penpal
Associates' Power Penpal, and R2Z's padbase products, Fujitsu
said.

The 325Point will be introduced in March at a preliminary price
of $2,295 each, company officials told Newsbytes.

With all the flurry over handheld and personal information
devices, Fujitsu is pointing out the Poqet was the first MS-DOS
handheld computer. Its other portable products include the
Poqetpad, a pen-based handheld DOS computer, and now the
325Point.

(Linda Rohrbough/19930120/Press Contact: Bill Wittmann,
Fujitsu, tel [phone], fax [phone]; Public Contact
800-831-3183)


(NEWS)(IBM)(LAX)(00021)

More Than 60 New 486s From Packard Bell 01/20/93
CHATSWORTH, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1993 JAN 20 (NB) -- Packard
Bell says it will introduce 60 new 486-based IBM compatible
personal computer (PC) systems and Navigator, a software
package for self-paced instruction teaching computer use
and Microsoft Windows. The company appears to be responding
to widely published consumer surveys concerning what
PC owners wish they'd gotten.

The new 486 PCs will also offer the company's Power Pack speed
enhancement performance set which includes a local-bus video
and graphics accelerator, 512 kilobytes (K) of video random
access memory (RAM) expandable to 1 megabyte (MB), cache
expansion on the systemboard (or motherboard) to 512K, the
ability to upgrade the central processing unit (CPU) to one of
Intel's overdrive speed doubling processors, and easy to
upgrade system RAM.

Local-bus architecture is the new PC buzzword for faster video
and graphics. Packard Bell says local-bus technology offers
video acceleration hard-coded into the controller chip which
runs at the same clock speed as the CPU rather than at slower
industry standard architecture (ISA) speeds. What this means to
users is frequently used graphics tasks run up to four times
faster and images or graphics are created and displayed more
readily.

To allow users to speed up the read/write performance of the
systems, Packard Bell says its new systemboards come standard
with 8K of cache memory built into the CPU and can accommodate
an additional 32, 128, or 512K of external cache memory.

Thirty-two MB or more of RAM can be added to the new systems
and for CPU upgrades a socket with a lever that releases the
CPU (a Zero Insertion Force or ZIF socket) allows easy
replacement of the microprocessor.

Desktop and minitower versions are both available. The desktop
units offer three or four system expansion bus slots and three
or four drive cavities. The minitower has five expansion slots
and five drive cavities.

The systems come with the following software factory-installed:
MS-DOS 5.0 with MS-DOS Shell and QBasic; Microsoft Windows 3.1,
Windows Productivity Pack for ease in learning Windows; Packard
Bell Navigator; Microsoft Works for Windows with Word Art,
which allows text to be printed in circular and vertical
formats; Microsoft Money; and Best of Microsoft Windows
Entertainment Pack featuring eight of Microsoft's best-selling
games.

Some systems include modems and the Prodigy Service Start-up
kit and systems with fax modems include Prodigy and Windows-
based fax software.

The Packard Bell announcement covers nearly all of the five top
complaints listed by new PC owners released by Channel
Marketing. The top five things users said they wished they had
gotten was a better monitor, more memory, a larger hard disk
drive, more expansion slots, and both 3.5-inch and 5.25-inch
floppy disk drives.

Packard Bell has been offering PCs via retailer channels such
as group buying clubs such as Price Club or Pace. The company
is the second largest supplier of PCs according to market
research firm International Data and Packard Bell boasts its
computers occupy more shelf space in the mass merchant channel
than any other vendor. The company also ranks second in monitor
shipments worldwide, according to Stanford Resources.

(Linda Rohrbough/19930120/Press Contact: Liz O'Donnell, The
Bohle Company for Packard Bell, tel [phone], fax 310-785-
0459)


(NEWS)(IBM)(TYO)(00022)

Japan - NEC Releases Low-cost PC-9801 01/20/93
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1993 JAN 20 (NB) -- NEC has announced a series of
low-cost personal computers, the newest members of its best-selling
PC-9801 family. Their low cost is in response to the latest
rock bottom-priced PCs from Compaq, Seiko-Epson, and IBM Japan.

