|
|
Enron Mail |
| http://tm0.com/thestandard/sbct.cgi?s=64349541&;i=284790&d=734097 |
===================================================================== THE INDUSTRY STANDARD'S M E D I A G R O K A Review of Press Coverage of the Internet Economy ===================================================================== =-=-=-=-=-= ADVERTISEMENT =-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Keep your ebusiness from being roadkill, see interBiz. http://interbiz.ca.com/redirect.cfm?ID=91 =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Wednesday, December 13, 2000 TOP GROKS: * Microsoft Case Settled! No, the Other One * Hackers Get Final Y2K Jollies * You Can't Always Get What You Want MORE NEWS: * Online Trading Evolves /=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= advertisement =-=-=\ Manage the content that drives e-commerce! Get to market quickly and deliver targeted, up-to-date Web content. NCompass Resolution makes it easy. Learn all about it at our next Web seminar. http://www.ncompasslabs.com/default.htm?NLCODE=IS1 \=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=/ TOP GROKS ~~~~~~~~~ Microsoft Case Settled! No, the Other One Some former Microsoft "permatemps" will have a little extra dough to pay off their holiday Visa bills. Microsoft will pay about $97 million to compensate 8,000 to 12,000 long-term temporary employees for the stock-purchase plan they never had. A spate of outlets ran the AP's coverage, including the allegation that Microsoft's employment practices "once allowed employees to be classified as temporary for as long as 14 years." (Temporary in the Buddhist, "all is transitory" way, we assume). The average assignment was 10 months, MS spokesperson Matt Pilla told Reuters. MS officials also insisted that many temps don't want to go on payroll, since they like the flexibility of temping and sometimes the pay is better. The Washington Post and AP got some anecdotal evidence from former MS temps who argue that most temps would rather be officially hired. As for the money, "How many stories have you ever seen about high-tech contractors retiring at 35 because they made millions of dollars?" a former two-year temp asked the AP. "If I had had access to what everyone else had, I would be in the same financial situation as a number of friends who are already retired," another former temp complained to TechWeb. Not that this is all about the bucks, some former permatemps said: Microsoft hurt their feelings. They "had to wear orange badges, while regular employees wore blue badges" and couldn't go to office parties or shop at the discounted company store, said the New York Times. Nor could they use the corporate health club, added the Washington Post's writers, who also mentioned how much the temps hated those symbolic orange badges. "This dichotomy of treatment was a thorn in your side," one disgruntled former temp told the San Jose Mercury News. "You were trying to get your job done and constantly feeling like a second-class citizen." Sounds like the way most Microsoft techies probably went through junior high. To get a better sense of the eight-year legal wrangling surrounding this case, peruse the New York Times, the Washington Post and the Seattle Times. Basically, it comes down to this: Legal eagles say it's not nice to employ people for more than a year and not let them into the stock purchase plan, but temps are on their own for health insurance. Microsoft got the hint in the mid-'90s, told contractors to take at least 100 days off after sticking around for 12 months, let about 3,000 employees trade their orange badges for blue ones, and hooked up with temp agencies that provide good benefits. So maybe MS temps get that health insurance after all, but "the company still doesn't give temporary workers the right to purchase its stock at a discount," said the Merc. Several outlets stressed the importance of this case to high-tech and the business world in general, but the Seattle Times found a contrarian. "One thing that has been noteworthy is there haven't been a large number of cases that have been filed (in the wake of the Microsoft