Cisco Government Affairs E-Update

Volume 1, Issue 6
23 March 2001
Brought to you by Cisco Government Affairs Online: www.cisco.com/gov

This Week@Cisco in Government Affairs

CISCO@INTERNATIONAL

·        This week Cisco hosted the President of the United Mexican States, Vicente Fox, at our world headquarters in San Jose. As this was President Fox's first official visit to the United States, it was noteworthy that he chose to come to Silicon Valley, and to visit Cisco. President Fox said he chose to come to Silicon Valley because it is "the heart, the core of the New Economy." "Cisco was honored to host President Fox," said Laura Ipsen, Cisco's Worldwide Director of Government Affairs. "His focus on broadband deployment as the key to productivity and economic growth will prove him to be a great world leader in this decade."  For more on this story read the full News@Cisco story. http://newsroom.cisco.com/dlls/ts_032201.html

·        President Fox also unveiled this week his plan to bring Internet access to all Mexicans during his six-year term.  Read more about his “e-Mexico” plan here. http://dailynews.yahoo.com/h/nm/20010321/wr/tech_mexico_dc_1.html

·        An IDC report suggests that Mexico needs more business knowledge and help to succeed in the new economy. IDC reports that 52% of companies in Mexico are not familiar with enterprise resource management (ERM) applications. IDC also says that roughly 67% of  Mexican firms do not have any knowledge of supply chain management (SCM) or business intelligence applications and 70% are not familiar with customer relationship management (CRM) applications.

·        A delegation from the Danish government this week heard about Cisco’s experience in e-government and broadband deployment.  The Ministry of Research and Information Technology heard from Cisco’s IBSG group about strategies for government technology success in this new economy. http://www.cisco.com/warp/public/779/ibs/

http://www.cisco.com/gov/people/e_government.html

http://www.cisco.com/gov/networks/broadband_deploy.html

·        Broadband Revolution Coming Slowly To Latin America - Only 3% of Latin America has cable television. eMarketer explains that most of the region may be left out of the broadband revolution in the near future. http://www.emarketer.com/analysis/elatin_america/20010315_bband_latam.html?ref=wn

·        Inauguration of the web site "FUTURUM" - As part of the debate on the future development of the European Union, a new web site; Futurum,  has been developed.  Managed by the Commission, this site will provide a permanent focus for all the initiatives relating to the public debate on the future of Europe over the next three years. Additionally, it will serve as a vehicle to reinforce the Europe-wide dimension of the debate, including in particular an on-going discussion forum open to all citizens of the Union. http://europa.eu.int/futurum/

·        The European Commission has adopted a Communication on the Impact and Priorities of the eEurope 2002 Initiative. The document consists of two parts: benchmarking on the take-up and use of the Internet and priorities for future action, as requested at the Nice Summit in December. http://europa.eu.int/rapid/start/cgi/guesten.ksh?p_action.gettxt=gt&doc=IP/01/362|0|RAPID&lg=EN

·        Maximizing the impact of measures aimed at helping small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to make the most of electronic business opportunities is the key aim of a new European Commission Communication, "GoDigital", recently announced. http://europa.eu.int/ISPO/ecommerce/godigital/

·        The European Commission has approved today a major development program in Greece for 2000-2006, the Operational Program "Information Society". http://europa.eu.int/rapid/start/cgi/guesten.ksh?p_action.gettxt=gt&doc=IP/01/349|0|RAPID&lg=EN

·        The European Union aims to become "the world's most dynamic and competitive knowledge-based economy within 10 years, capable of sustained economic growth with more and better jobs and greater social cohesion". This objective was set by the Heads of State or Government at Lisbon in March 2000.

·        The European Commission (EC) has adopted a report entitled "The Introduction of Third Generation Mobile Communications in the European Union: State of Play and the Way Forward." http://europa.eu.int/ISPO/infosoc/telecompolicy/en/comm-en.htm

·        South Africa Names Digital Divide Task Force - President Thabo Mbeki committed his government to ensuring that the South Africa telecommunications sector does not fall behind the rest of the world, and announced the establishment of two high-profile task teams to assist the government in closing the so-called "digital divide."  Members include: Larry Ellison of Oracle, Carly Fiorina of HP, Esther Dyson of Edventure Holdings, Craig McCaw of Teledisc, Prof. Manuell Castell of University of California, Serge Tchuruk of Alcatel, Rajendra Pawar of NIIT India and

David Potter of Psion.

·        Togo: First VOIP Call Center in Africa - The arrival of Africa's first VOIP call center may have an impact that will send ripples around the continent. The call center could have some collateral effect on the debate over internet-enabled phone calls. VOIP (telephone calls via the internet) is banned in most major African internet markets, notably South Africa.

