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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 25, 1998)
AOL makes $4 billion Netscape purchase NEW YORK (AP) — America Online Inc., the computer online service that naysayers once said would surely be crushed by Microsoft or the Internet, emerged as a newly formidable competitor Tuesday with its deal to buy Netscape Com munications Corp. The $4.21 billion merger could funda mentally alter the balance of power on the Internet. While AOL is already the world’s largest Internet access and online service provider, the deal gives the company important ad vantages in its battle with Microsoft Corp. to dominate the main Internet sites where peo ple get information and buy goods and ser vices. Together, Netscape’s and AOL’s sites reach a staggering 70 percent of all people who access the Internet, according to Ne tRatings, a research firm. The deal also underscores the populari ty of Netscape’s Navigator software for browsing the Internet, despite the meteoric rise of Microsoft’s rival Internet Explorer — a crucial concern in the U.S. government’s antitrust lawsuit against Microsoft and its chairman. Bill Gates. Microsoft lawyers argued TUesday that the AOL-Netscape deal backed up their claim that Microsoft is simply a player in an extremely competitive software market and not, as the government claims, a mo nopolist trying to crush its rivals. The merger also is a vindication for Steve Case, 40, the boyish-looking chairperson of AOL. "We do recognize Microsoft is a major competitor in a lot of different areas, but we’ve alway said wed like to work with them wherev er it makes sense.” — Steve Case America Online Inc. chairperson Just a few years ago, AOL was ridiculed for supplying its own propri etary online entertainment and informa tion to subscribers at a time when people could get a far wider choice on the Inter net. Last year, a surge in usage across AOL’s network triggered massive bottle necks. Despite the problems. Case stuck to AOL’s strategy of mass-mailing start-up diskettes and luring tens of millions of Americans to “channels” of neatly organized subject cate gories. AOL also provided online users ac cess to the Internet and set up its own free Web site, encouraging users to buy products and services from advertisers. But Case, realizing AOL’s limitations, wants to dramatically step up his Web pres ence by using Netscape’s Web sites and soft ware. Case said there will not be a big change for consumers right away. But he said even tually he plans to give AOL’s 14 million sub scribers easy links to Netscape’s popular Netcenter Web site, a portal to services and information geared toward businesses. AOL is expected to offer advertisers a single rate to reach users of its proprietary online service and visitors to the Netcen ter site as well as to its existing AOL.com Internet site. A second plan is to use Netscape’s soft ware to eventually create a new AOL brows er that makes it easier for people to view and retrieve Web information. For now, howev er, AOL will continue to use Microsoft’s browser. “We do recognize Microsoft is a major competitor in a lot of different areas, but we’ve always said we’d like to work with them wherever it makes sense,” Case said in an interview. Pradhan ■ Continued from Page I Pradhan could face up to 10 years in prison if he violates the terms of his pro bation, District Attorney Bill 'Rimer said. A 1997 System audit accused Pradhan of misappropriating more than $100,000 in University funds for personal benefit. Pradhan was placed on paid leave in August 1997 and returned to the Universi ty a year later, pending the Committee on Academic Freedom, Responsibility, Tenure, Review and Promotion hearing. In the audit report released last year. University officials said Pradhan: • Used University funds for personal travel and lodging expenses associated with three private companies he owns. • Made graduate students perform work exclusively for his private companies. • Threatened not to sign a master’s the sis for Gavin Holland unless Holland pub licly presented a paper to benefit one of Pradhan’s private companies. Holland, ac cording to the report, said he agreed to pre sent the paper for fear he would not get his thesis approved for his master’s degree. Pradhan, a native of India, filed a law suit against Texas A&M University in Au gust saying he had been the subject of dis crimination and First Amendment rights violations. In October, a six-member committee of faculty members ruled the charges in the ; f »/»!:.itiftvt st Battalion System audit were enough toco:] mination of Pradhan. Jim Ashlock, the deputy dm versity Relations, said PradharJ guilty will not alter his relatiorj the University. Pradhan’s termr] scheduled for June 30,1999, Asti::] “It has not changed DhirajF:] relationship with the University,'] said. “We will have to see whatcti of this before any actions are tala cerning Pradhan].” West said Pradhan plans to coJ teach at Texas A&M University,t;j ommendation of CAFRT. Pradhan accepted theCOErj Chair Professor of the Compute:! Department in 1992. As thee] chair, Pradhan was given unbiiu cretion over the endowment (uutj department. Prior to coming to Texas A&.V.I sity, Pradhan was a professoraiy versity of Massachusetts in tbel ment of Electrical and Engineering from 1983 to 1992. He served as associate profes: Oakland University School of Eif from 1978 to 1982. Hewasanas professor in the summer of ffl University of Stanford. In his work outside the Uifl Pradhan served as a consultant)! 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