NEC has announced six personal computers, including a multimedia
model called the 98 Mate. All have Intel's 80486 processor, and are
compatible with the PC-9801. The retail prices vary from 218,000
yen ($1,750) to 830,000 yen ($6,650) depending on the models.

The low-cost entry level model is a surprise for the industry
and consumers because it was expected to be priced at 290,000 yen
($2,300) but in fact is almost $800 cheaper.

NEC's entry level model is 60,000 yen ($480) lower in price
than one from Seiko-Epson, and only 20,000 yen ($160) more expensive
than Compaq's. Compaq's latest PC, which cost 198,000 yen ($1,600)
is 5 megahertz faster than NEC's. However, NEC's standard entry
model has two floppy disk drives, while Compaq's has one.

NEC's models are even lower in price at Akihabara, where most
Japanese PCs are sold 20 to 30 percent lower than recommended
retail prices.

Rival PC makers are already preparing to release even lower
priced PCs. For instance, Fujitsu will announce new PCs in
February that will be priced in the same price range, or less than
NEC's. IBM Japan will also release low-cost PCs by March, according
to an IBM Japan executive quoted by the Nikkan Kogyo newspaper.
And Dell Computer (Japan) is planning to release a PC with
a retail price of less than 100,000 yen ($800) at the end of
this month, says the Asahi newspaper.

(Masayuki "Massey" Miyazawa/19930119/Press Contact: NEC, +81-3-
3451-2974, Fax, [phone])


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(MOW)(00023)

Moscow: Phone Tariffs Up 250% 01/20/93
MOSCOW, RUSSIA, 1993 JAN 20 (NB) -- The Moscow City Phone Network
(MGTS) has announced a 250% residential phone price rise,
effective February 1, 1993.

The monthly fee for individual phones in Moscow rose from 42 to 106
rubles per month (20 cents at the current inflated exchange rate of 500
rubles per dollar).

MGTS has announced that it will gradually introduce metered telephone
service, with 15 minutes per day free and every extra minute charged at
0.10 ruble per minute. The move will take three years, as it requires
the installation of meters on all residential lines, considered
an expensive project, according to phone company.

The new line installation will cost 8,000 to 17,000 rubles ($16-34)
depending on urgency, while companies will have to pay 120,000 rubles
for the same.

MGTS is also justifying the price hike by attributing additional
costs to vandals, specifically those attacking pay phones on the
streets. MGTS said it will soon install 35,000 phone booths
operated with a special 3-ruble telephone coin (currently the
phones work with 0.02 and 0.15 ruble coins), which will be
sold at newsstands.

MGTS has about 4 million customers, 16,500 employees. As a city phone
monopoly, it serves 93% of apartments in Moscow.

(Kirill Tchashchin/19930120)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(TYO)(00024)

Hitachi Cable Links With AT&T On Optical Fiber Cable 01/20/93
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1993 JAN 20 (NB) -- Hitachi Cable has received a
huge purchase order for undersea optical fiber cable from AT&T
Submarine Systems, a subsidiary of AT&T. The cables are slated for
the Pacific Ocean, and the total purchase price will be
30 billion yen ($240 million). This represents the largest
purchase order of cables from the Japanese firm.

The agreement between Hitachi Cable and AT&T Submarine Systems calls
for Hitachi Cable to supply 25,000-kilometers of undersea fiber
optical telecommunication lines, which will connect Japan, the
US mainland, Hawaii, and Guam and will be called the 5th Pacific Ocean
Undersea Cable (TPC-5).

The agreement between Hitachi Cable and AT&T Submarine Systems is
for five years. Hitachi Cable will supply sample cable this
June, and actual product will follow in August.

The TPC-5 is a joint project currently being carried out by
AT&T and Japan's KDD. Both firms are preparing to use this cable
in 1996. The cable supports 120,000 circuits or phone lines.

AT&T will also get a cable supply from US-based Simplex, a
long time business partner.

(Masayuki "Massey" Miyazawa/19930120/Press Contact: Hitachi Cable,
 [phone])


(NEWS)(GOVT)(PAR)(00025)

EC To Investigate Philips-Thomson Sagem Accord 01/20/93
PARIS, FRANCE, 1993 JAN 20 (NB) --The Commission of the
European Community has decided to investigate an accord
between the companies Philips Electronics NV, Thomson Consumer
Electronics SA and Sagem for the joint production of liquid crystal
displays.

