Cybershake: Picks of the Week

June 4 -- AOL jacks up its monthly prices, Intel carries some tunes, and Microsoft revamps its Office.

It's all in this week's Cybershake.

You’ve Got Rate Hike!

The toll to get on the Information Superhighway is about to get a little steeper.

America Online announced it is raising the monthly subscription fee by 9 percent, to almost $24. The No. 1 Internet access provider said the rate increase for its 23 million members would begin in July to help cover the costs of developing new software.

Could the rate hike mean that members will defect to other, cheaper services? David Card, an analyst with Jupiter Media Metrix, doesn’t think so.

“We thought the last time they raised prices it would have a real deleterious effect on their business,” said Card. “It did not.”

And it’s likely that other Internet service providers may follow. “Regular price increases are probably something we should get used to,” said Card. Just like rising gasoline prices.

Also, see: Net ProfitsandNetting a Good Deal

By ABCNEWS’ Richard Davies

Is That a Concert In Your Pocket, Or ...?

It’s shaped like a bar of soap, but it won’t help you wash behind your ears. Instead, it will get your ears awash with digital audio.

There are lots of great-quality MP3 digital audio players on the market, but the Pocket Concert Audio Player from Intel is different because of its unprecedented portability. “The Intel Pocket is designed as a simple system that enables you to listen to music anywhere, anytime,” says David Huffman, consumer products division manager for chip maker Intel.

While the unit’s small size means you can take it almost anywhere, special adapters allow you to listen to your downloaded music in your pocket, on your computer, or even in your car’s stereo system. Huffman says consumers demanded such flexibility.

“They tell us, 'I want to take a music player and listen to it anywhere in my life,'” says Huffman. “I listen to my music when I’m exercising, when I’m running, when I’m very active. I listen to it when I’m commuting and I listen to it when I’m in my favorite easy chair.”