OCR Text |
Show A MCI Learning to become the master 1 . drops Nextel bid in dispute with Motorola By JON VAN Ocago The late Steve Ros clawed hi way out of a threadbare Depre-wioboyhood in Brooklyn to become head of Time Warner, the world's nt conglomerate. The story of hi ne is told in ""Master of the Curne."" by Connie Bruck. Ross concealed a highly jcuim-tiv- e and competitive nature behind a dazzling facade of charm, opulence and generosity . Though Ross lted like a Roman emperor, he nev er lot the common touch. What would start out as a axitine walk through the corporate offices w ould rum into a scene resembling a politician working the crowd in a Fourth of July parade. He was a isionary w ho saw the potential of cable tele- - Xj - Monday, September 5, 1994 The Daily Herald largest 1 that they couldn't Trubune DL-bas- CHICAGO A price disagreement with Motorola Inc. was behind a decision by MCI Communications Corp. to drop cut of plans for a national w ireless communication network being built by Nextel Communications Inc.. participant aid Friday resolve." Motorola, the Schaumburg, electronics giant, supplies the technology base for wireless communications used by Nextel, which is based in Rutherford. N.J. Motorola also has provided Nextel w ith many of the licenses for bandwidth needed for the wireless network. In return. Motorola is Nextel's largest shareholder and soon w ill have a 24 percent stake in the company. Early this year MCI announced it w ould give Nextel S 1 .3 billion in return for 17 percent ownership and w ould prov ide its brand name to Nextel's netw ork. MCI said Monday that h was backing out of that deal but would . Motorola officials balked at MCTs efforts to lower the amount of money it would contribute to the network. "The technology problems facing us were surmountable," said Jack Markeli. a Nextel vice president. "Bat the price issue was the one issue between MCI and Motorola ed air-wa- ve continue talks with Nextel. Those talks now are ended. Nextel's network uses airwaves currently devoted to special mobile radio sen ices, such as taxicab dispatching, which is Nextel's main business. The new netw ork intends to provide voice communications, w ireless faxes and data transfer, in order to offer businesspeople a more sophisticated system than is available from cellular providers. Despite MCI's decision to drop out, Nextel and its other partners plan to proceed with rolling out the national network, Markeli said. Chicago is still slated to be offered the sen ice by the end of this year. Nextel's chairman, Morgan O'Brien, said that his firm is the only one now holding airw av es licenses that cover the entire United States, and that it plans to spend S2.5 billion over the next three years building its system. Merle Gilmore, president of Motorola's Land Mobile Products Sector, said that Nextel w ill search for another strategic partner to fill the role MCI had contemplated. "While it is regrettable that we have not jet been able to work out a strategic relationship, w e w ill not be deterred from continuing to build out Nextel's advanced digital system," Gilmore said. When MCI announced its SI. 3 billion deal to buy into Nextel last February , things looked different than they do now , said Kev in Inda, an MCI spokesman. "Some deals that have taken place since then would dilute our stake," Inda said. "A lot of things have transpired w ithin Nextel and within the wireless world since February. It's a new ballgame." Nextel this summer agreed to merge with OneComm Corp. of Denver, another provider of digital radio sen ices. Also, the Federal Communications Commission this summer sw eetened its rules for auctioning airwaves for a new w ireless sen ice called personal communications systems. The auction w ill occur later this year. "It was a price and terms is sue," said Inda. "Motorola, being the majority shareholder, couldn't consent to our offer, so things are off." MCI remains committed to w ireless telecommunications service, Inda launching a national said. Last month the federal courts cleared the way for AT&T, the nation's largest long-distan- ce prov ider, to buy McCaw Cellular Communications Inc., the country s largest cellular carrier. Sprint, the No. 3 carrier, already owns some cellular systems. As the second-largecompany, MCI feels it is imperative to get into w ireless communications as part of its drive to telecombecome a munications provider. It could do so by partnering w ith existing cellular companies or by purchasing new airwave allocations w hen the FCC holds its auction for personal communications sen ice licenses in a few months. long-distan- st long-distan- full-servi- ce Small investors rushing abroad Mackay MONEY Cheered by positive economic and political news in Latin America and Europe, Americans poured millions of dollars into mutual funds