Dave, it amazes me that we can both be invested in the same stock and have such differing views on the path for its future. You are setting yourself up, again, for disappointment if you are counting on Bell South and the other RBOC's for this company's future.
The future, imho, is not the RBOC's. It is going to be secured by providing companies who possess desirable content with a means to have it accessed by magicTalk away from a computer terminal. The Excites, AOL's, Ebays, etc... who will utilize GMGC to stay ahead or to differentiate.
The Portico service is clearly a niche product that was established to showcase the technology. The RBOC's have been slow to react, much like they have been slow to react to DSL service. They act when they are pushed to act. Portico type services are, as has been demonstrated over the last 18 months, low on their list of revenue generating projects.
OnStar, though not a content provider, is the exception because they own the rights to the vehicle. If you want built in Internet access in your car, you are a somewhat captive audience. Of course, one of the first things we have seen since the deal with GMGC is the securing by OnStar of a content provider...AOL.
GMGC is clearly not the MacDonalds of VUI. If lucky, they will be quite the opposite, offering high end applications to the top tier service providers. The run of the mill services, much like Bell South has already adopted, will prove satisfactory for most operator type tasks which is why Bell South went that route. BTW, love LHSP. Great company. Very good at what they do. Bought a bunch of it last fall, but took some profits today. Too hard to resist.
Look at GMGC's balance sheet from the last Conference Call. It appears to me we are looking at the end of the summer before cash runs out, not May. Not that it makes that much difference, but I was expecting cash to run out in May, I would expect the company to get financing now so as not to cause a panic. They won't now, because they have more time. Do you still predict a buyout?
As far as technical talent, I am satisfied that with GM owning 20% of the company and tieing the future of OnStar to the magicTalk VUI, GMGC will be getting the technical expertise it needs. GM has the potential to make a ton of money with its share of GMGC. Imho, they will be playing a big role in much of what happens with GMGC, not just with OnStar.
Relax and enjoy the ride, for it is going to be a hell of a ride. In fact, it has already been pretty nice for those of us who bought in the 1's and 2's while the doomsdayers were crying the blues.
Seconds Out. |
