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To: djane who wrote (51786)	8/6/1998 7:27:00 PM
From: djane	Respond to of 61433

AOL plans faster access news.com By Jim Hu Staff Writer, CNET NEWS.COM August 6, 1998, 3:10 p.m. PT America Online today announced that it would streamline its Internet connections into a leaner pipeline to Web servers in an effort to speed up members' access. The idea behind the pipeline, called TeraPOP, is to directly link the online giant to Web-hosting service backbones, thus avoiding a series of exchange points that may slow down connection to the Internet. The connections are established using a number of lines, including optical carrier and digital signal lines. The connections include OC-12 and other, smaller-bandwidth lines, such as OC-3 and DS-3. OC-12 lines comprise 12 T3 lines and can transfer data at speeds of up to 622 million bits per second, while OC-3 lines comprise three T3 lines that support speeds of up to 155 million bits per second. DS-3 lines carry speeds comparable to standard T3 lines at close to 45 million bits per second. The size of the pipeline will be based on the number of subscribers a given service provider has. "It's an agreement with a lot of companies that eliminates the need for members to go through multiple exchange points when they go through the Internet," said AOL spokeswoman Wendy Goldberg. "It streamlines flow through cyberspace to reduce congestion on the Internet." Internet congestion has been a problem for AOL in the past, and is one of the perennial complaints from members who claim the service is slow and often stalls. AOL also has been criticized in the past for using a network that has not been able to support millions of users trying to access the Internet or simply log on to their accounts. Web hosting services involved in TeraPOP include: AboveNet Communications, Comstor Network Services, Concentric Network, Conxion, Exodus Communications, Geonet, GTE Internetworking, PSINet, ServInt Internet Services, and WINSTAR Communications, among others. Related news stories AOL deploys 56-kbps standard July 23, 1998 AOL wants AT&T-TCI business June 24, 1998 AOL adopts 56-kbps standard June 11, 1998 Copyright c 1995-98 CNET, Inc. All rights reserved. Privacy policy.

To: djane who wrote (51786)	8/6/1998 7:29:00 PM
From: djane	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 61433

WorldCom offers $6.1 million bond By Reuters Special to CNET NEWS.COM August 6, 1998, 3:40 p.m. PT WorldCom today sold $6.1 billion in debt to finance its planned $37 billion acquisition of MCI Communications, matching a record for the biggest corporate bond offering ever. The offering met with strong demand from international investors who are eager to own bonds issued by the nation's fourth-largest long-distance telephone company, people involved in the offering said. Salomon Smith Barney served as lead underwriter for the offering, which consisted of four separate parts including bonds with three-, five-, seven- and 30-year maturities. WorldCom, based in Jackson, Mississippi, plans to use the proceeds to finance its purchase of a 20 percent stake in MCI from British Telecommunications for $7 billion. It plans to issue stock to acquire the rest of MCI, in a deal valued at $37 billion when it was announced in November. A unit of RJR Nabisco Holdings has held the record for the largest corporate bond offering. In 1989, the unit issued $6.1 billion in junk bonds in connection with a leveraged buyout of the food and tobacco giant, according to Securities Data, a research firm. Prior to WorldCom's bond sale, Norfolk Southern held the record for the largest investment-grade corporate bond offering, with a $4.3 billion issue in 1997, Securities Data said. WorldCom's bonds are rated on the lower end of the investment-grade scale by Moody's Investors Service and Standard & Poor's., two major rating agencies. Moody's rates them Baa2 while S&P ranks them BBB-plus, several notches below their triple-A rating for bonds of the highest quality, but still above junk bond status. Junk bonds are riskier but pay higher interest rates to compensate investors. As lead underwriter, Salomon helped WorldCom sell the bonds to investors around the world today. WorldCom stock closed the day up 2.1875 at 52.625, and MCI stock was up 2.3125 at 63.9375 both in afternoon trading. Story Copyright c 1998 Reuters Limited All rights reserved.