·        Senegal sets up a Telecoms Ministry - After the "technical reshuffle" of its government announced on February 5 by Prime Minister Moustapha Niasse, Senegal now has a ministry of telecommunications, headed by Mamadou Diop Decroix.

·        Worldwide Internet Usage: Asia-Pacific Tops The Charts - South Koreans and Taiwanese Internet users represent two-thirds of the total number of people with Internet access in Asia-Pacific. http://www.emarketer.com/estatnews/estats/eglobal/20010316_global_usage.html?ref=wn

·        South Korea's Insatiable Appetite For The 'Net - South Korea ranks behind only the US and Canada in terms of broadband potential. eMarketer reports how a supportive government helped foster the national infrastructure. http://www.emarketer.com/analysis/easia/20010316_asia.html?ref=wn

·        The Internet In Ireland - Happy St. Patrick's Day! Internet penetration in Ireland is currently at 27% and cellphone penetration is even larger at 67%. http://www.emarketer.com/estatnews/estats/eglobal/20010316_ireland.html?ref=wn

CISCO@WASHINGTON, DC

·        Commerce Secretary Evans Visits Silicon Valley - Cisco’s worldwide director of Government Affairs Laura Ipsen met with Commerce Secretary Don Evans in Palo Alto, CA this week.  Secretary Evans spoke about the importance of the technology industry to the Bush administration and the economy overall at an event hosted by TechNet.  Secretary Evans talked about the Bush administration’s commitment to get something done on key issues affecting the technology industry, with broadband on top of agenda.  About 40 high-tech executives were in the room, including representatives from Excite@Home, Microsoft and other high-tech companies.  Evans told the group that the tech community has a strong advocate in the Commerce department.  He said business needs to talk to business and government needs to get out of the way.  Besides broadband, other topics discussed included trade, privacy, copyright and energy. http://www.cisco.com/warp/public/779/govtaffs/multimedia/index.html#Ipsen1

·        Cisco Telecommunications Policy Counsel Bruce Mehlman joined other industry leaders from the Information Technology Industry Council in speaking with Members of the House of Representatives Judiciary Committee on new technologies and developments in the Internet.  Bruce delivered a power point presentation on the importance of bringing Broadband Access to all Americans by 2010, highlighting the significance of high speed access to education and business applications and identifying broadband as the single most critical factor to sustained economic growth and productivity acceleration.

http://www.cisco.com/gov/multimedia/index.html#Mehlman

http://www.itic.org/

http://www.house.gov/judiciary/

http://www.cisco.com/gov/networks/broadband_deploy.html

·        Cisco’s Ken Watson was elected President & Chairman of the Partnership for Critical Infrastructure this week, the result of outstanding hard work and ongoing effort to rise to a difficult challenge and lead on a tough issue.

·        Senate Commerce Telecommunications Subcommittee Chairman Conrad Burns (R-MT) endorses Internet Tax Moratorium. http://burns.senate.gov/p010314a.htm

·        FCC Takes Steps To Reallocate And Adopt Service Rules For Television Channels 52-59 http://www.fcc.gov/Bureaus/Wireless/News_Releases/2001/nrwl0109.html

·        News Story - http://www.usatoday.com/life/cyber/tech/review/2001-03-16-dtv.htm

·        FTC to Host Workshop on Emerging Issues for Competition Policy in the E-Commerce Environment - http://www.ftc.gov/opa/2001/03/ecommerce.htm

·        The Internet Caucus Advisory Committee (ICAC) this week held its first policy panel of 2001 -- "E-Government:  Making Government More Accountable and Efficient" Senator Lieberman participated in the forum as well as OMB Deputy Director Sean O'Keefe. http://www.netcaucus.org/

·        DSL Gaining On Cable In High-Speed Race - Though cable modems maintain a larger share of US households connecting to the internet via broadband, DSL is quickly gaining ground. http://www.emarketer.com/estatnews/estats/broadband/20010315_bband_us.html?ref=wn

CISCO@US STATES

·        California Governor Davis at Cisco – Cisco was proud to host Governor Davis’ visit to Cisco this week as he escorted Mexican President Fox around his state.  Governor Davis toured Cisco’s onsite manufacturing facility with President Fox and Cisco President and CEO John Chambers and then viewed a broadband wireless demonstration.  The Governor and John Chambers later co-hosted a dinner honoring President Fox.

·        Technology and Education - Cisco VP of Marketing Keith Fox this week spoke at a forum at the National Press Club in Washington, DC, sponsored by the National Governors Association, along with Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Ridge, Maryland Gov. Parris Glendening and Kentucky Gov. Paul Patton.  Fox touched on the key role that higher education plays in providing human capital for the tech industry and for all businesses, both as a source of innovators who develop new technologies and of skilled workers who implement those technologies.  He explained Cisco's investment in the Networking Academies program and how the program complements work done by the higher education system.