The EC Commission is debating whether the accord could violate
Community competition rules.

Last year Holland's Philips, and the French companies Sagem,
and Thomson, a state-owned electronics manufacturer, had formed
a joint venture called Flat Panel Display Co., BV. Europe
currently lacks such a local source of liquid crystal displays.

But the EC Commission may decide that such cooperation between
different companies violates monopoly laws. The EC has changed
its procedure for such investigations. The Commission yesterday
declined to investigate the agreement under merger law. It will be
reviewed strictly under competition law, a fact which will make the
review take less time. Such investigations usually take up to a year.

Flat Panel will compete with Japan's giants in the production
of active matrix liquid crystal displays. Analysts say the
market is one of the most promising in the future of computer
component sales. No one can say how long the EC review will
delay Flat Panel in its ability to get products to market.

(Andrew Rosenbaum/19930120/Press Contact: Press office of the
Commission of the European Community, tel [phone])


(NEWS)(IBM)(DEN)(00026)

Compaq Lowers Notebook Line Prices 01/20/93
HOUSTON, TEXAS, U.S.A., 1993 JAN 20 (NB) -- Compaq Computer has cut
the prices of its Contura notebook PCs 12 to 16 percent, depending
on the model. The price cuts include the color notebook.

With the cuts, a color notebook is now available for just over
$2,000, while an entry level 386SL-based notebook is priced at about
$1,250. Compaq says the price cuts make the Contura models 10 to 26
percent less expensive than similarly configured models from
competitors AST, Dell, and Toshiba. The low-end systems are powered
by 386SX and 486DX microprocessor chips operating at 25 megahertz
and 33 megahertz respectively.

Compaq spokesperson Mike Berman told Newsbytes that the backlog of
orders has been pretty well eliminated. The Contura is built in
Compaq's plants in Singapore and Scotland. Berman said the plants
are running production lines around the clock.

This is the second time the Contura prices have been reduced. In
October 1992 Newsbytes reported price cuts, with the 3/25c color
notebook dropping to about $2,700 and the entry level system down to
$1,500.

(Jim Mallory/19930120/Press contact: Mike Berman, Compaq,
713-374-0484)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(DEN)(00027)

Kodak Lays Off 2,000 01/20/93
ROCHESTER, NEW YORK, U.S.A., 1993 JAN 20 (NB) -- Eastman Kodak
announced yesterday that it will eliminate 2,000 jobs and cut costs
by $200 million in order to improve performance and reduce debt.

The announcement was made in a letter to shareholders by Kodak Chief
Executive Officer Kay Whitmore, who said the eventual goal is to
reduce the company's long term debt by about $1 billion. Whitmore
said the cuts would be mostly in Rochester, and would come mainly
from the ranks of administrative personnel and research and
development staffers. Kodak spokesperson Paul Allen told Newsbytes
that the cuts would take place over the next two to three months.

According to Whitmore the moves announced yesterday combined with an
operating plan for 1993 "will deliver positive cash flow and a
solid increase in operating income." Last week Kodak announced the
appointment of Christopher Steffen as its new chief financial
officer. Steffen reportedly played a major role in Chrysler
Corporation's turnaround.

The company said the plan calls for prioritizing or cancelling
research and development projects, reducing internal costs, cutting
capital spending and consolidating equipment manufacturing
operations. The consolidations are expected to take place in Germany
and possibly Mexico, but the company is reportedly looking at
several Rochester sites also. Kodak reportedly spends more than $1
billion on research and development annually.

Asked what areas might be de-emphasized, Allen told Newsbytes,
"Clearly there is a movement more towards the focus of the
business, in terms of silver halide imaging and hybrid imaging
as opposed to electronic imaging."

Kodak sold its Center for Creative Imaging in Camden, Maine last
year. The center taught graphics and imaging techniques and
technology through seminars for art directors and designers.
The company has also sold its sold its Atex, Estek, Videk, and
Interactive Systems business units, as well as the Eastman Kodak
Credit Corporation.

