eWEEK EDITORS

In Indiana, where good-ole-boy, bare-knuckled politics are the rule, Ameritech is hiring well-connected players to carry its message to state lawmakers. Jon OBannon, son of Governor Frank OBannon, was brought on board in May to join a team of external affairs directors who lobby Indiana state legislators. His targets included the powerful chair of the […]

In the back of the Sephora store in Montgomery Mall in Bethesda, Md., stands a kiosk. The plain, white machine clashes with the European beauty supply stores dramatic black décor — which may be why its shoved to the rear, and turned sideways. It draws on the power of the Internet, but offers only marginally […]

Where the Customers Are Like many Internet businesses, ASPs got ahead of themselves in estimating their markets, says Agiliti Chief Executive Tom Kieffer. “We assumed that things like messaging, storage and basic business services were the table stakes, but at this point, they are the game,” says Kieffer, who spent last year trying to sell […]

The dismal news at the Ground Zero conference last month was that Chemdex, a pioneering digital exchange, would be scuttled. It was shocking news at an event that had become a lovefest for the business-to-business industry. Yet it was also a fitting culmination to a year that had seen the entire Net marketplace industry shattered. […]

Petro Not PetroNet, a company with ambitious plans for a 13,500-mile optical network, suspended operations last week after failing to secure a second round of financing. PetroNet is an apparent casualty of the tightening of venture-capital purse strings and the fact that companies that dont have existing relationships with manufacturers typically have to wait more […]

To bolster its web content management offerings, Merant plc. last week inked a deal to acquire the enterprise division of NetObjects Inc. for $18 million in cash. Merant previously focused on change management software and application code management. The deal will expand the companys capabilities to include Web content management, enabling Merant to provide customers […]

The latest research shows that most cable customers are “very” OR “somewhat” receptive to interactive television features. And thats before theyve even seen the “e-cliner” — a La-Z-Boy recliner designed for Web-enabled TV. The reclining armchair comes with a built-in keyboard, a Sony receiver for Microsofts WebTV Networks and two free months of the interactive […]

At the Finishing Touch flower shop in the little town of Fishers, Ind., Karen McDonald has been battling her local phone company for six months, and still her business lines dont work. Customers trying to place orders hear the phone ring a dozen times or more before McDonalds employees — those who havent yet been […]

Spam Action Theyre off on Capitol Hill, and one of the first Internet-related issues that legislators will wrestle with is unsolicited commercial e-mail. Already, Rep. Gene Green, R-Texas, has introduced a bill, and Rep. Heather Wilson, R-N.M., plans to reintroduce her spam bill, which was passed last year by the House but stalled in the […]

Four OC-3 (155-Megabit-per-second) equivalents, going from South America to Miami: provisioned in a week. One OC-3, going from Miami to Washington, D.C.: provisioned in a week. The wait for a 2-mile-long DS-3 (45-Mbps) line in Washington, D.C., needed to activate a 6,000-mile long network: five months. This is a scenario that more and more carriers […]

Bargain hunters are beginning to snap up some of the most beaten-down stocks in our index, rewarding companies that are trying desperately to turn themselves around amid the market slowdown. The result was a 5.3 percent jump in our index for the week ended Jan. 11, its second consecutive increase. Among the best performers were […]

Caching in Infrastructure management company Marimba Inc. has announced the debut of Timbale 1.2, which adds advanced caching functions and support for Linux and AIX platforms. Automatic updating Officials at the Mountain View, Calif., company said Version 1.2s caching system stores content closer to the network edge and automates the content updating process. The system […]