·        This week Cisco’s State Government Affairs Manager, Michelle Peacock, was in Sacramento to participate in the American Electronics Association’s  (AeA) annual Legislative Day.  Peacock and her industry counterparts spent the day educating lawmakers on issues such as education and workforce development, taxation, privacy and others.  http://www.aeanet.org

http://www.cisco.com/warp/public/779/govtaffs/multimedia/index.html#Mallory

·        CALIFORNIA:  Cisco supports AB 620 which proposes a $20-million fund to establish 10 new High Tech High Schools throughout the state.  The schools’ curriculum will focus on science, mathematics and engineering.

·        Cisco hosted a brainstorming session of the California Workforce Investment Board with the board’s new Executive Director, Andy Barron.  Cisco’s Senior Vice President of Human Resources, Barbara Beck, is a member of the board. http://www.calwia.org/

·        According to a computer science professor at Bryn-Mawr College in Pennsylvania, flaws in computer voting make paper more accurate, says a report in the Wall Street Journal. http://interactive.wsj.com/articles/SB984949381206720473.htm (paid subscription required)

·        By the next presidential elections, Georgia voters could be casting ballots on electronic, ATM-styled machines all across the state. Georgia lawmakers gave final approval late Wednesday to election reforms that could make Georgia one of the first states in the nation to mandate a uniform system in the aftermath of the 2000 presidential election.  

http://www.accessatlanta.com/partners/ajc/epaper/editions/friday/local_news_a3ab7fe036e9908500e6.html

·        CALIFORNIA:  Cisco supports passage of SB 394 would continue California's moratorium on new discriminatory taxes on the Internet.

·        Governing Magazine is now accepting nominations for Public Officials of the Year. Top-level elected, appointed and career officials from any branch of state or local government are eligible for this prestigious award.  Nominate your favorite official today.  Deadline is June 15.  http://governing.com/poy/poy.htm

·        Tax Time!!!  Visit our U.S.States (http://www.cisco.com/gov/us_states/index.html) page to find your state and federal income tax forms.  Download the forms or file electronically.  eGovernment (http://www.cisco.com/gov/people/e_government.html) in action!  

CISCO@MULTIMEDIA – NEW “Policy Talk” VIDEO!!!

·        Watch Cisco Senior Vice President for Corporate Affairs Dan Scheinman talk to European Commissioner Likkanen about broadband, education, e-government and more during our “Cisco Policy Talk.”

SITE OF THE WEEK – Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD)

GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS LAUNCHES “VIRTUAL THINK TANK”

·       To read about the newest Cisco Government Affairs web supported public policy initiative please visit News@Cisco . http://newsroom.cisco.com/dlls/ts_030201.html

FACTS AND STATS OF THE WEEK: “Shopping, Accessing and Jobs”

·        SHOPPING AND SURFING ONLINE IN THE UK - According to IDC, as of March 2001, 10% of the population in Western Europe is shopping online. IDC says that roughly 50% of the population used the web in the three months prior to the study. IDC also notes that 43% of internet users in the region are female -- up 3% from 2000. The report mentions that 29% of users in the area spend 3 to 4 hours per week online in 2001 compared to 24% in 2000.

·        HOW SWEDE IT IS! - A Jupiter MMXI study found that 4.23 million Swedes accessed  the internet in February 2001, representing 59% of the population ages 12-79. 65% of Swedish men and 54% of women went online at least once from home or work during the month.  The numbers show a 12% increase in Swedish web use over February 2000.

·        IT JOBS  - According to IDC, 820,000 information technology (IT) jobs will be available in the US in 2001. However, IDC predicts that only 365,000 will be filled. In fact, IDC believes that by 2004, 606,000 IT positions will not be filled in the US.

·        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

·        H-1B Usage in Current Economy - http://www.usatoday.com/money/tech/2001-03-21-visas.htm

·        Distance Learning at College Campuses - http://www.nytimes.com/2001/03/21/technology/21EDUCATION.html

·        P3P Privacy technology that allows consumers to choose how much privacy they want - http://interactive.wsj.com/articles/SB985132165383902742.htm (paid subscription required)

·        E-Government added to Tech Companies Agendas - http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1003-200-5186140.html?tag=lh

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

CISCO.COM/GOV AND E-UPDATE FEEDBACK

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DISCLAIMER

Positions in articles and papers from outside sources are in no way endorsed by Cisco Systems' Office of Government Affairs.  We offer articles on topics of interest to our audience to further the debate on the issues that are important to high-tech.  To view our positions on the policy matters that we care about, please visit our Government Affairs homepage.

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