Thanks for the link. I had heard about this mention but couldn't find it on the link through globalinvestor.
Before the article link disappears I'll post it up.
thestreet.com
"Another thing most of us will want on our handhelds
is call management software, which
InfoInterActive (IIAA:Nasdaq - news) is pioneering.
This is one of my few remaining long positions, so
keep that potential conflict in mind as you read on.
For a few bucks a month, InfoInterActive notifies
you when a call comes in over the line you're using
to access the Internet, allowing you to answer,
ignore or send it to one of several voice mailboxes.
The service has been licensed by some big-name
telcos, including Verizon (VZ:NYSE - news) and
Sprint Canada, which led to some optimistic
growth forecasts for 2000. These haven't panned
out, and the stock has settled into a narrow trading
range on extremely low volume.
But there are reasons to expect better things in
2001. First, the Verizon deal, which will give
InfoInterActive access to around 5 million of the
Baby Bell's customers, hasn't kicked in yet. When
it does, in the first quarter of next year, it should
produce a nice jump in subscribers.
Second, and potentially more important, is a recent
linkup with Intel (INTC:Nasdaq - news), which
bought a piece of the company and chose it to
supply the call management capabilities for the chip
giant's new line of information appliances. These will
start shipping in the first quarter, with Intel
predicting annual unit sales in the high six figures.
And a few days ago InfoInterActive released what it
says is the first wireless call management
application. Though this early version has a lot of
limitations, it does let someone trading stocks on a
Web-enabled phone know when a call comes in and
then handles it for them.
Now for the final piece of this puzzle: According to a
source at Intel, one of the reasons it bought into
InfoInterActive was that the latter holds what looks
to be defensible patents on Internet call
management.
InfoInterActive hasn't chosen to defend the patents
from the other companies offering such services
because, says CEO Bill McMullen, "As a small
company in a space typically dominated by the
Nortels (NT:NYSE - news) and Lucents (LU:NYSE
- news), we didn't think it would be wise to start by
suing everyone. ... That's not to say that we won't
ever start fights over these things."
Cool stories, these. But not sure things by any
means. Both of these companies are tiny, untested
and on the bleeding edge of businesses that barely
exist at the moment. So be careful here. Don't bet
big on either until they're clearly gaining traction."
John Rubino, a former equity and bond analyst, is a
frequent contributor to Individual Investor, Your
Money and Consumers Digest. His first book, Main
Street, Not Wall Street, was published by William
Morrow in 1998. At time of publication he was long
InfoInterActive, though positions can change at
anytime. While Rubino cannot provide investment
advice or recommendations, he invites your
feedback at jrubino@thestreet.com. |
