[tidbits]
excerpted from:
Information Society Trends Issue number: 74
(13.10.1997 - 3.11.1997)
ispo.cec.be
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The national Belgian telecoms operator Belgacom said it would launch next Summer a high-speed Internet access service, Turbo Line, based on ADSL, a technology that allows for the high-speed transmission of digitised data over regular phone lines
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Oftel, the UK telecoms watchdog, has approved plans by the leading UK telecoms operator BT to provide all of Britain's 32,000 schools with high-speed digital access to the Internet by the year 2000. At present, only 6,000 schools have access to the Internet. As for the UK government, it has pledged to invest 140 million Ecu in updating computers and software in UK schools as part of its plans to establish by 2002 the National Grid for Learning, a nation-wide network connecting all schools, universities and libraries, and providing teaching material and teacher aid.
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The Canadian telecoms operator Bell Canada has launched a high-speed Internet access service based on ADSL, a technology that allows for the high-speed transmission of digitised data over regular phone lines, in the Ottawa/Hull and Quebec City areas. The service has been made available to corporations and Internet service providers, which can then offer ADSL-based services to residential users. The geographical coverage of the service is to be expanded in the course of 1998.
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The US regional telecoms operator US West has unveiled plans to establish its telecoms arm US West Communications Group and its cable TV arm US West Media Group, to be renamed MediaOne, as two separate companies. US West, which provides local phone services in 14 US states, would be likely to become an easy target at a time of giant US telecoms ventures. As for MediaOne, it would keep US West's large minority stake in the US cable giant Time Warner. The move reflects US West's failure to successfully pursue a simultaneous expansion in the two market segments. The question of which company would inherit US West's large debt resulting from its cable network expansion has not yet been clarified.
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The US computer manufacturer Texas Instruments has unveiled a new fast microprocessor, the C67x, that would offer 10 times more processing power than the fastest chip currently on the market for the same price. The new chip could be used in an array of advanced and new products ranging from tri-dimentional graphics to powerful telescopes, high-resolution medical imaging, fingerprint reading or intelligent airbags.
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European Commission, Directorate General XIII, Advisor's Team. Supervisor: Detlef Eckert. Chief editor: Denis Baresch. Editorial committee: Gerard Carat, Christian Micas. The contents of "IS Trends" are based on publicly available information, in particular news articles and press releases, and do not necessarily reflect the opinion of the European Commission. |
