Cisco Government Affairs E-Update

Volume 1, Issue 13
11 May 2001
Brought to you by Cisco Government Affairs Online: www.cisco.com/gov

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This Week@Cisco in Government Affairs

CISCO@INTERNATIONAL

GERMAN UNBUNDLED ACCESS TO LOCAL LOOP: The German Federal Administrative Court has decided that Deutsche Telekom is obligated to provide unbundled access to its local loop. Telekom had brought an action against an order by the German Regulatory Authority which had instructed Telekom to offer fully unbundled access. The Court held that this requirement was justified under the Telecommunications Act, in the interest of opening the telecommunications market.

VOTING ONLINE IN GERMANY - German authorities have announced that some citizens there will be able to vote online by 2006. The government is moving cautiously, however, and has stressed that it is more important for voting to be reliable and secure, than it is to have a speedy introduction of online voting.  Reuters reports that Interior Minister Otto Schily said it is possible that any German could vote from any Web-enabled computer by 2010. By 2006, voters will be able to vote from electronic polling stations anywhere in the country instead of their own constituency, and some may be able to vote via the Internet.  The city of Bremen in Germany is leading the charge for online voting and hopes to have it in place before 2006. Internet voting has already been used during internal elections in some German universities. http://dailynews.yahoo.com/h/nm/20010503/wr/germany_voting_dc_1.html

DIRECTOR OF GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS LAURA IPSEN met this week with officials from the Swedish Courts Administration and discussed Cisco, the Internet Economy and broadband buildout.  The Swedish officials reported that their roads are getting dug up for fiber for high-speed broadband access.

EU GOOD PRACTICE IN E-COMMERCE: The Commission gathered together for the last time under the e-confidence initiative stakeholders to draw conclusions on general principles as a agreed basis for good practice in e-commerce in order to tackle the so called e-confidence barrier. http://europa.eu.int/rapid/start/cgi/guesten.ksh?p_action.gettxt=gt&doc=MEMO/01/148|0|RAPID&lg=EN

EU TASK FORCE FOR NEXT GENERATION OF THE INTERNET PROTOCOL: The Commission hosted the first meeting of a European industry-led Task Force established to develop a comprehensive action plan by the end of 2001 to ensure the timely availability of the next generation of the Internet protocol (Internet Protocol version 6 or IPv6) as called for by the Stockholm Summit. The Task Force is comprised of senior executives broadly representing all key industrial and research sectors affected by IPv6, including European ISPs, telecom operators, mobile operators, equipment supply industries, research networks, and key "application" sectors.

http://europa.eu.int/rapid/start/cgi/guesten.ksh?p_action.gettxt=gt&doc=IP/01/591|0|RAPID&lg=EN

EU E-EUROPE AN INFORMATION SOCIETY FOR ALL SPEECH: EU Commissioner Erkki Liikanen made a speech in Dublin entitled "eEurope - An information society for all". The major themes of eEurope are the completion of the EU telecoms liberalisation process; the need for social inclusiveness in the information age; the development of on-line services in areas of public interest; the search for the right balance between regulation and self-regulation and finally assessment of Europe s position in the information society.

http://europa.eu.int/rapid/start/cgi/guesten.ksh?p_action.gettxt=gt&doc=SPEECH/01/180|0|RAPID&lg=EN

PROPOSAL FOR A DECISION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL ON A REGULATORY FRAMEWORK FOR RADIO SPECTRUM POLICY IN THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITY - http://europa.eu.int/eur-lex/en/dat/2001/c_123/c_12320010425en00610064.pdf (Adobe Reader Required)

THE CHINESE MOBILE DATA MARKET - China is expected to become the world's largest mobile phone market. Eddie Cheung forecasts what the future will hold for the industry.

http://www.emarketer.com/analysis/easia/20010501_asia.html?ref=wn

BROADBAND IN AUSTRALIA - Don't give up on the high-speed internet market in Australia. Though it's gotten a slow start, Broadband analyst Ben Macklin says the industry should be sizeable by 2005. http://www.emarketer.com/analysis/broadband/20010501_bband.html?ref=wn

