Motorola plans to stop cellphone manufacturing operations at its Harvard, Ill., plant, resulting in loss of 2,500 jobs from company’s total work force of 130,000. Motorola, which issued series of earnings warnings late last year, said move was part of its strategy to consolidate manufacturing and bolster financial performance. Harvard campus, which will continue to have 2,500 employees, will focus on order fulfillment and new product sourcing. “We cannot competitively manufacture products when there is surplus global capacity at Motorola’s lower cost sites,” Motorola PCS Pres. Mike Zafirovski said. Company said it planned to halt manufacturing at Ill. site by June 30.

Datacasting company iBlast said it began field tests of its broadcast data service at TV stations KTLA L.A., KICU-TV San Jose, KGTV San Diego, KPNX Phoenix-Mesa, WOFL Orlando. IBlast expects to deliver data to PCs via network of 225 stations when it starts commercial service. Data being delivered include video clips, software, MP3 audio, games, other broadband content. Field tests are to last through March and company expects to reach 50% of U.S. households by end of year.

Regina Keeney, ex-chief policy counsel for Dell Computer and former chief of 3 FCC bureaus, moves to Lawler, Metzger & Milkman as partner… Jessica Wallace, legislative asst. to Rep. Tauzin (R-La.), is latest staffer to follow him to House Commerce Committee, where she will be telecom counsel… William Moll, ex-pres.-gen. mgr., WKRC-TV Cincinnati, appointed pres., Clear Channel TV, succeeding Ripperton Riordan, who plans to go into ministry… Ann Marie Cumming, NAB dir.- media relations, resigns to move to Germany with her husband, CIA official… Ann McGowan promoted to dir.-business development, Showtime Networks… Michael Norten, ex-WPGH-TV and WCWB Pittsburgh, appointed vp-sales and news, Video Networks… John deGarmo, ex-Scripps Networks, named senior vp-affiliate relations, Moviewatch… Stephen Castro, ex- NetStream, appointed regional sales dir.-San Francisco, NTT America… Glenda Davis, ex-Fujitsu Business Communications Systems, named pres.- CEO, MCK Communications… Bob Johnson promoted to vp-northeast, Nextel Communications.

U.S. Dist. Court, Denver, ruled it was unlawful for Internet telephony companies to use dial-around long distance services for completing calls to or from persons without Internet computers unless they paid interstate and intrastate access charges. U.S. Dist. Judge Michael Mullins issued ruling Fri. in suit brought by Qwest against Englewood, Colo.-based Internet telephony provider IP Services (IPS). Court ordered IPS to pay access charges to Qwest at same rate required of other long distance companies when they connect to Qwest network, currently about 4 cents per min. Mullins said that when Internet telephony company used public switched phone network for completing calls, it was functioning as long distance carrier and therefore had obligation to pay every other carrier involved in completing call. If IPS doesn’t pay access charges, judge ruled, it would be engaging in illegal call bridging. IPS uses dial-around services of ICG Communications in Colo. and WorldCom for interstate calls. It provides service to 5,000 Colo. customers, with most calls being intrastate. Court dismissed IPS argument that it was exempt from access charges because its calls were routed via Internet backbone and therefore were enhanced service. IPS said Colo. PUC exempted enhanced services from intrastate access charges. IPS is startup with of only about $1.5 million in 2000.

Mich. PSC said it received more than 100 complaints from Ameritech customers alleging company was reneging on Dec. 20 deal to compensate those who suffered long service outages last year. Under $14 million settlement with PSC, Ameritech was supposed to compensate customers for each outage day they suffered, meaning some could get credits worth hundreds of dollars. Customers complained they were told by Ameritech service representatives that all they were entitled to was credit for one month’s local dial-tone charge, around $14. Ameritech said it had been explaining settlement to employees but apparently some hadn’t yet gotten word. Ameritech said customers would receive full credits they were entitled to under agreement.

Qwest said it’s buying back 22.22 million shares of its stock from BellSouth for $1 billion ($45 per share). That will leave BellSouth with 51.8 million Qwest shares -- 3.1% of those outstanding. BellSouth also agreed to buy $250 million in services from Qwest over 5 years. BellSouth will pay for those services in Qwest stock over 4-year period. Qwest said it would continue its business relationship with BellSouth, which was developed to help both companies more effectively provide large business customers with complete packages of business services. Qwest said it agreed to repurchase its shares because it thought “Qwest stock is a good value at $45 per share.” BellSouth said funds would go toward its data and wireless operations.

FCC’s compromise approval of AOL takeover of Time Warner (CD Jan 16 p1) received generally good early reviews among Hill staffers. While instant messaging (IM) conditions won’t have immediate impact, said one, at least “FCC has put its imprimatur on IM interconnection.” Less pleased was economist Rick Warren-Boulton of Microeconomic Consulting Research & Assoc. (MiCRA), which submitted report to FCC detailing dangers of allowing AOL not to interconnect to IM competitors. Warren-Boulton told us FCC’s conditioning its IM interconnection requirements on AOL-Time Warner’s (TW) offering new broadband IM services wasn’t “the kind of thing that an economist would construct.” He said there were 2 possible outcomes, and FCC’s order wasn’t ideal either way: (1) AOL-TW offers new services quickly, in which case FCC “would be better off saying just do it.” (2) AOL-TW delays new offerings to avoid requirements, creating “problem for technical change in general.”

Qwest said its customer service improved in 2000 with 98% of its installation commitments met when promised, representing best results in last 5 years, and 95% of its repair commitments met on time, best since 1996. In addition, more than 80% of service outages were repaired in less than 24 hours, up from 63% year ago, company said. It also announced line-sharing agreements with 4 competitors -- Contact Communications, Multiband Communications, New Edge Networks, NorthPoint Communications. Qwest said agreements would broaden availability of high-speed Internet and broadband services in its territory.

Verizon resubmitted its application to FCC Tues. to offer long distance service in Mass. under Sec. 271 of Telecom Act. Verizon Senior Vp Thomas Tauke said new version incorporated company’s original application “and adds further evidence demonstrating that the company provides competitors nondiscriminatory access to DSL-capable telephone lines.” Verizon filed original petition Sept. 22 but withdrew it Dec. 18 after FCC Common Carrier Bureau said it didn’t have enough information to substantiate Verizon’s claim that it offered competitors nondiscriminatory access to DSL lines. Similar concerns were expressed by Dept. of Justice in Oct.

FCC’s C- and F-block auction hit $16.07 billion Tues., with Verizon Wireless now accounting for more than half of bids with $8.38 billion. Aggressive bidding for N.Y.C. spectrum flirted with $2 billion mark, with Verizon submitting separate bids of $1.8 billion for 2 licenses there and Cingular Wireless-backed Salmon PCS $1.2 billion for 3rd. Salmon PCS, in which Cingular has 85%, noncontrolling stake, bid $3.1 billion, followed by AT&T Wireless-backed Alaska Native Wireless with $1.3 billion, DCC PCS with $960.8 million and VoiceStream with $960.8 million. Bidding for 422 PCS licenses began Dec. 12 and completed 55th round Tues. Bidding for N.Y.C. licenses so far has outstripped that for next largest wireless market of L.A., where Verizon and DCC PCS have bid closer to $515 million.