(Jim Mallory/19930120/Press contact: Robert Salmon, Eastman Kodak,
716-724-9765)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(TOR)(00028)

DEC Names Kozlowski To Head Unit 01/20/93
MAYNARD, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1993 JAN 20 (NB) -- Digital
Equipment Corp. has plugged another gap in its new nine-unit
structure. The company named Paul G. Kozlowski vice-president of
its Communication, Education and Entertainment Business Unit.

Kozlowski comes to DEC from GTE Mobile Communication, where he
was president. He founded Contel Cellular, Inc., in 1982, and
merged it with GTE in 1991. Kozlowski, 54, has more than 25 years
of technical, managerial, and executive experience in the
telecommunications industry, DEC officials said. His appointment
is effective immediately.

Kozlowski holds an engineering degree from the General Motors
Engineering and Management Institute. He is a past chairman of
the Cellular Telecommunications Industry Association, a member of
the Atlanta Advanced Technology Development Institute and the
Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers.

The Communication, Education and Entertainment Business Unit is
one of nine announced by DEC in December, and one of five of
these defined by groupings of industries. The other four are
built around DEC product and service groupings.

The other industry-oriented units are: Discrete Manufacturing and
Defense; Health; Consumer and Process Manufacturing Industries;
and Financial, Professional and Public Services.

The four product-based units are: Personal Computer; Components
and Peripherals; Multivendor Customer Services; and Storage.

Kozlowski's appointment leaves only the Financial, Professional
and Public Services business unit without a head.

All the company's revenues will come through the nine new units,
a company spokesman said. The new structure is to be fully
operational in time for the start of DEC's 1994 fiscal year in
July.

DEC recently reported that in its second fiscal quarter, ended
Dec. 26, it lost $73.86 million on revenues of $3,689.44 million.
The company lost $2.8 billion in fiscal 1992, and $260.55 million
in the first quarter of the current year.

DEC has cut some 30,000 jobs since 1989, and Robert Palmer, who
took over as president and chief executive last fall, has
confirmed that another 20,000 to 25,000 may be cut in the next
couple of years.

(Grant Buckler/19930120/Press Contact: Joseph D. Codispoti,
Digital, 508-493-6767)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00029)

 ****Sculley, Manzi Testify At House Telecom Hearing 01/20/92
WASHINGTON, D.C., U.S.A., 1993 JAN 20 (NB) -- The continuing
debate over Integrated Services Digital Networks, or ISDN took
center stage at a House hearing yesterday.

ISDN software turns phone lines from a single analog channel
into two 64,000 bit/second digital channels and a 16,000
bit/second signalling channel. In the discussion stage since
1968, ISDN standards were only put in place recently and
just more than half of US phone lines will have the technology
two years from now.

At a hearing before the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on
Telecommunications, chaired by Massachusetts Democrat Edward
Markey, lawmakers debated whether government should help pay for
ISDN, or whether government should get out of the phone companies'
way.

The merger among telecommunications, computing, and broadcasting
were highlighted by Apple Computer Chairman John Sculley,
who will incidentally keynote this April's convention of the National
Association of Broadcasters, and former Lotus Development
chairman Mitch Kapor, who also founded the Electronic Frontier
Foundation, sometimes called an "online ACLU." They both repeated
to the House Committee what the phone companies have argued --
that phone companies currently have the technology to provide
ISDN, and its resulting video services, at a relatively modest cost
and relatively quickly, over copper phone lines.

Vice President Albert Gore has argued in the past for investment in
fiber cable, even to subscriber homes, in order to deliver new
services. As a result of the new technology, debate is likely to
shift to long distance networks, and attempts to create
"multi-gigabit" per second links between major computer systems.
ISDN is only a first step, Sculley argued.

Even while ISDN remains a dream for most, meanwhile, the phone
companies seem to recognize it and are looking for more. AT&T's
Paradyne unit has just announced a set-top converter which will
work with copper phone lines, and use a compression algorithm
from Compression Labs to let phone networks sell television
services. Thus, many argue that if the government just gets out
of the way, Gore's dream will become reality in short order.

Craig Fields, chairman of Microelectronics Computer Technology
Corp., the Austin, Texas-based research consortium, held to this
view, saying "the government doesn't need to make massive
investments or pick technologies."