EGOVERNMENT SAVINGS IN AUSTRALIA - Australian government departments and agencies are set to save up to AUD300 million this year by moving services online. http://www.nua.ie/surveys/index.cgi?f=VS&art_id=905356712&rel=true

EUROPEAN E-COMMERCE BARRIERS - While there are countless factors playing into why European e-commerce lags behind the US, analyst Nevin Cohen is most alarmed by the disparity in IT investments. http://www.emarketer.com/analysis/eeurope/20010502_europe.html?ref=wn

IDC RESEARCH: EUROPEAN ECOMMERCE STILL HEALTHY - The number of Internet users in Europe will grow to 233 million by the end of 2004, up from 117 million at the end of last year, according to IDC. These figures represent 30 percent and almost 60 percent of the total European population, respectively. http://www.nua.ie/surveys/index.cgi?f=VS&art_id=905356721&rel=true

ALTERNATIVE BROADBAND TECHNOLOGIES IN LATIN AMERICA - Where there's a WLL, there's a way for internet users in Latin America to make high-speed internet connections. Noah Elkin shows that wireless local loop (WLL) is the most prolific alternative technology in the region.

http://www.emarketer.com/analysis/elatin_america/20010503_latam.html?ref=wn

NTL AOL MAY OPEN EURO DOORS FOR AOL - NTL, Britain's largest cable operator, is in early stages of talks with AOL Time Warner about a potential European partnership. NTL would provide the broadband network and AOL would contribute the content.

http://www.emarketer.com/estatnews/enews/reuters/04_30_2001.rwntz-story-bcnetmediantldc.html?ref=wn

POLAND LONG DISTANCE OPERATORS MAY COMPETE BY JULY 2001: A representative of the Polish government has recently announced that the government intends to take steps necessary to allow licensed long-distance operators to start competing with the incumbent operator - TP S.A. as early as by the end of July of this year. The representative further announced that the Polish telecom regulations should be further liberalised by the end of this year; the government should also submit the proposed new legislation on radio and television for approval by the Parliament. The announcement was made in response to recent reservations about the status of the liberalisation of the Polish telecom market as expressed by the European Commission.

MALAYSIAN ’NET POPULATION SET TO GROW - Malaysia had an internet penetration rate of 14% in 2000, according to IDC estimates. The nation had more than 2 million internet users that year, a figure that is expected to climb to over 3 million in 2001 and 6 million in 2005. 68% of the online population is male and the vast majority (84.7%) is between the ages of 19 and 34.

CONNECTIVITY PLANS IN THE UK - According to the "UK Online: The Broadband Future," a 13-point action plan from the UK government, there are 35,000 asymmetrical digital subscriber line (ADSL) connections in the UK -- a paltry amount in comparison to Germany's 500,000. The report predicts, however, that more than 50% of the UK population will have broadband access by 2003 (via ADSL or cable modem). The government will put GBP 30 million toward the implementation of the plan.

YANKEE GROUP: ECOMMERCE THRIVING IN SOUTH KOREA - Consumer confidence is soaring in South Korea as the country rebounds from the economic crisis of 1997, and this bodes well for ecommerce there.  http://www.nua.ie/surveys/index.cgi?f=VS&art_id=905356724&rel=true

BROADBAND GROWTH IN CHILE - A Yankee Group report projects the number of broadband connections in Chile to nearly triple during 2001 from 23,000 to 61,000. That figure should reach 114,000 by 2002, the research firm estimates. Chilean businesses, which had a total of just 4,000 broadband connections at the end of 2000, should account for much of the growth -- the report finds that 10,000 companies are potential users in the immediate future.

CHINA'S VOIP MARKET GROWS, GOVERNMENT RELAXES PRICING RULES - The Chinese VoIP market is becoming an increasingly lucrative prospect for foreign service providers, according to new research from Frost & Sullivan. Although there are only six players, government attitudes to competition seem to be relaxing.  The China Internet Telephony Services and Equipment report shows 1.785 billion minutes of VoIP traffic were carried during the year 2000, primarily by state-owned incumbent China Telecom, and this figure is projected to grow 455.5% during this year to 9.913 billion minutes.  (Total Telecom)

SHOPPING NORTH OF THE BORDER - AC Nielson data reveals that Canadian internet users are becoming increasingly comfortable shopping online. In 1996, only 11% had made at least one purchase over the web. By 1999 that figure was up to 25%, jumping to 31% in 2000.