case)," said the general counsel of the American Staffing Association. Nor will the case have "a material impact on our results," said MS spokesman Matt Pilla. That $97 million won't make a dent, but they can't let their contractors into the company store? - Jen Muehlbauer Microsoft Settles Temp Lawsuits (AP) http://tm0.com/thestandard/sbct.cgi?s=64349541&;i=284790&d=734100 Microsoft Settles 'Permatemp' Suits http://tm0.com/thestandard/sbct.cgi?s=64349541&;i=284790&d=734101 Microsoft Settles With 'Permatemps' http://tm0.com/thestandard/sbct.cgi?s=64349541&;i=284790&d=734102 Microsoft Temp Workers Win Suit http://tm0.com/thestandard/sbct.cgi?s=64349541&;i=284790&d=734103 (Registration required.) Temp Workers Win Big Against Microsoft http://tm0.com/thestandard/sbct.cgi?s=64349541&;i=284790&d=734104 Microsoft, Temps Agree on $96.9 Million Payment http://tm0.com/thestandard/sbct.cgi?s=64349541&;i=284790&d=734105 $97 Million for Microsoft 'Permatemp' Staffers http://tm0.com/thestandard/sbct.cgi?s=64349541&;i=284790&d=734106 --------------------------------------------------------------------- Hackers Get Final Y2K Jollies The year that started with widespread paranoia and uneasiness seems poised to end that way, too. As if wobbly tech companies weren't enough to make everyone nervous, hackers have come out to play. In the "clich,s come to life" department, a hacker stole a database of credit card numbers from Creditcard.com and posted the numbers online. Creditcards.com, a b-to-b site that helps Web retailers accept credit card payments, told ZDNet the hacker did his deed on Monday. The company told MSNBC, however, that the suspect broke in four months ago and has been trying to extort Creditcards.com ever since. That wasn't the only communications mix-up: The firm never told its customers about the breach. Creditcards.com also claimed that there was no evidence of credit card fraud, but MSNBC "was able to find a potential victim within a few moments of seeing the database" - an Illinois woman billed for $350 worth of WWF merchandise en route to the Philippines. Here's a washcloth, Creditcards.com. You've got some egg on your face. In a less serious but equally embarrassing prank, a naughty photo or two appeared on the Web site of Japan's National Police Agency. "At this point, nothing has been concluded, only that it was not caused by a virus," an NPA spokesperson told the AP. There's no evidence of a break-in, said Japan's Daily Yomiuri, so maybe visitors were just redirected to a bogus site. Nobody can agree on what sorts of revealing photos were used, let alone the technical details. Worry about a hack attack at the University of Washington Medical Center - reported as early as Saturday in the Washington Post, Seattle Times, and Wall Street Journal - ought to get new life from a piece in Tuesday's USA Today. Not only can a successful hacker download confidential medical information, said writer Greg Farrell, "medical records are a veritable treasure trove for those who would make the patients victims of identity theft." Yet another hazard of the U.S. health-care system. Finally, Business Week regaled its executive readership with tales of embittered employees taking revenge via malicious hacking. "Insider hacking" causes $1 billion in damage to U.S. businesses each year, said Business Week's Dennis Blank, and represents 70 percent of all attacks. Maybe Microsoft should be glad its disgruntled permatemps only sued. - Jen Muehlbauer CreditCards.com Database Stolen http://tm0.com/thestandard/sbct.cgi?s=64349541&;i=284790&d=734107 Extortionist Targets Creditcards.com http://tm0.com/thestandard/sbct.cgi?s=64349541&;i=284790&d=734108 Hacker Puts Nude Photo on Japanese Police Web Site (AP) http://tm0.com/thestandard/sbct.cgi?s=64349541&;i=284790&d=734109 Hacker Modifies NPA-Operated Site http://tm0.com/thestandard/sbct.cgi?s=64349541&;i=284790&d=734110 Medical Records Vulnerable to ID Theft http://tm0.com/thestandard/sbct.cgi?s=64349541&;i=284790&d=734111 When the Hacker Is on the Inside http://tm0.com/thestandard/sbct.cgi?s=64349541&;i=284790&d=734112 /=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= advertisement =-=-=\ ARE YOU READY FOR KNOWLEDGE-BASED MARKETING? Primary Knowledge provides outsourced data warehousing and business intelligence tools that help you focus on your most valuable customers. We aggregate isolated silos of online data, giving you a fuller picture of your customers. And, every morning, you are GUARANTEED access to current intelligence and data analysis tools. So you can make decisions based on knowledge. http://www.primaryknowledge.com?a=007008008 \=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=/ You Can't Always Get What You Want Is that Wednesday's news theme for everyone but George Bush? Al Gore is the most obvious choice to lead the disappointed, but techies coming up short include Compaq and Razorfish (earnings warnings) and Ask Jeeves (layoffs). Then there are those wireless licenses, the auction of which produced a frenzy of interest and money in Europe but stateside are much more modest affairs, and that's a disappointment for the FCC. Reporters have grown to love funky auction stories, what with online sales of body organs and Nazi doodads on eBay. The high-priced bids on wireless licenses, however, seem to make the media's eyes glaze over. The Wall Street Journal reminded that wireless-license auctions raised $30 billion in the U.K. and $40 billion-plus in Germany. The U.S. auction, which kicked off Tuesday, is estimated to churn up a mere $15 billion to $20 billion, and a Credit Suisse First Boston analyst told the Journal that $12 billion sounds more likely. Part of the problem is that no one seems to quite get what's going on. The Bloomberg posting on News.com helpfully explained that carriers are using the auction to get additional airwaves to fill gaps in coverage, especially in major metropolitan areas. The Journal chimed in (eventually) that wireless companies need the airwaves to beef up their coverage and reduce the number of pesky dropped calls. That's why, of the 422 licenses covering 195 local markets, the hottest action was for hopping markets such as New York, Los Angeles and Chicago. So far the total bids are up to $501.2 million after two rounds, the FCC told outlets. The highest bids have been $38.2 million each by Sprint and DCC PCS, a subsidiary of Dobson Communications, for licenses in New York City. L.A. was runner-up, with Salmon and Verizon both bidding $25.5 million for licenses in that market. The Financial Times blamed the absence "of ruinously expensive spectrum auctions" on this side of the Atlantic on "the relative backwardness of mobile telephony in the U.S." The pricey auctions in Europe have been for fancy 3G wireless licenses, while the U.S. is still peddling local markets. Expect "a proper 3G auction" to follow here in two years, the peach paper wrote. A jump in third-quarter churn rates among telco companies signals that competition is starting to bite, the Lex Column warned. The high-priced "auction risk" remains, Lex warned, but don't expect much. Even if you try sometimes, you still won't get what you need. - Deborah Asbrand Wireless Companies Bid $501.2 Million In First Two Rounds of U.S. Auction http://tm0.com/thestandard/sbct.cgi?s=64349541&;i=284790&d=734114 (Paid subscription required.) Verizon, Cingular Are Top Bidders in Opening Day for Airwaves (Bloomberg) http://tm0.com/thestandard/sbct.cgi?s=64349541&;i=284790&d=734115 F.C.C. Wireless Auction Nets $501 Million on First Day (Reuters) http://tm0.com/thestandard/sbct.cgi?s=64349541&;i=284790&d=734116 (Registration required.) US Tightens Auction Rules http://tm0.com/thestandard/sbct.cgi?s=64349541&;i=284790&d=734117 Lex: US Wireless http://tm0.com/thestandard/sbct.cgi?s=64349541&;i=284790&d=734118 Telcel Loses Auction Bid http://tm0.com/thestandard/sbct.cgi?s=64349541&;i=284790&d=734119 /=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= advertisement =-=-=\ NEW PRODUCTS AND SEMINARS FROM HEWLETT PACKARD Hewlett Packard's thinking ahead. Are you? See what's on the horizon and what it'll mean to your business in arenas like e-services, Always-On Infrastructure, and Internet appliances. For the calendar of events