Path: bloom-picayune.mit.edu!snorkelwacker.mit.edu!news.media.mit.edu!americast.com!americast.com!usa-post Newsgroups: usa-today.tech From: usa-post@AmeriCast.Com Organization: American Cybercasting Approved: usa-post@AmeriCast.com Subject: tech Wed, May 20 1992 Date: Wed, 20 May 92 05:20:57 EDT Message-ID: 05-20 0000 DECISIONLINE: Technology USA TODAY Update May 20, 1992 Source: USA TODAY:Gannett National Information Network MITSUBISHI TO SELL APPLES: Mitsubishi, a major Japanese trading company, said Tuesday it will market personal computers made by Apple Computer to business customers in Japan. Apple says it has about 50 dealers and distributors in Japan. To promote sales, Mitsubishi will set up an Apple task force of system engineers to provide a complete range of services from systems design to maintenance. INVESTORS LOOK TO PEN COMPUTERS: Professional investors are hoping pen-based personal computers turn into a gold mine. The technology is far from perfected and could take two or three years before it's practical for widespread use. Yet there are many investors who think pen PC companies could provide the kinds of stellar returns seen in software, semiconductor and traditional PC companies' stocks in the 1980s. (For more, see special Pen package below.) DEFENSE REQUEST GETS CUT: Congressional negotiators reached final agreement on a $1.5 trillion federal budget for 1993 Tuesday. It slashes $3 billion from President Bush's Pentagon request. The deal, which represented a compromise between House and Senate versions of the non-binding budget blueprint, will be voted on later this week. BILL WOULD END PA. COMPUTER TAX: Pennsylvania Sen. Melissa Hart, R-McCandless, Tuesday introduced legislation to repeal the state's 6% sales tax on computer services, a tax dubbed the "technology killer" by those backing her bill. The Pennsylvania Technology Council said more than 500 companies have banded together to fight the tax. Observers, however, say it is unlikely that the legislation will pass. SEMICONDUCTOR MARKET TO SURGE: The worldwide semiconductor industry is expected to reach $58.3 billion by the end of 1992 and grow to $77.4 billion by 1995, according to a forecast released Tuesday by the Semiconductor Industry Association. The 1991 market for semiconductors was $54.6 billion. The association projected that the western European market will grow 7.7%, to $10.9 billion, in 1992. INTEGRATED CIRCUITS MAY CLIMB: The Semiconductor Industry Association said Monday the integrated circuit market is expected to grow 7.9% to $48.2 billion in 1992. It stood at $44.6 billion in 1991. The market for integrated circuits is projected to reach $65.4 billion in 1995. The complete semiconductor service is available by calling 408-246-2711. The price: $100 per copy. MOTOR PROJECT IN LIMBO: NASA Administrator Daniel Goldin indicated Tuesday the new solid-rocket-motor project would continue next year if Congress gives NASA a budget "in the $15 billion range," said Sen. Trent Lott, R-Miss. But Lott said Goldin "did not make a definite commitment" to go forward with the Advanced Solid Rocket Motor project, which would build a new generation of space shuttle motors. MCI'S VNET LINKS TO HONG KONG: MCI International, in conjunction with Hong Kong Telecom, said Tuesday it has launched a virtual private network service between the USA and Hong Kong. In 1991, MCI and HKT established an agreement to interconnect their respective international virtual networks, MCI Vnet Virtual Network Connection and HKT VPN. MCI Vnet handles voice, facsimile and low speed data. NESTLE TURNS TO INFONET: Nestle has selected Infonet Services Corp. to interconnect electronic-mail systems as Nestle's sites in 80 countries. Infonet will also provide translation among incompatible E-mail systems. Nestle says it will eventually will set up electronic data interchange links with business partners. SPECIAL PACKAGE ON PEN: INVESTORS SEE HUGE POTENTIAL: Pen-based personal computers have a huge potential, says Robert Stoklosa, portfolio manager at Hitachi America Capital. They are hand-held devices that recognize handwriting and eliminate the need to type everything on a keyboard. They already are being used by thousands of workers. "Right now we have to sort out whose ideas are going to be the best," he says. TANDY PENS ALREADY ON MARKET: Tandy already sells a pen PC. Apple Computer is about to introduce its version and industry giant IBM said it also will enter the market. But those companies are so big that money managers don't consider them a good way to invest in pen PC development. They want small companies that could explode with growth by hitting it big in pen PCs. GO CORP. COULD SURGE: Go Corp., which makes handwriting recognition software, is one company that could soar if Pen PCs become popular. Still, Stanley Sakai, high-tech analyst at Bank of Boston, says investors who want to invest in stocks of companies that make only pen PCs will have to wait a year or two to get any kind of a return. PENS HAVE LONG WAY TO GO: A lot of development is needed before there is a PC that is designed for general use, recognizes everyone's handwriting and transmits directly to a central computer. Still, companies are close enough to that to keep investors' rapt attention. "If does take off, it's going to be a whole new market," says David Tisdale, president at Starbuck, Tisdale & Associates. (End of package.) Technology Editor: Ed Kelleher. (1-919-855-3491) Making copies of USA TODAY Update (Copyright, 1992) for further distribution violates federal law. This article is copyright 1992 Gannett News Service. 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