ACM TechNews - Friday, January 28, 2000

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ACM TechNews
Volume 2, Number 11
Date: January 28, 2000
Site Sponsored by Gateway (http://www.gateway.com)

Today's Top Stories:
http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2000-2/0128f.html


"Oracle Plays Catch-Up in Business-to-Business Market"
"IBM Exec Touts Linux as Key to Net Evolution"
"AT&T to Invest $250 Million in Application Services Sector"
"Security Flaw Discovered at Online Bank"
"Report Predicts E-Business Up 86% by 2003"
"Disney Plans to Narrow Portal's Focus"
"Toyota Is Likely to Offer Online Stock Trading"
"Treading With E-caution"
"Reports Say Europeans Are Lagging in Making Purchases
 Over the Internet"
"Common Web Code Could Save Banks Money"
"H-P's First Breakdown of Profit Shows Under 25 Percent
 Is From Computer Business"
"PC Retail Revenues Lag Way Behind Unit Growth"
"Security Expert: E-Commerce Hacks Happen All the Time"
"Interactive TV and Digital Shopping Are Open for Business"
"Piracy on the Net: Why it Needs More Policing"
"Countdown to a Launch"
"Net Technology Connects Data With Marketers"
"Merger Reinforces Construction E-Commerce"

******************* News Stories ***********************

"Oracle Plays Catch-Up in Business-to-Business Market"
Oracle has recently been emphasizing its business-to-business
e-commerce efforts, as such companies as Ariba and Commerce One
reach huge market capitalizations.  Although Oracle's $156
billion market cap is 67 times its revenue, Ariba and Commerce . . .
http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2000-2/0128f.html#item1

"IBM Exec Touts Linux as Key to Net Evolution"
IBM has big plans for Linux, says IBM's Irving Wladawsky-Berger,
the visionary who shaped IBM's e-business initiative and now
leads the firm's Linux push.  In an interview with CNet's Kim
Girard, Wladawsky-Berger, who heads IBM's new Next Generation . . .
http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2000-2/0128f.html#item2

"AT&T to Invest $250 Million in Application Services Sector"
AT&T is set to announce Thursday that it will spend $250 million
over the upcoming three years to strengthen its software
applications business for business customers.  AT&T is set to
announce plans for alliances with application service providers . . .
http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2000-2/0128f.html#item3

"Security Flaw Discovered at Online Bank"
X.com, an online startup bank, recently discovered a major
security breach in its system that allowed anyone with knowledge
of another person's account and bank routing number to take money
from that account, put it in an X.com account, and then withdraw . . .
http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2000-2/0128f.html#item4

"Report Predicts E-Business Up 86% by 2003"
The global Internet economy, consisting of e-business and the
infrastructure that supports the Internet, will be valued at
$2,800 billion and will account for 7 percent of the world's
gross domestic product by 2003, according to a study to be . . .
http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2000-2/0128f.html#item5

"Disney Plans to Narrow Portal's Focus"
With Walt Disney's Go.com portal lagging far behind rivals such
as Yahoo! and AOL, the company has decided that a change in
strategy for Go.com is warranted.  The new strategy places an
emphasis on entertainment, recreation, and leisure--traditional . . .
http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2000-2/0128f.html#item6

"Toyota Is Likely to Offer Online Stock Trading"
Toyota is expanding its Web site, gazoo.com, to provide brokerage
assistance and various consumer products.  Toyota wants gazoo.com
to eventually become an electronic commerce provider that offers
customers many kinds of products and services including insurance . . .
http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2000-2/0128f.html#item7

"Treading With E-caution"
All attention turned to the Internet at the National Retail
Federation's annual convention last week in New York City.  The
three largest categories in the convention directory were
e-commerce vendors, Internet services, and interactive shopping.  . . .
http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2000-2/0128f.html#item8

"Reports Say Europeans Are Lagging in Making Purchases
 Over the Internet"
Reports from Ernst & Young and United Parcel Service both
forecast healthy e-commerce gains in Europe.  However, the Ernst
& Young report said a top hurdle for online purchasing is
shipping costs, with 54 percent of U.S. consumers complaining and . . .
http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2000-2/0128f.html#item9

"Common Web Code Could Save Banks Money"
Banks such as Charlotte's First Union National Bank are
experimenting with offering HTML-based transactions across
various channels to increase the variety and value of services
offered to customers and to lower the bank's operating costs.  . . .
http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2000-2/0128f.html#item10

"H-P's First Breakdown of Profit Shows Under 25 Percent
 Is From Computer Business"
Hewlett Packard has issued an annual report that breaks out the
profit for each of its major businesses for the first time,
showing that its computer business is far less profitable than
services or printing.  The report divides revenue and profit . . .
http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2000-2/0128f.html#item11

"PC Retail Revenues Lag Way Behind Unit Growth"
Although desktop PC sales through the traditional retail channel
rose 37 percent in 1999, revenue increased by just 9 percent,
according to a recent NPD Intelect survey.  Compaq claimed the
top spot for unit shipments, with 33 percent of the market, . . .
http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2000-2/0128f.html#item12

"Security Expert: E-Commerce Hacks Happen All the Time"
Corporate Web sites are broken into all the time, but the public
does not hear about them, says Mark Fabro, worldwide director of
assessment services for Secure Computing.  Fabro's job requires
that he keep track of underground hacker sites to stay on top of . . .
http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2000-2/0128f.html#item13

"Interactive TV and Digital Shopping Are Open for Business"
Digital shopping offered via interactive television could rival
online shopping in the years to come.  However, the continued
development of the technology is likely to determine if that will
play out.  Already available in the United Kingdom, digital . . .
http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2000-2/0128f.html#item14

"Piracy on the Net: Why it Needs More Policing"
MP3 files now allow users to download virtually any music
currently on the market through the Internet for free, and
various chat rooms where these music file exchanges can be made
are proliferating.  Software as well as magazine and newspaper . . .
http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2000-2/0128f.html#item15

"Countdown to a Launch"
The distressing site launch of LetsTalk.com, the newly created
Web site for Let's Talk Cellular & Wireless, was representative
of many companies' e-commerce plunges.  Within minutes of
launching the site, which sells cellular phones and service . . .
http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2000-2/0128f.html#item16

"Net Technology Connects Data With Marketers"
DigitalConvergence.com's keystroke automation technology (KAT)
can instantly connect TV sets to specific Internet sites, and
Sears, Roebuck & Co. and Forbes are already making plans for the
technology.  KAT gives users direct access to online information . . .
http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2000-2/0128f.html#item17

"Merger Reinforces Construction E-Commerce"
Certain General Electric units are involved in funding for
Internet businesses, namely those that are competing for
domination of business-to-business communications in the
construction industry.  EBricks.com and Blueline Online's joint . . .
http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2000-2/0128f.html#item18

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