CISCO@WASHINGTON, DC

The House Energy and Commerce Committee voted 32-23 to approve the bill at the end of a contentious, daylong debate, overriding objections that it would undermine competition in the recently deregulated telecommunications market.  The bill would remove hurdles for large local ``Baby Bell'' phone companies like Verizon Communications and SBC Communications Inc seeking to offer high-speed, or ``broadband,'' Internet services, a market valued at $30 billion.  Opponents said the bill would allow the Baby Bells to shut out independent telephone and Internet carriers that need to piggyback on the Bells' existing networks to reach their customers.

http://dailynews.yahoo.com/h/nm/20010509/pl/telecom_broadband_house_dc_1.html

http://www.thestandard.com/article/0,1902,24373,00.html

PRESIDENT BUSH FAVORS EXTENDING BAN ON NEW INTERNET TAXES -

http://digitalmass.boston.com/dailynews/128/technology/Bush_Favors_Extending_Ban_on_N:.shtml

THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT NEEDS TO STOP DANCING AROUND THE INTERNET AND EMBRACE IT FULLY, said a pair of U.S. senators, and they've introduced a bill to move the process ahead. http://www.zdnet.com/intweek/stories/news/0,4164,2715606,00.html

TECHNET, HIGH-TECH’S POLITICAL ARM, THIS WEEK SENT A LETTER TO U.S. SENATE LEADERSHIP REQUESTING A PERMANENT EXTENSION OF THE R&D TAX CREDIT.   From the letter: “A permanent R&D Tax Credit will be a valuable tool to ensure America's technological and economic leadership.  In this time of slowed economic growth, it is imperative that we as a nation reinvest in policies that will ensure our economy continues to prosper, create high-skilled, well-paying American jobs and maintain our international competitiveness.  The continued growth of our economy is predicated on the ability of companies to make a sustained commitment to long-term research and development.”

SCHOOLS AND LIBRARIES – UPDATE ON E-RATE FUNDING FROM THE GAO - http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d01672.pdf (Adobe Reader Required)

THE CISCO NETWORKING ACADEMY PROGRAM WILL BE FEATURED AT THE U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION'S May Satellite Town Meeting - Bell Multicultural High School in Washington, D.C. and Gene Longo, Domestic Fields Operations Manager for the Cisco Networking Academy Program will participate in the panel discussion with Elliot Soloway, Professor of Education and Electrical Engineering & Computer Science at the University of Michigan and Sister Jennie Lechtenberg, Founder & Director of the Puente Learning Center in Los Angeles at the U.S. Department of Education’s Satellite Town Meeting, "Enhancing Education Through Technology:  New Tools to Close the Achievement Gap," Tuesday, May 15, 2001 - 8:00 to 9:00 p.m. (EST)  For further information go to: http://www.cisco.com/warp/public/779/edu/commitment/edu_internet_economy/

CISCO@US STATES

Internet Voting in New Jersey?  http://www.southjerseynews.com/electupgrade/index.html

Wearable computer systems, broadband indoor wireless access, and voice input interfaces. No, it's not the latest gadgets and technology being discussed around water coolers in Silicon Valley, it's just a few of the exciting and innovative technologies being researched in Pennsylvania. http://www.digitalgreenhouse.com/nletter_3.html

E-GOVERNMENT FUNDING STAYS IN WISCONSIN BUDGET - http://www.jsonline.com/news/state/may01/joint05050401.asp

LONGER SCHOOL YEAR FOR MIDDLE SCHOOL PROPOSED BY CALIFORNIA GOVERNOR DAVIS – some argue that longer school year would help U.S. be more competitive in science and math - http://www.latimes.com/news/state/20010507/t000038487.html

EXCELLENT COVERAGE OF THE UNITED STATES'S EDUCATION SYSTEM IN NYTIMES.com/educationlife, the quarterly educational supplement.  http://www.nytimes.com/library/national/040801ed-index.html?0507ep (free registration required)

Q1 ONLINE SPENDING IN US INCREASES - eShopping is a feeling...and 13.5 million US households expressed that feeling by spending $3.5 billion online in March 2001.

