Lotus Development Corp which had let the impression get about that AT&T Corp’s decision to offer a Notes-based AT&T Network Notes service was the deal of the decade, were a little taken aback when AT&T said late Wednesday that it intends to close down the Network Notes service by mid-year and focus its investments on delivering Internet-based electronic commerce offerings. The news – highlighted by a Dow Jones & Co headline Move seen as Big Blow to Big Blue was enough to slice $3.125 off the IBM share price yesterday morning, sending it back down to $124.375. Network Notes integrates Notes with AT&T’s proprietary network to provide collaboration and database replication capabilities to business customers, but users these days want the freedom of the Internet and do not want to be limited by proprietary networks. The Internet is overpowering, said Kathleen Earley, the AT&T vice-president who oversaw the Network Notes service.