FYI 7/28/99: Still sounds focused before the rumors. Any chance the rumors were to further quell the open access issue? Yes the PE is piggish with 600g sub now, but so are the profits with a 12 mil sub growth by end 2000, even later if Armstrong's expectations take longer to materialize. It was a secure site so I had to paste.
"CREDIT SUISSE FIRST BOSTON CORPORATION
Equity Research Americas
U.S./Internet Infrastructure, Services 7/28/99
LARGE CAP
RESTRICTED
Excite@Home (ATHM)
Analyst Day Highlights: A Loaded Pipeline and Regulatory Momentum
Summary
Excite@Home and its partners spent Tuesday articulating a
clear vision for broadband internet delivery, content and
advertising.
With the 4Q rollout of its flashy new "Sputnik" browser and
the long-awaited arrival of plug-and-play modems on retail
shelves, the company should garner momentum in the second
half of the year.
A vote by San Francisco's Board of Supervisors granted AT&T
and ATHM exclusive access to TCI's cable system. Meanwhile,
the FCC has reiterated its "hands-off" posture, reaffirming
our belief that regulatory concerns are overblown.
Excite@Home™ distributes high-speed, openly accessible Internet and Web services using its own network architecture and a variety of transport options including the cable industry's hybrid-fiber coaxial infrastructure. The cable connection provides users significant increases in speed over conventional Internet services. Leveraging the "always on" attributes of cable, Excite@Home allows for unique multimedia applications that go beyond current Web experiences.
Sputnik is Ready for Take off. The company unveiled its new "Sputnik"
browser on Tuesday, which will be introduced to @Home subscribers in the fall of this year. The browser takes the Excite-branded start page to a new level, incorporating highly personalized content and enhanced broadband multimedia features. Excite's current personalized content offerings (such as voicemail, chat and Excite Planner) are seeing strong demand and creating increased "dwell time" and customer loyalty among its subscriber base. The stylish new portal provides further incentive for Excite's registered user base to transition to broadband. Excite's progress both on the development front and in cutting installation times (now below 2 hours)provides an encouraging backdrop with plug-and-play modems scheduled to hit retail shelves in the fall.
Commitment to Universal Broadband Excite@Home and its cable partners (AT&T, TCI, Comcast, etc.)reiterated their unified commitment to the accelerated deployment of broadband access and accompanying applications such as telephony over cable. Michael Armstrong spoke at length about AT&T's commitment to cable broadband and its vision of a universal network to deliver data, voice and multimedia over upgraded cable infrastructure. He also set an aggressive target of 12 million ATHM-certified AT&T customers by the end of 2000."
What did Armstrong talk at length about?
"Michael Armstrong spoke at length about AT&T's commitment to cable broadband and its vision of a universal network to deliver data, voice and multimedia over upgraded cable infrastructure. He also set an aggressive target of 12 million ATHM-certified AT&T customers by the end of 2000." |
