Telecoms: Qwest books reviewed
Qwest Communications may announce this week plans to retract about US$1 billion in revenue booked from swaps of capacity on its fiber-optic network, a source said Saturday. The announce-ment, initially reported in Saturday editions of the Rocky Mountain News, would likely come before the House Energy and Commerce Committee begins hearings on the deals tomorrow, a source familiar with the company's discussion told AP. Qwest's audit committee went over the plan this week, the News reported. Qwest spokesman Tyler Gronbach on Saturday said the committee and full board of directors met this week but would not say what they discussed. "We're continuing our analysis of accounting issues and hope to finish that soon," Gronbach said. He declined to comment further. Regulatory filings show Qwest recognized US$953 million in revenue from so-called swaps in 2000 and 2001 in which it nearly simultaneously bought and sold network capacity with another telecommunications company.
Software: Microsoft repairs defect
Microsoft has announced a solution to the series of unexplained crashes that has begun to afflict computers running the Windows operating system. Microsoft is releasing a patch that will fix a recently discovered security hole in all versions of Windows, says the Hamburg-based computer magazine c't. The hole allows for a Denial of Service attack, which in turn enables the possibility of a third computer bringing the computer to a standstill. As long as the hole exists, Microsoft cannot rule out the possibility of unauthorized access to the affected computers, and for this reason recommends that users download and install the patch as soon as possible. The latest version of the patch can be found at www.windowsupdate.com.
Icann: Contract gets extended
The US Commerce Department extended by one year the right of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), to oversee the Internet address system, the New York Times reported. The non-profit corporation has been under government contract to manage the Internet address system for four years and ``no obvious alternative exists'' to extending its contract despite dissatisfaction with how it has handled its responsibilities, the paper reported, citing a statement by Nancy Victory, assistant secretary of commerce for communications and information.
US Economy: Home construction drops
US home construction fell for a third straight month in August, hurting an economic recovery. Builders began work on new homes at an annual rate of 1.609 million units last month, the Commerce Department said. That was down 2.2 percent from July's 1.645 million pace due to a slump in the Midwest. Initial jobless claims held above a level that suggests a sluggish labor market, the Labor Department said. "Weaker housing starts and persistently high jobless claims continue to point toward a modest economic recovery," said Edgar Peters, chief investment officer at PanAgora Asset Manage-ment, where he helps manage US$15 billion. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note fell to a 41-year low. Slower home construction means fewer jobs and less demand for building materials and appliances.
Taiwanese actress Barbie Hsu (徐熙媛) has died of pneumonia at the age of 48 while on a trip to Japan, where she contracted influenza during the Lunar New Year holiday, her sister confirmed today through an agent. "Our whole family came to Japan for a trip, and my dearest and most kindhearted sister Barbie Hsu died of influenza-induced pneumonia and unfortunately left us," Hsu's sister and talk show hostess Dee Hsu (徐熙娣) said. "I was grateful to be her sister in this life and that we got to care for and spend time with each other. I will always be grateful to
REMINDER: Of the 6.78 million doses of flu vaccine Taiwan purchased for this flu season, about 200,000 are still available, an official said, following Big S’ death As news broke of the death of Taiwanese actress and singer Barbie Hsu (徐熙媛), also known as Big S (大S), from severe flu complications, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and doctors yesterday urged people at high risk to get vaccinated and be alert to signs of severe illness. Hsu’s family yesterday confirmed that the actress died on a family holiday in Japan due to pneumonia during the Lunar New Year holiday. CDC Deputy Director-General Tseng Shu-hui (曾淑慧) told an impromptu news conference that hospital visits for flu-like illnesses from Jan. 19 to Jan. 25 reached 162,352 — the highest
COMBINING FORCES: The 66th Marine Brigade would support the 202nd Military Police Command in its defense of Taipei against ‘decapitation strikes,’ a source said The Marine Corps has deployed more than 100 soldiers and officers of the 66th Marine Brigade to Taipei International Airport (Songshan airport) as part of an effort to bolster defenses around the capital, a source with knowledge of the matter said yesterday. Two weeks ago, a military source said that the Ministry of National Defense ordered the Marine Corps to increase soldier deployments in the Taipei area. The 66th Marine Brigade has been tasked with protecting key areas in Taipei, with the 202nd Military Police Command also continuing to defend the capital. That came after a 2017 decision by the ministry to station
PETITIONS: A Democratic Progressive Party official quoted President William Lai as saying that civil society groups are organizing the recall drives at the grassroots level Some civil society groups yesterday announced that they have collected enough signatures to pass the first-stage threshold to initiate a recall vote against Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) legislators in 18 constituencies nationwide, saying that they would submit the signatures to the Central Election Commission (CEC) today. They also said that they expected to pass the threshold in eight more constituencies in the coming days, meaning the number of KMT legislators facing a recall vote could reach 26. The groups set up stations to collect signatures at local marketplaces and busy commercial districts. The legislators their petition drives target include Fu