Sculley and Kapor were more urgent, saying thousands of jobs
depend on improving links between sources of information and
computers. Kapor urged government support for ISDN, at reasonable
prices. "to break the infrastructure deadlock." Both agreed with
the Bell companies, however, that a bill from Rep. Jack Brooks
forcing the phone companies out of the information services
business would have slowed the needed investment.

There is another route to all this, however, as a press statement
from the National Association of Broadcasters before the hearing
made clear. The NAB is urging US regulators to let broadcasters
use the extra capacity created by High Definition TV to broadcast
data. Data broadcasts, sent over the air, actually have more
capacity than ISDN lines. Prodigy is among the services
looking to use this capacity.

The big task, however, remains the replacement of copper in local
phone networks with fiber cable. Sculley admitted the $30
billion needed to do that -- many experts put the cost much
higher -- is just not available from private sources. As a
result, said Fields, the government should back pilot projects,
help set standards, promote competition, and support research and
development in how the network evolves.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19930120/Press Contact: Rep. Edward Markey,
202-224-3121; NAB, Doug Wills, 202-429-5350)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00030)

Telebit Acquiring Octocom Systems 01/20/92
CHELMSFORD, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1993 JAN 20 (NB) -- Shortly
before Bill Clinton became America's 42nd President, Telebit
announced a transition of its own, saying it has signed a letter
of intent to acquire Octocom Systems for stock and become more of
a local area networking company.

The merged companies will have sales of about $80-100 million,
Octocom spokesman Brian D. Cohen told Newsbytes. A lot of other
questions, like where the new company will be based and who will
run it, are still be be decided. "We're still working on
operating plans, and we hope details will be announced in about a
month."

Other modem makers, notably US Robotics, have in recent months
announced plans to get more heavily into local area networking,
and Telebit itself already makes routers, which are devices that
pass data between and among LANs. The acquisition of Octocom,
which specializes in dial and leased line modems and flexible
network management systems, gives it an immediate place at the
LAN market table.

The potential of the market is revealed by a statement from 900
Support, which sells computer support services by the minute. As
the company began its fourth year of business, it said it is
getting a surge of calls from people connecting to LANs for the
first time. Weekend traffic is up 30 percent recently, with many
callers buying their gear from high-volume computer superstores
only to have trouble making it work on their days off, the
company said.

Proposed terms of the deal will give Octocom about a 40 percent
stake in the merged companies, it will get 5 million shares of
Telebit for its current stock. Telebit has 7.5 million shares
outstanding. Telebit CEO Michael K. Ballard emphasized the idea
of remote LAN access solutions, and Octocom's international
distribution network, which links to over 60 countries, as being
behind the deal. Telebit gets 80 percent of its revenues in the
US. He also noted that LAN routing over public phone networks
represents a perfect market for his company's PEP technology,
which can run data faster than standard V.32bis modems but is
incompatible with them, as well as its coming V.FAST standard
modems, which would run data at 19,200 bits/second.

Completion of the merger is still subject to execution of
definitive documents, approval by the board of directors of both
companies, opinions regarding the accounting treatment of the
transaction as a pooling of interests, and regulatory and
shareholder approval.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19930120/Press Contact: Telebit, Steven A.
Hess, 408/734-4333; Octocom Systems, Brian D. Cohen, 508/441-
2181)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00031)

Metromedia, Resurgens Finalize Reverse-Merger 01/20/92
EAST RUTHERFORD, NEW JERSEY, U.S.A., 1993 JAN 20 (NB) --
Metromedia Communications Corporation finalized its reverse-merger
into Resurgens Communications Group of Atlanta, which will transform
it into a public company and the fourth-largest US long distance
company, following AT&T, MCI, and Sprint. The merger was
first announced October 26.

The two companies said they expect 1993 sales of over $500
million, well ahead of LDDS, which temporarily took the number-
four spot after acquiring Advanced Telecommunications of Atlanta
last month. LDDS-Advanced had sales of about $200 million
between them last year, according to reports filed in November,
and LDDS Chairman Bernard Ebbers boasted of his company's number
four status at the time.

