To all: You're gonna shoot me because I don't have a link (my son
faxed me the following information), but it's from Mecklermedia's
WEBDEX "Morning Report" dated March 26, 1998. The article by
Steve Harmon is entitled "WEBDEX Tallies User Values (Or Lack
Thereof)"
He compares user visits, values, and a thing he calls viscidity of ten
web properties including, in descending order of number of February
1998 users, Yahoo, Netscape.com, Microsoft.com, Excite, AOL.com,
Infoseek, and others. Alta Vista is at the bottom of the list in terms of
number of February 1998 users (7.6 million), and in terms of market
capitalization. In addition, their percent value per user during the week
March 18 to March 25 dropped 18%.
Harmon commented: "We're lowering both privately-held companies
GeoCities and Alta Vista (part of the Digital-Compaq bureaucracy) in
value due to what we see as a closing window of opportunity for both
to ramp up as portals/malls/hangout spots and genuine home ports
for Web users. Especially Alta Vista."
In my view, DCLK has an uncomfortably large measure of their future
success riding on Alta Vista's business ( do I recall that more than 40%
of DCLK's revenues come from the association with Alta Vista?).
I don't want to sound like a naysayer after a good run-up today, but
if the math I've outlined above is correct, DoubleClick ought to be
diversifying its economic base. Counter arguments welcomed. |
