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Technology Stocks : America On-Line (AOL) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Vendit™ who wrote (12533)	4/23/1999 7:14:00 PM
From: Jenne	Respond to of 41369

AOL advances lobbying efforts By Bloomberg News Special to CNET NEWS.COM April 23, 1999, 2:30 p.m. PT WASHINGTON--America Online boosted the amount of money it spends to lobby the U.S. government by 28 percent last year, as it worked to sway policy-makers on matters ranging from digital copyright protections to taxes on Internet sales. AOL, which operates the world's largest online service, spent $1 million to lobby Congress and executive agencies in 1998, up from $784,000 in 1997, according to a lobby disclosure form filed with Congress. The company is part of a crop of fast-growing Internet companies that are turning up their efforts to influence what goes on in Washington. Analysts say that's not a surprise, considering the interest in regulating online communications and commerce. "Shaping that industry is half the battle to winning in that industry," said Bill Whyman, an Internet analyst with Legg Mason's Precursor Group. Internet companies "now have a real business interest in getting involved." Do you want to know more? View story in The Big Picture Go to Message Boards Search News.com The company has a stake QUOTE SNAPSHOT April 23, 1999, 1:26 p.m. PT America Online Inc. AOL 147.0000 -1.6875 -1.13% Microsoft Corp. MSFT 86.0000 +1.0625 +1.25% Yahoo Inc. YHOO 187.6875 +3.6875 +2.00% by symbol by name > more from CNET Investor Quotes delayed 20+ minutes in many long-standing areas of regulatory activity, such as oversight of cable-TV providers. It also would be affected by bills and proposed rules imposing new costs or business restrictions on a fairly young industry. "There is an increasing volume of issues related to the Internet that are important to us," said George Vradenburg, the company's general counsel. Congress is working on such issues as online privacy protections, whether to open up access to high-speed cable networks to online services, and possible restrictions on Internet gambling. Other companies in the industry that have boosted lobbying expenditures include Microsoft, which spent $3.2 million on lobbying last year, a 68 percent jump over the amount spent in 1997. Netscape, which was purchased by AOL in November, also stepped up efforts. It spent $840,000 on lobbying last year, up from $724,000 the year before. That's a 16 percent increase. AOL listed nearly 40 rules or bills on which it lobbied in 1998, ranging from legislation designed to protect kids from online sexual predators, a bill relaxing export controls on data-scrambling encryption products, and a measure to ban new taxes on goods sold over the Internet. AOL's efforts helped win passage of the tax measure and a bill to protect digital copyrights. The company's lobbyists made contact with members of Congress, the Federal Communications Commission, the Federal Trade Commission, and the Treasury Department. AOL has tapped into Washington's lobbying scene a bit faster than some competitors, Vradenburg said. The company opened its Washington office in 1995. Other companies, like Yahoo, followed. Other newcomers, like Amazon.com, plan to join Washington's corporate lobbying scene soon. AOL executives are trying to make their presence known more on Capitol Hill. Chief executive Steve Case recently testified before Congress for the first time, urging a Senate panel to force U.S. cable television companies like Time Warner to provide unfettered access to their high-speed networks. AOL chief operating officer Robert Pittman sits on a congressional advisory commission on e-commerce, which is weighing recommendations on whether to allow states to impose taxes on Internet taxes. Former Netscape CEO James Barksdale also holds a seat on the commission. "They've recognized that they have to be players in Washington," said Kent Cooper, cofounder of Public Disclosure, which tracks campaign giving and spending on lobbying. Copyright 1999, Bloomberg L.P. All Rights Reserved.