Microsoft and Telmex Announce Latin Web Portal.

Microsoft has announced an alliance with Tel,fonos de Mexico designed to dominate the Latin America Internet by creating a portal site that draws upon the experience and reach of both companies.

The site (tlmsn.com), has more than 6 million users, and Spanish speaking subscribers to the Internet service of Telmex, i.e. Prodigy, are automatically channeled to the new portal. Microsoft has announced that on all personal computers with Microsoft's operating software sold in South America, tlmsn.com will be the first port of entry to the Internet.

The new venture, however, is not free from competition. Grupo Televisa, the Spanish language broadcaster, has announced an alliance with USWeb/CKS, a leader in World Wide Web site construction to compete with the partnership of Microsoft and Telmex. There remains, however, the potential for teaming of the entities in the future.

Telmex had earlier taken over the Prodigy Services Corp., a lagging Internet service provider in the U.S. and converted it into the largest Internet provider in Mexico. In January 2000, Telmex bought a controlling share of CompUSA, the PC retailing chain and announced a marketing effort to sell computers on affordable monthly installments billed to the customer's telephone statement and which includes free Internet access. Combined with this program is a major building program which will involve the installation of 10 million new telephone lines during the year 2000, and the simultaneous promotion of Internet services to every new subscriber.