http://www.emarketer.com/estatnews/estats/ecommerce_b2c/20010502_forr_green_index.html?ref=wn

ONLINE RETAIL REVENUES RISE IN NORTH AMERICA - The online retail market in North America will rise from $44.5 billion in 2000 to over $65 billion in 2001, representing a 46% jump.

http://www.emarketer.com/estatnews/estats/ecommerce_b2c/20010503_bcg_shop.html?ref=wn

BROADBAND APPEAL - In an April 2001 TNS Intersearch study, just 18% of households in the US reported having broadband connections, but an additional 13% said they planned to subscribe in the next six months.  Respondents gave a variety of reasons for why they had yet to sign-up for broadband service -- 22% said it was too expensive, 15% said it was not available in their area, 5% felt it was too complicated and 4% did not have the proper equipment.

U.S. AND STATE GOVERNMENT AGENCIES ARE INCREASINGLY TURNING TO INTERNET AUCTION LEADER EBAY TO SELL SURPLUS GOODS OF ALL KINDS -

http://www.ecommercetimes.com/perl/printer/9288/

E-MICHIGAN, THE STATE'S COMPREHENSIVE E-GOVERNMENT AGENCY, has been

proclaimed a success by Gov. John Engler, who wants to increase funding for the agency by another $12 million on top of the $23.2 million given at its inception a year ago. Michigan was one of the first states to catch on to the cross-agency model of E-Government, based on the idea that the Internet can facilitate citizen interaction with the government as well as cut costs.

E-FILING SAVES TIME, MONEY - Massachusetts makes a bold statement, right on the front of its 2000 tax forms. The commonwealth has tagged them with this question: “Would you like

to throw this form away?”  Bob Nevins, the Revenue Department’s Research and Development Division Commissioner, said the question promotes WebFile, a new online tax filing

system. http://www.gcn.com/state/vol7_no4/news/1021-1.html

ARE DEBIT CARDS KEY TO E-GOV?  - Citing credit cards and convenience fees as a barrier to the growth of e-government, Massachusetts’ chief information officer supports debit cards as an alternative. http://www.civic.com/civic/articles/2001/0423/web-debit-04-26-01.asp

TAKING ON THE 'DIGITAL DIVIDE' - The Boston Foundation has announced plans for a five-year, multimillion-dollar program to fund projects that help close the "digital divide" between haves and have-nots in Greater Boston. http://digitalmass.boston.com/news/daily/05/051101/digital_divide.html

MINNESOTA GOVERNOR VENTURA QUESTIONS LAMA ON `CADDYSHACK' BUT LEADER HAD NOT SEEN FILM - http://www.pioneerplanet.com/news/mtc_docs/040547.htm

SITE OF THE WEEK –  H Con Res 83 – U.S. Budget

The Senate approved a budget of nearly $2 trillion for the next fiscal year today and in so doing endorsed President Bush's general goals of reducing taxes and cutting back on federal spending.

http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/D?c107:5:./temp/~c107MKabiz:: (you have to include the two colons in order for URL to work)

GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS HIGH TECH COMMUNITY

Issue of the week: Broadband Deployment - Add your thoughts at Cisco’s High Tech Community - http://forums.cisco.com/cgi-bin/Community/HtCom?page=main.

FACTS AND STATS OF THE WEEK:

BAD ECONOMY OR NO BAD ECONOMY, TECH SPENDING IS NECESSARY - Gartner dataquest predicts that worldwide spending on information technology (IT) services will hit $1.4 trillion by 2005. Gartner reports that $665.87 billion was spent in 2000 and estimates that the growth rate for 2001 will be 12.1%. Gartner mentions that the Asia Pacific region will represent the biggest chunk of IT spending with $124.8 billion spent by 2005.

WIRELESS WORKERS DEMAND MOBILE email - UK consulting firm BWCS released a study, "Wireless in the Enterprise," that said businesses in the US and Europe will soon have a high demand for continuous access to mobile e-mail services. BWCS predicts that corporate use of mobile e-mail will generate $8 billion in revenue globally by 2006, with 75% of all corporate wireless subscribers transmitting e-mail through mobile devices.

