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To: KeepItSimple who wrote (62747)	6/15/1999 10:22:00 PM
From: Glenn D. Rudolph	Respond to of 164684

Although the problem with the FCC ruling is that the issue is so complex the majority of AOL users (and stock purchasers) literally are unable to comprehend that AOL is about to become obsolete against a cable co./yahoo combo punch to the groin.. KIS, Maybe you did not understand the article both on the news wires and in the newspapers. I will post it for you again: "CHICAGO, June 15 (Reuters) - U.S. regulators aim to minimize the effect of a recent court decision allowing local authorities to regulate cable Internet services, and are considering a range of options, a top official said Tuesday. Federal Communications Commission Chairman William Kennard warned that the cable industry's high-speed Internet offerings could be delayed or even wrecked if thousands of local governments each impose a different set of regulations. "The information superhighway will not work if there are 30,000 different technical standards or 30,000 different regulatory structures for broadband," Kennard said in a speech to the National Cable Television Association here. "We have to have a national policy." A federal district court in Portland two weeks ago ruled that local cable franchising authorities had jurisdiction to require AT&T Corp. T.N to allow competing Internet service providers onto its system. AT&T plans to appeal. Kennard said the FCC was considering its options, but declined to be specific. "We can't overreact to one federal district court decision," Kennard told reporters after his speech. "We're very early on in this. There are a number of options that we can explore. At this point we need to allow the legal process to play out a little bit more." Later, FCC general counsel Christopher Wright said the options included entering the case on appeal on the side of the cable industry or even possibly using some of the FCC's own broad authority to supercede local regulations. "The FCC has authority to preempt," he noted. Kennard's initial approach appeared to be to try to convince local authorities not to act. "We're going to work closely with our local franchising authorities," Kennard told reporters. Echoing a similar warning issued by AT&T chairman Michael Armstrong on Monday, Kennard said regulation of cable Internet service by thousands of localities would create "chaos." In his speech, Kennard repeated what he has said many times since the FCC in February refrained from regulating cable Internet services while saying it would monitor the nascent market. "We do not have a monopoly in broadband," Kennard said. "We have a 'no-opoly' because the fact is, most Americans don't even have broadband. We have to get these pipes built." The FCC and Congress have so far declined to regulate cable Internet services, which require that consumers use a cable-owned company to get Internet services like e-mail and Web page hosting. About 750,000 people currently use cable modems to reach the Internet at speeds 50 times or more faster than the tens of millions who still log on over ordinary telephone modems. Some local cable franchising authorities, heeding warnings from Internet service providers and consumer groups that exclusive Internet service deals were anti-competitive, have tried to require cable companies to allow competing providers onto their systems. Proponents of open access noted that Kennard urged the cable industry to act responsibly and "follow the open tradition of the Internet." "There is no such thing on the Internet as the system AT&T is designing," said Greg Simon, a former White House aide leading a lobbying campaign for open access. Continued exclusive deals would bolster the case for regulation, he said. The Portland court ruling has pulled down some cable stocks, especially that of AtHome Corp. ATHM.O, the leading cable-owned Internet service provider. On Tuesday, shares of AtHome rose $1.56 on the Nasdaq to $80.06. Shares of America Online AOL.N, a leading proponent of open access, rose $4.25 to $94.75 on the New York Stock Exchange. REUTERS Rtr 20:15 06-15-99" I know you understand this kind of news far better than I and many other AOL investors. Please pull out the part of the article that has a ruling. I would really appreciate it. I am just too dumb to find it. Thank you in advance. Glenn