specializing in foreign stocks last month, according to data gathered for Money magazine's Small Inv estor Index. Major fund groups say that cash surged into international funds in August. For example, investors stuffed S3 17 million into T. Rowe Price's six international stock funds, which have a total of S9.6 billion in assets, compared with inflows of SI 72 million in July. Similarly , Scudder's six overseas Positive Struggles ision and the combination of cable w ith movies, music, games, and interactive software as the future of the entertainment business. r. .And he w as a master He could make his negotiating opponents believ e that he. Steve Ross, would fulfill their deepest desires, while at the same time extracting exactly what he wanted for himself out of the neaotiation. How did he deal-make- r doit7 In one tough negotiation, Ross competing w ith another compa- jK x stock funds, with S5.9 billion in assets, drew $140 million in new cash in August, vs. $46 million in July. magazine Americans looking for investments outside of the U.S. found plenty of reasons for optimism. Latin American stocks, already buoyed by the victory of candidate Ernesto Zedillo in last month's Mexican presidential election, rallied further as polls showed Fernando Henrique Cardoso ahead in Brazil's presidential campaign. And in much of Europe, analysts are projecting stronger than expected growth after three years of recession. ss pro-busine- Despite the bright outlook for many foreign markets, analysts say international funds remain undervalued. "Many markets sold off by 10 to 25 last spring, so investors see this as still a good time to buy," says Rick Holbrook, chief investment strategist at Biehl & Kaiser. He forecasts 15 to 20 gains in most w orld markets over the next 12 to 18 Bai-Ia- rd months. Last week, the Money Index, which tracks the typical investor's holdings, rose $244 to $46,638. Stocks gained $192, and bonds added S29. CDs and money funds kicked in $10. Gold rose S 12. w as to buy Atari. Ross sent the corporate jet to San Jose. Calif. . to pick up the sellers for a meeting in New York City. When they boarded the plane, Clint Eastwood and Sondra Locke were on board. The pilot, apologizing profusely for the intrusion, went on to explain that the plane would have to make another stop to let the movie stars off at a location where they were filming. k The sellers didn't mind a bit. In fact, they wound up selling Atari to Ross on terms far more favorable than they had originally intended. ny Homemaker turns into 'step' mom By ROBERT MCCABE Fort Lauderdale Sun-Sentin- el - star-struc- Ross could overwhelm the most jaded Holly wood ty pe w ith extravagant gestures, like sending the cory to pick up porate jet cross-countr- Steven Spielberg's dogs so they could join the director on a weekend vacation. Barbra Streisand men- tioned to Ross casually how much she had regretted hav ing underbid on a sculpture at an auction. Ross tracked down the sculpture, bought it and gave it to her. Eastwood. Spielberg and Streisand were all drawn into Ross's orbit and all became useful and profitable allies in Ross's business dealings. Seduction of the innocent (and not so innocent) by smothering them w ith gifts and attention was Ross's trademark negotiating technique. But his own favorite story involved a tough lesson he learned early on. As a young man. Ross's first significant managerial job was running his father-in-law- 's funeral business in New York City . Ross had just bought a site for a new funeral chapel when he learned that the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts was to be constructed across the street. a Ross saw what was coming next terrific opportunity to squeeze the uptown sw ells w ho would not w an endless procession of hearses and mourners across from their elegant new cultural facility. Soon enough, a call came from Governor Nelson Rockefeller. Was Ross planning to build a funeral parlor on his land? Yes. The governor then asked Ross if he haJ gotten approval from the zoning commivsion. Ye. "Have you checked that?" the governor asked. "Yes." "Nd." said the Governor. "I mcan.'have you checked that tomorrow?': If rtoss had a weakness as a n, it was the typical entre- preneur's unwillingness to sell as- sets. He rode Atari up, but he rode it dowTiJtoo. Mackay's Moral: In negotiations, as in ards, a superior hand can be beaten by a superior know ledge of human nature. Herald PtxxcVPamcfc J. Krohn Sir Paul Newall, the Lord Mayor of London, visits with the press after a meeting with Nu Skin International officials. London mayor visits with Nu Skin officials Sir Paul Newall, the Lord Mayor of London, spent about a half hour w ith the leaders of Provo's Nu Skin International Friday afternoon, but made no announcements follow ing the visit. '"Our visit to Utah was to encourage more links