ASIAN WEB USE TO SKYROCKET - The number of internet users in the Asia Pacific region (excluding Japan) will climb from 64 million in 2000 to more than 240 million in 2005, according to the International Data Corporation. By that year, over 72% of all users in the region will come from China, Korea and India. The total number of Asia Pacific users will exceed that of the US in 2005, despite a projected penetration rate of less than 9%.

For more Facts and Stats on the New Economy, visit our Facts and Stats page.  Also, see our special State of the Internet report on this page.

For daily, topical Facts and Stats visit our Hot In Tech page.

TECH NEWS STORIES OF THE WEEK

BRITAIN'S OXFORD UNIVERSITY SAYS IT WILL CREATE THE WORLD'S FIRST INSTITUTE DEDICATED TO STUDYING THE INTERNET.  The Oxford Internet Institute, set up at a cost of $22 million, will carry out research and make policy recommendations about what effects the Internet has on society.  http://dailynews.yahoo.com/h/nm/20010506/wr/britain_university_dc_4.html

YAHOO TO CHARGE FOR NET PHONE CALLS - http://dailynews.yahoo.com/h/cn/20010507/tc/yahoo_charges_for_net_phone_calls_1.html

EARTHLINK'S SATELLITE 'NET ACCESS BLASTS OFF - By launching its high-speed satellite internet access service, EarthLink propels itself into markets where cable and DSL access are unavailable. http://www.emarketer.com/estatnews/enews/reuters/05_01_2001.rwntz-story-bcnettechearthlinkdc.html?ref=wn

HANDHELDS TO BE HARVARD MEDICAL STUDENTS' FIRST ASSIST - http://digitalmass.boston.com/news/daily/05/050701/fast_forward.html

GETTING UP ON THE DOWNLOADS IN THE US - Everybody's getting up on music downloads in the US -- 30 million adult internet users in the US downloaded music in February 2001

http://www.emarketer.com/estatnews/estats/edemographics/20010501_music_down_pew.html?ref=wn

MOBILE ENTERTAINMENT - As wireless technology improves, mobile entertainment will become a huge business. But just when can consumers expect to be able to download music files, gamble and watch video on a mobile device? Analyst Ben Macklin has the answer.

http://www.emarketer.com/analysis/wireless/20010504_wireless.html?ref=wn

ACROSS THE DIGITAL NATION - Electronic government initiatives are sweeping the nation, rapidly moving from the drawing board to implementation. In many respects, the focus of new

online activity is centered on creating self-service applications to enable customers to complete entire transactions online.  http://www.washingtontechnology.com/news/16_2/state/16419-1.html

U.S. LAGS AS OTHER NATIONS EMBRACE E-GOV - The U.S. government has flocked to E-Government at a snail's pace, argues former Department of Transportation CIO George Molaski. "Our government was tooled and organized for the industrial age," explains Molaski. "If we do not retool for the information age and become the leader in this worldwide movement, we will be left behind like other great powers who did not adapt to the changing universe." Currently the British, Australian, Finnish, and New Zealand governments place E-Government as a higher priority than the U.S. according to Molaski. (Federal Times)

CHINA'S MINISTRY OF EDUCATION PLANS TO OPEN AT LEAST 50 ONLINE COLLEGES BY 2005 and enroll five million students as a way to educate more people.

http://technology.scmp.com/internet/ZZZTY8MKYLC.html (free registration required)

THE EUROPEAN INTERNET IS GROWING EXPLOSIVELY AS CONSUMERS COME ONLINE and embrace e-commerce, mirroring consumer adoption patterns in the United States, according to the first AOL Europe/Roper Starch Cyberstudy.

http://media.aoltimewarner.com/media/press_view.cfm?release_num=55251924

CISCO GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS@2001

Cisco’s top policy focuses for 2001 are the areas of Education, Broadband Deployment and eGovernment.  To read or listen to our thoughts on these issues, please visit our Government Affairs home page or our visit our multimedia section . http://www.cisco.com/gov/multimedia/index.html

E-UPDATE ARCHIVE

To view past issues of Cisco’s Government Affairs E-Update, visit our E-Update Archive page . http://www.cisco.com/gov/archive/eupdates/index.html

DISCLAIMER

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