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To: Harvey Allen who wrote (23337)	5/6/1999 1:02:00 AM
From: puborectalis	Respond to of 24154

Thursday May 6 12:55 AM ET Microsoft Said Close To Big AT&T Stake By Martin Wolk SEATTLE (Reuters) - Microsoft Corp. (Nasdaq:MSFT - news) is close to announcing an investment of up to $5 billion in AT&T Corp. (NYSE:T - news) that would bolster the software giant's role in high-speed Internet communications, industry analysts and sources said Wednesday. Officials of the two companies declined to comment, although sources familiar with the deal -- expected to give Microsoft a 2 or 3 percent stake in AT&T -- said an announcement was likely Thursday. The investment, which would be Microsoft's biggest ever, would give the world's leading software company a special relationship with the biggest U.S. cable provider and likely a dominant role in media and communications for years to come. ''This is for all the marbles,'' said Scott McAdams, president of Seattle-based brokerage McAdams Wright Ragen. he said. ''If they get AT&T -- and it sounds like they're going to get in there -- then they've won.'' AT&T Chairman C. Michael Armstrong would not comment specifically on widespread reports of a Microsoft deal but said the telecommunications giant would not agree to exclusive relationships in any such deal. ''We will not have a discussion or transaction that would be exclusive,'' he said in a conference call with analysts. ''There will be no exclusivity.'' But analysts said the investment would ensure that Microsoft's struggling Windows CE operating system will be installed on millions of television set-top boxes that will be deployed in coming years. And it would pave the way for more sales of more Microsoft software for personal computers and back-end servers as well as increased distribution of its Internet content. ''While the PC is not going away, we are fast entering a new era in which other delivery vehicles become at least as important if not more important, and Microsoft is at least guaranteeing they're going to be a big player in that game,'' said Richard Shaffer of Technologic Partners. Microsoft gained $1.06 in Nasdaq trading to close at $79.125, while AT&T, which earlier cut a deal to win control of cable operator MediaOne Group Inc., rose $5.25 to close at $56.81 on the New York Stock Exchange. Microsoft, which has a cash hoard of more than $21 billion, has been accelerating its spending on cable television since it invested $1 billion in No. 3 provider Comcast Corp. (Nasdaq:CMCSA - news) in 1997, its biggest investment to date. Last week Microsoft emerged as a kingmaker in the battle for control of MediaOne but ultimately came down on the side of AT&T, elbowing aside rival suitor Comcast. Any investment by Microsoft in AT&T automatically would trigger a federal review and likely would attract the attention of regulators who believe Microsoft has abused its monopoly position in the market for personal computer software. But given Microsoft's plan to take a relatively small stake of 2 or 3 percent in AT&T, it was unclear whether the deal would be seriously challenged. Earlier Stories

To: Harvey Allen who wrote (23337)	5/7/1999 1:59:00 PM
From: Harvey Allen	Read Replies (3) \| Respond to of 24154

Guru: Engineers Won't Design Next-Gen Systems Norman also singled out 3Com's PalmPilot in support of his thesis. "The most successful handheld computer has the slowest processor. The reason Palm is a winner is because it uses trailing-edge technology and minimal features. "Two AA batteries lasting more than a month and a shape fitting into a shirt pocket at low cost was the overriding philosophy," Norman said. The designers, he said, did not let themselves get distracted by trying to add extra features. techweb.com

To: Harvey Allen who wrote (23337)	5/13/1999 10:20:00 PM
From: Rusty Johnson	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 24154

Commentary: One Year Later, It's the Same Old Microsoft Business Week Online A year ago, when the Justice Dept. sued Microsoft Corp. and accused it of smothering competition, the company fired back that the software industry was as vibrant as ever--and in no need of government policing. Microsoft MSFT has even more of that ammo today. America Online Inc.'s AOL acquisition of Netscape Communications Corp. NSCP gives it a huge lead in the Web-portal business. Linux, a freebie operating system, is rapidly gaining popularity. And Windows 2000, an update for corporations, is two years late--providing openings for Sun Microsystems Inc. SUNW and Novell Inc. NOVL. ''You look at what's happened over the past 12 months and wonder if this case is even relevant anymore,'' says a Microsoft spokesman. HIGH GLOSS. That's good spin. But it conveniently glosses over the essential fact: Microsoft still dominates the biggest chunks of the PC-software business--and that's where the government's case is focused. The company has an 87% share of PC operating systems and more than 90% of the market for productivity applications such as word processors and spreadsheets. While some big PC makers have started shipping Linux as an alternative to Windows, Microsoft still enjoys a virtual lock on the market. That's why PC prices have dropped by nearly 50% in the past two years while the price for Windows has held firm. At the same time, Microsoft is gaining in the Web-browser market. It now has 43.8% of the U.S. market to Netscape's 41.5%--vs. 38.9% to Netscape's 50.5% at the end of 1997, according to market researcher International Data Corp. Most observers say Microsoft's gains come from building the browser into Windows 98 and restrictive distribution deals Microsoft wrote with Internet service providers--actions that got it into trouble in the first place. James L. Barksdale, former CEO of Netscape, says he agreed to merge with AOL to save his company and that his deal and other changes in the industry have no bearing on misdeeds for which Microsoft should still pay. ''I don't have to die for them to be guilty of attempted murder,'' he says. Microsoft doesn't seem to have mellowed much since the trial began. On May 10, the company invested $600 million in Nextel Communications Inc. NXTL in exchange for links from Nextel's wireless data customers to a version of Microsoft's MSN Web portal. Nextel had a deal with Netscape's Netcenter portal--but dropped out when Microsoft bought in. The Nextel deal came just one week after Microsoft agreed to invest $5 billion of its $22 billion cash hoard in AT&T, partly to convince AT&T to use its software in TV set-top boxes. ''In the new markets, they're buying extra seats at the table,'' notes James Balderston, director of Zona Research Inc. As if Microsoft needed an extra seat anywhere. With its WebTV Networks Inc. unit, it's the early leader in providing Internet via TV. Its Windows CE operating system for handheld computing devices is catching up with 3Com's Palm Pilot. IDC expects Win CE to take the lead in 2000, with a 34.6% market share vs. Palm's 28.5%. It all adds up to a more formidable Microsoft--ready to take full advantage of its cash and PC-software clout to gain a foothold in promising new markets. The government's case is as relevant today as ever. By Steve Hamm