Resurgens is the big winner in this merger, holding a 39 percent
stake in the new company. Metromedia keeps its 61 percent stake
private -- it is the property of billionaire John Kluge, which
has at different times held big stakes in the billboard and
local television markets, under the Metromedia name. The price of
Resurgens stock has doubled since the merger was announced, to
about $36 per share.

Prospects for the new company appear bright. There is an over-
supply of call-carrying capacity in the US, and buyers seem
anxious for bargains. The Federal Communications Commission
reported in October that so-called "second tier" companies like
Metromedia seem to be gaining share at the expense of the Big
Three, based on lower rates, while within the Big Three MCI seems
to be gaining at the expense of AT&T because of its "Friends and
Family" plan.

However, fourth-place status in the US long distance market is
fairly insecure. Among the companies which held the position in
recent years were Telecom USA, which was acquired by MCI, and
Telesphere, which lost out when the caller-paid "900" number
business collapsed under legal pressure. Even at $500 million,
sales of the new Metromedia are still dwarfed by number three
Sprint, which had long distance revenues of $5.4 billion a year
ago.

Employees of the two companies appear to be the losers. Analysts
expect headquarters staff to be cut, with a quick boost to
profits, noting that it takes no more people to run a $500
million company than a $100 million company. The merger still
requires regulatory and shareholder approval.

The merger continues a long-running trend of consolidation within
the industry. This was highlighted last year by the merger of
Centel into Sprint, which some shareholders of Centel fought
bitterly. Stock in the combined companies, worth $32 at the time
of the merger, is now worth about $37. Metromedia is expected to
use its new status as a public company to continue the trend,
going on an active search for new acquisitions, using its stock
as currency.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19930120/Press Contact: Resurgens
Communications Group, John D. Phillips, 404/261-6190; Lynn
Morgen, for Metromedia, 212/986-5900)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(LAX)(00032)

 ****Taligent To Hire 250 In Silicon Valley 01/20/93
CUPERTINO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1993 JAN 20 (NB) -- Taligent, an
independent joint venture company formed by Apple Computer and
IBM in March of 1992, will set up its permanent headquarters in
Cupertino, California, the long-time home of Apple Computer.

The company has leased two buildings totaling 167,000 square
feet in Cupertino at 10201 N. DeAnza Boulevard and 10355 N.
DeAnza Boulevard. The buildings will be renovated before
Taligent starts occupying the facility this summer and the move
from the company's temporary address at 10725 N. DeAnza Blvd is
expected to be completed by early 1994.

Part of the reason for the longevity of the move is the company
is on a software production schedule and doesn't want to
interrupt development.

Taligent also plans to hire, according to Chairman and Chief
Executive Officer Joe Guglielmi. The company was founded with
170 employees and is now at a current force of 250. Taligent
representatives told Newsbytes the company plans to double that
250 and is actively seeking resumes from people across the
board, but especially from software engineers and technical
marketing staff.

The company describes its goal as the development of a system
software environment from the bottom-up that is object-oriented
and open to expansion at all levels by software developers,
hardware original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), and systems
vendors.

As for when the public will see a product, Taligent has already
announced it expects to have a product in the mid 1990s but is
saying little else.

(Linda Rohrbough/19930120/Press Contact: Loretta L. Stagnitto,
Taligent, tel [phone], fax [phone]; Direct Resume's
to Attention - Staffing, Taligent, 10725 N. DeAnza Blvd.,
Cupertino, CA 95014)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(SFO)(00033)

Cypress Semi Loses $23 Million In 4Qtr 01/20/93
SAN JOSE, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1993 JAN 20 (NB) -- All is not
well in the semiconductor industry, despite Intel's record 1992
revenue increase of 22 percent to $5.84 billion. A month after
announcing that it was moving manufacturing operations out of
the San Jose, California, area with the result of another 400
lost jobs, Cypress Semiconductor Corp., has reported a fourth
quarter loss of $23.7 million.

A company spokesperson confirmed to Newsbytes that revenues
for fiscal 1992 were $272.2 million, down from $286.8 million
for 1991. Also confirmed were fourth quarter revenues of $67.4
million, a decrease of five percent from $71 million for the
fourth quarter of 1991.

