LOS ANGELES -- Vice President Al Gore met with a veritable Who's Who of Hollywood and the telecommunications world last month to discuss plans for the information superhighway.
the many top executives attending the event were Disney chairman Michael Eisner, Disney studio chairman Jeffrey Katzenberg, News Corp. chairman Rupert Murdoch, Sony Corp. of America president Michael Schulhof, TCI chief executive John Malone, QVC Network chief executive Barry Diller and Time Warner chairman Gerald Levin.
The day-long event, described by one participant as "one of the great schmoozefests of all time," was sponsored by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences and held at the University of California at Los Angeles. The term "information superhighway" refers to the futuristic communications systems that will greatly increase the information capabilities of the average American household.
Many participants felt that the highway would be built quickly and would have far-reaching results. But some were cautionary about its effects, particularly those that most threaten video retailing.
"The notion of disconnecting humanity, that's not what people want," said Katzenberg. "They want a communal experience." But entertainment will be a central component of the information superhighway, he said.
"It makes me nervous to think about" the information highway, said Eisner. "Right now I don't get it, and if we don't get it, we might as well not invest in it," he said.
"I don't think anything will disappear," said Lucie Salhany, chairwoman of Fox Broadcasting, Los Angeles. The new technology "will expand, but won't dramatically change what we do."
The new technology is not about "interacting with your TV, it's interacting with other people," said Stephen Case, president and chief executive officer of America Online, Vienna, Va., an interactive computer data base service. "This is the biggest thing that's happened since the printing press and we have to develop it with care," noted Alan Kay, a fellow at Apple Computer, Cupertino, Calif.
In his speech, Gore said the Clinton administration would be willing to ease regulatory barriers for companies involved in building the information superhighway. But the highway must be open to all, including the financially disadvantaged, with active competition among its participating companies, he said.
