>>I wonder how long it will take LU to fix MCI's frame network. Heard there was some vendor finger pointing.
Seems that the faulty software from LU has stopped trading for extended periods, unlike all their earlier glitches. Article says they have no idea when they can fix the problems. Apparently the CBOT was hopping mad about the "unsatisfactory" service before this latest extended failure. I wonder if AT&T and Sprint are watching.
August 11, 1999
Tech Center
MCI Data-Network Woes Thwart
ATMs and Commodity Trading
By NICOLE HARRIS and PETER A. MCKAY
Staff Reporters of THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
Some automated-teller-machine transactions and trading in soy beans and coffee were thwarted Tuesday due to problems in an MCI WorldCom Inc. data network.
The trouble began Thursday and continued as of Tuesday, MCI WorldCom representatives said. The problems, which ranged from slow data transmission to no service at all, occurred in the company's "frame relay" service, used for high-speed transmissions between computers.
As more disgruntled customers turned up, MCI WorldCom said engineers had isolated the problem to faulty software in equipment from Lucent Technologies Inc. The company was still unsure when service would be fully restored.
Representatives from the Chicago Board of Trade said its electronic system was down from 9:21 p.m. Central Standard Time on Thursday until 2:15 p.m. Tuesday. The outage couldn't have come at a worse time for the giant commodities exchange, where the grain trade is particularly heavy during the summer months because of weather concerns. That's been particularly true on Mondays and Fridays, as traders have either placed their bets on Friday for what the next two days' weather would be, or responded on Monday to the previous weekend's conditions.
When CBOT floor trading is closed on weekends, the electronic system is traders' only outlet to respond to weather as it happens. Exchange spokesman Richard B. Myers said the CBOT had previously experienced outages of a few minutes, but nothing like the latest stoppage. CBOT President Thomas R. Donovan had just met with MCI WorldCom officials Aug. 3 to discuss the earlier glitches.
"I expressed my extreme concern and displeasure with the unsatisfactory quality of service that they have been providing," Mr. Donovan wrote of the Aug. 3 meeting in a letter to CBOT members Tuesday. "Not only did they tell me then that there would be no additional disruptions in service, they communicated that service would improve." The letter also said the CBOT would immediately "review areas of redress."
The outage also affected some ATMs across the country. Chicago-based Cash Station, which operates ATMs mainly in the Midwest, said it had been experiencing sporadic service interruptions.
MCI WorldCom, Jackson, Miss., said it will work quickly to repair relationships with its customers. "We value our customer relationships and regret when we can't meet expectations, and we will be working very hard to regain their confidence," the company said.
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