Cypress' fortunes compare dramatically with those of Intel.
As reported by Newsbytes recently, Intel's 1992 revenue is
the highest in the company's history, with $5.84 billion in
revenue up 22 percent and $1.07 billion in net income
up 30 percent over figures reported in 1991. Fourth quarter Intel
sales were reported at new highs with revenue at $1.86 billion,
an increase of 54 percent over the same quarter a year ago.

The company cites the cost of previously announced restructuring
as a primary reason for the losses. A company spokesperson
also confirmed to Newsbytes that that includes the costs of the
job cuts in San Jose.

The 400 lost jobs in San Jose, as reported by Newsbytes in
December, came as a result of the company's efforts to reduce
manufacturing. At the time, the company said that it had managed
to reduce costs by transferring 75 percent of its assembly and
test operation to its facility in Bangkok, Thailand. Because of
that, it was planning on transferring the rest of its production
to Bangkok over the next six months.

In addition to the 400 lost jobs, another 300 were lost in the
company's previous restructuring, involving the move offshore.

The net loss for the fourth quarter 1992 was $23.7 million, or
$0.66 per share, compared to net income of $5.9 million, or $0.15
per share for the fourth quarter 1991. Fourth quarter 1992
results include pre-tax charges of $37.2 million in "restructuring
and other nonrecurring items," according to the company.

The net loss for 1992 was $21 million, or $0.56 per share,
compared to net income of $34.2 million, or $0.85 per share for
1991.

Explaining the losses, Cypress President and CEO T. J. Rodgers,
said: "1992 was a year of transition and change for the company.
Revenues stalled due to a sluggish business environment, coupled
with price declines in static RAM and programmable logic
products. Without the restructuring charges, our pre-tax income
would have been $6.8 million, an unacceptable number that
necessitated the restructuring."

In conclusion, Rodgers said, "We are now faced with changing
competitive business conditions, and we have altered Cypress'
structure to compete more effectively in that tougher
environment."

(Ian Stokell/19921218/Press Contact: Pat Verderico, 408-943-
2754, John Hamburger, 408-943-2902, Cypress Semiconductor
Corp.)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(SFO)(00034)

High Chip Development Costs Lead AMD, HP To Collaborate 01/20/93
SUNNYVALE, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1993 JAN 20 (NB) -- The high
costs of advanced technology research are driving some major
companies into strategic alliances with one-time competitors.
Along those lines Advanced Micro Devices Inc., and Hewlett-
Packard Co., have signed a deal to develop technology that will
enable the development of microprocessors with between five
and ten million transistors by 1995.

Under terms of the deal, the two companies will develop a
general-purpose 0.35-micron complimentary metal oxide
semiconductor (CMOS) logic technology by the end of 1994, for
volume production in 1995.

The two companies are hoping to shrink the smallest feature
sizes on logic chips by more than two times, and increase the
layers of metal interconnect.

AMD says that a number of its personnel will work full-time
on the project at HP's Deer Creek Research and Development
facility in Palo Alto, California. Some of the work will also
be done at AMD's Submicron Development Center in Sunnyvale,
California, which is quite close by.

The high cost of research is one of the main reasons behind the
collaboration, according to W.J. Sanders III, chairman and chief
executive officer at AMD. "The complexity and cost of technology
development are driving collaboration on an unprecedented
scale," he said. "HP and AMD have complimentary requirements
for future generations of microprocessors and related logic
products. Together, we can mount a stronger, more cost-effective
technology development effort resulting in earlier introduction
of leading-edge products."

Frederic N. Schwettmann, vice president and general manager
of HP's Circuit Technology Group, said the deal fits in well with
the company's new Palo Alto facility. "The timing of this
agreement meshes well with the completion of HP's new
19,000-square foot, Class 1 research and development fab in
Palo Alto, which produced first silicon on Thanksgiving Day, 1992."

Speaking of the technology under development, Sanders said,
"This collaboration provides a clear technology path that will
enable the products to be manufactured in AMD's previously
announced sub-0.5-micron facility in Austin to lead the industry
in performance."

The new technology will reportedly increase the number of
transistors that can be put on the logic devices by a factor of
ten compared to such products as current 386 processors.
AMD says that its 386 devices are manufactured with a
0.8-micron technology, which means that the finest lines on
the circuits are 8/10,000,000 of one meter in width.

(Ian Stokell/19930120)