21.   In practice, it means that the rivals have to invest billions of dollars before they can compete.

22.   It invested billions more from clients to buy companies.

23.   It works for the global energy industry, which is investing billions of dollars in Caspian Sea oil exploration and development.

24.   Leading the pack are firms from Japan and South Korea, which have invested billions in auto assembly and electronics plants.

25.   Major U.S. oil companies, for example, say they will not invest billions in new projects unless production-sharing laws are enacted.

26.   Money managers who invest billions for tax-free pension funds have no such worry.

27.   Now Pentagon financing for computing is flat or declining, while consumer electronics companies are investing billions to advance the state of the art.

28.   Oil companies from the three countries have billions of dollars invested in Nigeria.

29.   Now Pentagon financing for computing is flat or declining, while consumer electronics companies are investing billions of dollars to advance the state of the art.

30.   Services like that are many years away and would require the local phone companies to invest billions of dollars on top of the current spending by long-distance carriers.