STM Wireless and Alcatel said Wed. they signed OEM partnership agreement under which Alcatel will integrate STM’s VSAT products into its range of carrier grade systems and software in order to offer satellite broadband solutions to service providers using current satellites and emerging Ka-band systems.

CNN announced broad personnel and operational changes Wed. to improve its newsgathering operations and streamline its global TV and Web services. Changes introduced by new senior management team are to: (1) Integrate Newsgathering Div., with journalists providing comprehensive reporting for all of CNN’s TV, radio, Web sites and ancillary services such as wireless devices and private networks. (2) Integrate TV channels and their respective Web sites such as CNN.com, CNN/SI, CNNfn, CNN International and CNN en Espanol under single management structure. (3) Introduce new technology to improve speed and efficiency of field reporting, editing and distribution. As result of changes, company will cut work force just under 10% (400 members of News Group staff) in coming weeks, company said; 1/3 of those positions are current CNN Interactive staff and another 1/3 from programming. After personnel and operational changes, CNN will remain among world’s largest news organizations with 3,900 employees, 1,000 of them devoted to newsgathering, company said. Among other initiatives announced: (1) Setting up a Newgathering “superdesk” in Atlanta to enhance cross-service/platform communication and allow for faster decision-making. (2) Combining domestic and international operations of Newsource, CNN’s affiliate news service.

Ill. Commerce Commission Chmn. Richard Mathias this week asked other 4 Ameritech state commissions whether they ought to call another joint session with top SBC and Ameritech officials to get explanations for seeming contradictions between what companies were telling states and what they were telling securities analysts about service quality, competition and regulatory compliance burdens. In letters Tues. to heads of Ind., Mich., Ohio and Wis. commissions this week, Mathias cited “discrepancies” in statements by SBC Chmn. Edward Whitacre and other top SBC/Ameritech officials to state regulators in Oct. 16 summit meeting, and what Whitacre and other officials told securities analysts in Dec. 16 briefing. He asked other states “whether it would be helpful to know” which story contained real reasons for company’s troubles of past year. Mathias said SBC/Ameritech told securities analysts service problems of 2000 were caused by aging outside plant and capacity difficulties but told states problems were caused by technician shortages coupled with weather problems and surges in demand. He also said SBC/Ameritech had been telling Great Lakes state regulators and legislators company was being hammered by local competitors, while telling securities analysts that Tex. was where most local competition was happening, and that elsewhere companies expected growth in vertical service revenues would offset access line losses to CLECs. Mathias also questioned SBC/Ameritech’s blaming regulators for delays in entering long distance and other new markets when companies were paying millions of dollars in penalties for failing to serve retail and wholesale customers they already had. He said that while Ameritech seemed to have improved service for retail customers, it still was falling short in wholesale service to its competitors. “We should determine whether the seeming discrepancies between the comments by SBC/Ameritech to securities analysts and to state regulators demand immediate clarification,” Mathias wrote, and asked whether states wanted another summit with Whitacre to hear explanations. Ameritech spokesman said there wasn’t any pressing reason for another joint session with regulators because service problems that led to first session in Oct. “by and large have been addressed.” He said Ameritech hired hundreds of technicians and its service performance was at or close to state service quality standards. In related action, SBC’s Whitacre Tues. publicly apologized for Ameritech’s poor phone service in appearance before 250 Mich. business leaders at Economic Club of Detroit. “I know we stumbled coming out of the gate” following Ameritech-SBC merger, he said: “I'm not saying the problems are over. We are all embarrassed by them, but we are well on the way to correcting them.” He said Ameritech was upgrading its network to digital fiber system, which he said should cut down on maintenance problems, and has hired and trained more technical workers. He said service quality in Mich. still wasn’t quite as good as in other states, but vowed that it “will be and will be quickly” as good as elsewhere in region.

James Packer, ex-Disney, appointed exec. vp-N. America TV sales, MGM Worldwide TV Distribution… Changes at CNN: Ken Jautz, n-tv Germany, named exec. vp-gen. mgr.-CNNfn after merger of those units; Teya Ryan, exec. vp, domestic networks, CNN News Group, appointed gen. mgr-exec. vp, CNN Headline News… Changes at Starpower: Don Mathison, ex-Media General Cable, named gen. mgr.; Andrew Nigolian, ex-Time Warner, appointed division vp- Adelphia… Michael Yorick, ex-A&E TV Networks, moves to vp- emerging businesses, USA Cable… Wis. PSC Exec. Asst. Robert Garvin appointed to fill Wis. PSC seat of John Farrow, who’s retiring when his term expires in March; Ave Bie reappointed Wis. PSC chmn… Elected to Satellite Industry Assn. board: Larry Atlas, vp-govt. relations, Loral Space & Communications, as chmn.; Peter Hadinger, dir.-telecom strategy, TRW, vice chmn.; Jeffrey Trauberman, dir.-information and communications systems, Boeing, treas.; and Kalpak Gude, vp-govt and regulatory affairs, PanAmSat, Suzanne Hutchings, regulatory counsel, Teledesic, and Gerald Musarra, vp-govt and regulatory affairs, Lockheed Martin, all as exec. committee representatives… Eugene DiDonato, ex- Peritus Software Services, named vp-gen. counsel, Lightbridge.

Word is that Fox TV Network will tell its affiliates at meeting this weekend in Las Vegas that it’s dropping annual spring convention that has been held since network began in 1981. Session will be held just before start of ALTV-NATPE convention and fewer than half of affiliates are expected to attend. Many of what are now Fox affiliates were prominent in forming association for independent stations before Fox network started and have remained members. Financial factors reportedly are reason for dropping spring meeting, which in 2000 was held in Scottsdale, Ariz.

Eight Chris-Craft TV stations will remain UPN affiliates under new agreement announced this week. Stations, which are being bought by News Corp., had been considered possible candidates for switch to Fox network. Deal runs through 2001-2002 TV season. Terms weren’t disclosed.

Lucent Technologies and Time Warner announced $100 million fiber network system deal for former to supply TW with its newest system. Time Warner Telecom will deploy Lucent’s WaveStar OLS 1.6T, DWDM system, with initial capacity of 800 Gbps.

Hearst-Argyle TV will use Harris Corp. DTV transmitters under new agreement. Deal at start covers 17 stations, allowing them to begin DTV broadcasting this year, companies said. Hearst-Argyle owns or manages 26 stations.

VoiceStream and Deutsche Telekom (DT), in brief filing Wed. with SEC, disclosed they had entered into agreement with U.S. Dept. of Justice and FBI on issues related to proposed mergers of VoiceStream, DT, Powertel. Pact addresses national security and law enforcement matters in proposed deal, companies said, but didn’t outline details. They said they and federal law enforcers jointly had petitioned FCC to defer granting applications for merger approval until after agreement was reached with DoJ and FBI. Merger still must be approved by Commission, Committee on Foreign Investment in U.S., VoiceStream and Powertel shareholders.

Broadlogic said iBeam signed agreement to use Satellite Express XR1 Fast Ethernet receiver/router developed by Broadlogic as standard satellite receiver platform for current and new deployments within iBeam networks.