Microworkz goes "free" again

Microworkz Inc. said Tuesday it would resell AT&T Corp._s Internet service in a $300 million deal, less than a week after the budget personal computer maker scrapped a similar deal with EarthLink Network Inc. Under the three-year pact Microworkz will pay AT&T a projected $300 million to package its Internet service with Microworkz_s bargain-basement $199 iToaster PC. Customers can either pay for the computer and get 150 hours of free monthly Internet access or pay $19.95 a month for Internet service for two years and get the PC for free, Seattle-based Microworkz said. EarthLink last Friday canceled a deal that bundled free Internet service with Microworkz_s $299 WEBzter PC after Microworkz said it was scrapping the stripped-down PC for the even less expensive bare-bones iToaster model.