BRIEF TRANSMISSIONS

Look for Automatic Data Processing, Inc. to buy out partner in U.K. joint venture, ADP Financial Information Ltd., says ADP-FIL marketing chief Ray Cambell. U.K.'s Mercantile House Holdings PLC, subject of recent takeover battle, owns other half of joint venture. Cambell confirms that new Mercantile House owner British & Commonwealth Holdings PLC isn't terribly interested in financial information business.

ADP-FIL meanwhile has launched "Marketpulse UK" version of flagship Marketpulse service -- known as FS-Partner in U.S. New service is aimed exclusively at London traders and comprises data from SEAQ Levels I and II, LIFFE, and London ADRs.

Weybridge-based Inforem PLC showed PC-based decision support system using ADP data feed. Inforem's "Trader's Assistant" charting package claims to use "artificial intelligence" to predict market movements.

Pont Data Co. unit of Pont International Ltd. made first appearance since it and Bridge Data declared independence from each other earlier this year. Firm has rights to distribute Bridge service -- which it now calls "Pont Classic" -- overseas through end of 1988. Pont introduced two services at show -- "Pont Advantage" dial-up access to quotation database, and long-awaited "PC Quote International" (MTR, May 1986).

Reuters Ltd. introduced low-end "Citywatch" subscription videotex service aimed at after-hours needs of financial professionals at home. PC-based service uses vertical blanking interval of independent TV stations to deliver data to subscribers.

International (London) Stock Exchange has reorganized Information Services Division to include settlement services Talisman and Taurus. New Information Services and Settlement Division is still headed by George Hayter, but Peter Bennett's high-level Strategic Engineering Unit has been moved out and now reports directly to LSE ceo Jeffrey Knight.

Only two applicants showed up for newly-available FM sideband frequency in London (MTR, October 1987). Case Group PLC, which had teamed itself with Telemet America, Inc. in earlier bid, is now paired with Lotus Quotrek. Air Call Teletext Ltd., which carries Reuter Citywatch (brief, above), was other applicant.

With Friends Like These Dept: ICV Information Systems Ltd., which distributes Commodity Quotations, Inc.'s "Comstock" feed in Europe, issued press release announcing first European availability of software for computing CBOT Market Profile. Says release: "Market Profile traders were enormously active in the stock index futures and options markets during the Crash. It is widely believed that the growing use of trading systems like Market Profile contributed to the gravity of the market's collapse."