regarding New Product Introductions and other details about hp's services, go to: http://www.mmtrack.net/m/s.asp?H2655997803X931346 \=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=/ MORE NEWS AT THESTANDARD.COM ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Online Trading Evolves http://tm0.com/thestandard/sbct.cgi?s=64349541&;i=284790&d=734121 CenterSpan Scoops Up Scour for $9 Million http://tm0.com/thestandard/sbct.cgi?s=64349541&;i=284790&d=734122 Microsoft Pushes Into $20 Billion Videogame Market http://tm0.com/thestandard/sbct.cgi?s=64349541&;i=284790&d=734123 B-to-B Becomes Essential, Study Says http://tm0.com/thestandard/sbct.cgi?s=64349541&;i=284790&d=734124 FTC Chairman Has Misgivings on AOL Deal http://tm0.com/thestandard/sbct.cgi?s=64349541&;i=284790&d=734125 --------------------------------------------------------------------- MORE LINKS ~~~~~~~~~~ Compaq Cuts 4Q, 2001 Expectations http://tm0.com/thestandard/sbct.cgi?s=64349541&;i=284790&d=734126 Razorfish Shares Fall Sharply in After-Hours Trading http://tm0.com/thestandard/sbct.cgi?s=64349541&;i=284790&d=734127 180 Workers At Ask Jeeves Get Pink Slips http://tm0.com/thestandard/sbct.cgi?s=64349541&;i=284790&d=734128 CenterSpan, With Intel Backing, Wins Scour Bankruptcy Auction http://tm0.com/thestandard/sbct.cgi?s=64349541&;i=284790&d=734129 IBM to Pump $1 Billion Into Linux Next Year to Push Commercial Use http://tm0.com/thestandard/sbct.cgi?s=64349541&;i=284790&d=734130 (Paid subscription required.) AOL May Be Contender in Purchase of DirecTV http://tm0.com/thestandard/sbct.cgi?s=64349541&;i=284790&d=734131 King's E-Book: It's Alive! http://tm0.com/thestandard/sbct.cgi?s=64349541&;i=284790&d=734132 Will the Real Y2K Stand Up? http://tm0.com/thestandard/sbct.cgi?s=64349541&;i=284790&d=734133 Airlines Surf Web for Evidence Of Plans for More Job Actions http://tm0.com/thestandard/sbct.cgi?s=64349541&;i=284790&d=734134 (Paid subscription required.) TRUSTe to Audit Health Sites http://tm0.com/thestandard/sbct.cgi?s=64349541&;i=284790&d=734135 STAFF ~~~~~ Written by Deborah Asbrand (dasbrand@world.std.com), Keith Dawson (dawson@world.std.com), Michelle Goldberg (michelle@shift.com), Jen Muehlbauer (jen@englishmajor.com) and David Sims (davesims@sonic.net). Edited by Jimmy Guterman (guterman@vineyard.com). Copyedited by Jim Duffy (jduffy@thestandard.com). GET THE MAGAZINE ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 4 RISK-FREE issues at this URL: http://tm0.com/thestandard/sbct.cgi?s=64349541&;i=284790&d=734136 GET MORE NEWSLETTERS ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The Industry Standard newsletters cover the media, stock market, e-commerce, music, law and more. Enter your e-mail address at the following URL and select the newsletters you wish to receive: http://tm0.com/thestandard/sbct.cgi?s=64349541&;i=284790&d=734137 To UNSUBSCRIBE to any newsletters, log in at the following URL and select the newsletters you wish to cancel: http://tm0.com/thestandard/sbct.cgi?s=64349541&;i=284790&d=734138 GET MORE NEWS ~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Go to http://tm0.com/thestandard/sbct.cgi?s=64349541&;i=284790&d=734097 for more coverage on the Internet Economy. Media Grok does not review stories from any IDG publication, but includes relevant links to TheStandard.com and IDG.net. ADVERTISING INFORMATION ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ For more information on advertising in The Industry Standard Newsletters, contact: West Coast Connie Elliott (mailto:celliott@thestandard.com) East Coast Norma Wesolowski (mailto:normaw@thestandard.com) FEEDBACK AND PROBLEMS ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Send letters to the editor to letters@thestandard.com. Please contact us with any problems that arise. http://tm0.com/thestandard/sbct.cgi?s=64349541&;i=284790&d=734139 You can also contact us via phone or mail: The Industry Standard, Customer Service (402) 293-0386 (phone) (402) 293-0794 (fax) The Industry Standard, Production 315 Pacific Ave. San Francisco, CA 94111 (415) 733-5400 (main) (415) 733-5401 (fax) Copyright 2000 The Industry Standard
|