"We always wanted to improve the portion of services in our business because they carry a higher margin and they will help to further accelerate our plan. One of the things not clear to everybody is that even though managed services are 32 percent of our total revenue, it actually used to be in the 36 [percent] to 38 percent range prior to the GlobalCenter acquisition. The reason for that is that GlobalCenter had an 8 percent portion of their business attributed to managed services. The reality is that we did a great job - even with incorporation of GlobalCenter into the revenue mix - keeping that high range. Two out of three of our customers take managed services today. So will we continue to improve that percent? Absolutely. But again, we have the cash, we have a strong business, and our plan shows us turning cash-flow-positive in the Q3 2002 and we feel strongly about that. "
.... more from same interview with an Exodus exec... portions involving GX:
"Q. How much of a say does Global Crossing have in your affairs, since it is such a large shareholder?
A. As you know [Global Crossing CEO] Tom Casey is on our board. So to that extent, they have a board seat. But I think the value has come out in two distinct things: One, we have a two-way reseller agreement and that is starting to prove to be an extremely lucrative part of our market coverage. As you know, they have about 1,000 sales people, and we start to see deals flow both ways. The second piece is our network deal, which enables us today to have the ability of one of the largest telephone companies around without laying glass.
Q. We were told that Global Crossing was investigating taking over Exodus with the idea of transforming it into its own hosting unit. This seems logical, looking at what WorldCom did. Is this one of the scenarios, and are there any safeguards to keep Exodus a stand-alone company?
A. We don't comment on rumors, but let me answer the question in a different way. We are always striving to maximize shareholder value. We are obligated to always look at options that may enhance it. Our plan today is to stay independent, because we feel there is a lot of value in us being independent. But if the right circumstances were to present themselves, we would seriously consider what is good for a shareholder. "
interactiveweek.com
Good background material IMO. |
