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To: MikeM54321 who wrote (6675)	5/26/2000 8:00:00 AM
From: MikeM54321	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 12823

Re: AT&T's Conditional Approval for MediaOne Purchase Thread- Some important news about AT&T's plan to by-pass the incumbent telcos twisted copper and go direct to their customers via the coaxial pipe. This should be good news for MSO equipment companies. Especially the ones supplying cable telephony products. -MikeM(From Florida) ___________________________ AT&T/MediaOne Deal OK'd MediaOne must sell interest in high-speed Internet provider Road Runner May 25, 2000: NEW YORK- The Department of Justice on Thursday conditionally approved AT&T's proposed $62 billion acquisition of cable television firm MediaOne, clearing one of the last hurdles in a mammoth deal that would make AT&T the nation's largest cable company. As part of the approval, AT&T, the nation's leading long-distance provider, must divest MediaOne's 25 percent stake in high-speed Internet provider Road Runner no later than Dec. 31, 2001, the Department of Justice said. In the interim, AT&T must keep its management in Road Runner separate from the rest of the company. "The Road Runner divestiture is an obligation we always assumed we would face, and the decree proposes both a schedule and process that are fair and feasible," said Jim Cicconi, AT&T's general counsel. In a filing to the U.S. District Court in the District of Columbia, the Justice Department said AT&T's controlling interest in Excite@Home, a provider of broadband Internet access, and MediaOne's stake in Road Runner would substantially curtail competition in the "aggregation, promotion and distribution of broadband content." Road Runner is principally owned by MediaOne, Time Warner Inc., Microsoft, and Compaq. Time Warner holds a nearly 40 percent stake in Road Runner, a Time Warner spokesman said. AT&T, based in New York, has 74 percent voting control plus 25 percent economic interest in Excite@Home, said AT&T spokesman Jim McGann. Excite@Home, of Redwood City, Calif., is the largest provider of high-speed Internet access while Road Runner, of Herndon, Va., is the nation's second-largest. AT&T must also obtain Justice Department approval before entering into certain agreements with AOL and Time Warner regarding cable modem or joint residential broadband service, AT&T said. Time Warner is currently involved in a merger with America Online.

To: MikeM54321 who wrote (6675)	6/5/2000 8:47:00 PM
From: MikeM54321	Read Replies (3) \| Respond to of 12823

Re: AT&T Approved to Merge with MediaOne "FCC chairman William Kennard said the agency had tried to strike a balance between speeding the development of cable telephone service and consolidation. Allowing AT&T and MediaOne to merge might not bring cable phones to market faster, but would likely allow the market to develop in a "more predictable" way he said. Kennard also defended the choice not to force AT&T to open up its cable lines to other broadband Net service providers, an issue the agency has remained steadfast about for months. "The most important thing this country needs now is more investment in broadband," Kennard said, echoing comments made after the agency approved AT&T's merger with cable firm Tele-Communications. "In order to foster that investment, we need to let this market develop." news.cnet.com Thread- Well it has finally happened. Should be good news for the infrastructure players in the MSO market. I find myself in the rare position with having to agree with the government. In this case Kennard of the FCC. Although I don't understand why he doesn't believe this permission to merge won't motivate AT&T to rapidly rollout cable telephony. IMO Armstrong would want to do everything it can to avoid paying the incumbent telcos the tens of billions it currently pays them annually to access the copper loop. -MikeM(From Florida)