between this state and Britain." Newall said. He pointed out that the people of Utah hav e more direct links to Great Britain than any other state. He said that part of his v isit was to encourage companies to consider locating in London and using it as a springboard into the European Community. Nu Skin vice president en J. Lund said that the company is working w ith the British for the past year to establish relations. Stev- BOCA RATON, Fla. Lydia Scott, 33, of Boca Raton remembers her mother, a Georgia school teacher, coming home each night so exhausted she barely had time for anything other than collapsing in a chair. When Scott quit her job as an IBM computer programmer after nearly 10 years, she did so, in part, because she didn't want to end up doing the same thing. e Today, she's a a job and mother of tw o that comes w ith its own stresses. home-mak- full-tim- including long hours. "The Overworked American," uled and by w orking as an aerobics instructor at a Boca Raton fitness by Harvard economist Juliet Schor, reports that the number of hours worked by the American homemaker in a ty pical w eek 52 remained essentially unchanged from about 1910 into the 1970s." Scott, w ho said she actually began to thrive on deadline pressure center. w hile helping design Prodigy-typ- e software for IBM, finds the isolation of staying at home with her children stressful in its own w ay. "It drives you absolutely nuts," she said. She said she guards against stress by not becoming oversched- - er "I would be a wreck. I couldn't not do it. It's very important to me," she said. Scott said she finds teaching aerobics reduces stress and allows her to have some fun. "I look forward to it. It's mine. I enjoy it." she said. Though she's paid for her work, Scott said she really doesn't experience it as such. "It's still a lot of fun, and if it wasn't a lot of fun, w ouldn't be doing I probably it," she said. Renn Patch, vice president of International, said the company has been ey eing the European market for quite some time. He said there was no set date for entering the market. Gloria Marshall has always provided results. Now four Salt Lake Salons make it even more convenient! Only Gloria Marshall Aside from visiting Nu Skin, the mayor and his company visited with Lt. Gov. Olene Walker and Kennecott. The British company was scheduled to attend the Shakesperean festival later this evening. I J offers you a complete plan to lose both pounds and inches. Your program includes: WOMEN ONLY atmosphere for a comfortable, private visit. REAL FOOD menus include your favorite foods, no expensive meals. 4 RTC employees sue NmSTRENTJOUS EXERCISE on equipment for allegedly retaliating PERSONALIZED PROGRAM focusing on immediate results. PHILADELPHIA - Four cur- rent and former employees of the Resolution Trust Corp. have sued the federal agency for S2 million, saying they suffered retaliation for try ing to expose waste, fraud and abuse. One of the four is a former manager in the agency's Valley Forge. Pa., office, who says the RTC hired private detectives to trail him after he left work there in 993. The manager, Richard Dunn, also say s the agency kept him from getting other work in the Philadelphia area, by telling a prospective employer he had physically threatened fellow workers while at the 1 RTC. Dunn, along with two attorneys from the RTC's Denver office and one from Dallas, asked a federal judge in Washington this week to order the RTC to stop harassing them. The four arc also asking for their old jobs, back pay, and changes to their personnel records. An RTC spokeswoman said the agency, created to clean up the n scandal of the 1980s, hadn't seen the law suit and wouldn't comment on it. Lawyers for the Government Accountability Project, a Washington legal group that brought the suit, said they may expand the number of plaintiffs in the case. "Ultimately, we anticipate having as many as 10 people in this suit," said Jeff Ruch, the group's executive director. GUARANTEED that you $235,000. Dunn eventually took his allegations about the contractor to an ethics officer, to the RTC's Inspector General and even to members of Congress. Meanwhile, he said, his bosses made it clear that his actions were not appreciated. is achieve your desired dress see. Whether you want to lose 10 or 100 lbs, do it the right way... Call Gloria MarshalL saving-and-loa- Dunn says in an affidavit filed with the suit that his problems at the RTC began in April 1992, after he told his superiors about a consulting firm that Dunn said had overcharged the agency by about that designed to trim inches from a swan's figure. Call Today - It really works! 1'800TRIM-M- Trade McMurray E Lost 53 lbs! V 8 II I I Gloria Marshall mm FIGURE SALONS 1 j002-TRIM-M- COTTO100DMA11 E I .... . i 7 0REM UNIVERSITY MALI SUGAR! CCSE LAYT0N HOIS MALL a i . . t . |