Since my office-97 seems to be on the blink, I'll e-type here instead.
Since Qwest/Netscape and AOL included, have a three year agreement offering consumers a one-stop access to a suite of services, I want to fool around with who-what-why and how much the little guy could setup something just like this.
Considering portal-partnerships as a must, its worth a look.
So Netscape is using Qwest to supply high capacity fiber and communications services. This working with Netscape's NetCenter will incorporate browser software, server software, and Netscapw will creat a single service whereby consumers will manage all their phone and Internet communications. The service will offer long-distance phone calls, conference calls, faxing, e-;mail, Internet-access, and combined voice and e-;mail in a single inbox. You will also have a unified message center, via you own browser-box detailing everything you do. There will also be bank services, shopping alliances, and much, much more.
Considering AOL is now involved, the Portal-of_Portals is now evolving.
You have a service provider (biggest in the world, most subscribers), you have a fiber network (more money to complete this monster connection than anyone else) you have the largest web browser (with connections all over the world). What does that spell? In my estimation, beside the behemoth AT&T/TCI/ATHome/ on the broadband-cabletelephony side, this is probably going to be the powerhouse on the CTI-telephony side.
Imagine setting at your cockpit with all available instruments under the sun directly in front of you. You online, at your homestation, browsing, faxing, talking, checking e-mails and fax's, looking forward to your 1pm video conference with friends from 2 other states.
When push comes to shove, I belive its going to be the Qwest/Netscape-AOL combination that will get there first. Its the conceivable technology that Franklin can set its sites upon in a smaller degree with or without these partners.
Lets try to envision what part Franklin could play in this already formed fraternity. For the sake of simplicity, lets call this partnership, NAQ, pronouncing it "nak" for short.
So naq is going national with this sometime later this year. There will no doubt be divisions within geographical area's taking positions. Within those geo-area's, there could be a task force designed to locate partners.
So just off the top, what part could Franklin play in all of this. Maybe too interlink its network from a position of "we need a portal in which to run our FNet subscriber base, therefore using Netscape as our home-webportal-link.
If you go back and look at the initial business plan, they stated about having all the goodies naq is position now with their, naq's all encompassing webportal.
Why not goto naq, offer FNet as a link, incorporate naq's services along with FNet's, and run both a naq-link-on_net, and a FNet-link_offnet.
You are absolutely going to get showed out of the way if you don't link up with one of the powerportals forming at this time.
Ok, on the flip side, what could FNet do beside working with the likes of naq, and offer their own powerportal with partners having the same size ballpark?
Well you can't consider FNet any more than just a regular telecom long distance company at this time. Thats all they are, no more, no less. There subscriber base is nil, their service is average, but the products are great, or I should say PRODUCT. So when looking at who Franklin is selling to, its other companies wanting to setup their own network. So why not have different tier-networks, just like the AT&T's of the world. You have JBest type feeing into FNet. JBest will setup their own links which will feed into FNet, so what not have an all-encompassing portal that feeds all the way down the link. In my estimation, everyone will have the same basic stuff once this is set in motion online when looking at naq.
Within a browser from the third or fourth tier from below JBest to FNet, to naq, there could be a wide positioning of different services to please everyone. I just can't see FNet being the final one-stop-shop like we had hoped. There isn't sufficient time, there isn't anytime if Franklin wants to think big enough. I've tried i-link.com service's, and there great. Can you imagine a partnership with someone like this within the mid-portal of FNet leading down to the JBest links. This and more is exactly what your going to get from naq.
Within 5 to 8 years, I can see where there could be only two national powers. AT&T and AOL. AT&T buying ATHome, AOL buying Qwest. If I headed up a research-partnership team for a company, this is where it would be.
How about a web-portal site from the bottom up looking like this:
You have customers of Jbest online, using IP over a gateway. You could also have Jbest customers using a gateway-portal, from the Jbest homepage (a hell of allot different than whats there now<gg>), using his local lines, FNet's intranet/extranet service's, and the portals from naq for your final unified-portal into the universe. Of course along the way up, between Jbest types and FNet exactly what you can have on your website, i.e. local banks, shops, etc. I just don't think FNet is headed in that direction, which not only has me worred, but allot of others. If this were to work in any fashion, it should have already be implimented, at least a showing of sorts.
I really think the bottom line here is long term, where we like it or not. Is the fact that having wireless service's via (any communication device) will be the results. IP has caused allot of worldwide major-paradigm shifting, that mount sthelen is dwarf in nature. Its wireless "everything" away from the house, including your connections to your personal-portal, linking into a powerportal at anytime. Its at home links either are going to be either PC or Cable.
If you think that picking up the phone and making a call is going to be different in the near future, I don't think so. Only its going to be CTI or CabTI...computer-telephony-integration, or cable-telephony-integration, and its there portal-powerhouse's positioning themselves again, just in a differnet environment, thats all.
I'd also like to say how disappointed the Internet Services for FNet have been. If you think IP, and web-enabled-services, you had better think about your home-page as your front store. What store-owner do you know in your home town that would not dust, clean, update the items in the window to keep you coming back? None folks, its a given that you are precieved by your actions..... I've read article after article that if you don't at least change something in your web-window once a week, you won't be getting any traffic. You say, there's been traffice to the FNet site, yes, maybe so, but most of it is investors like us wanting to know if there have been any changes. Not from possible subscribers like you think. The traffic count from web type garages don't tell you how many hits come from FTel-SI and FTel-Bull now do they. Its time to forget about company friendships, and think about how far FNet is behind commercial web standards.
Its also amazing how little some of us know about our company. I myself look for news releases that are important, and have substance. If you think that having an all-encompassing gateway with gatekeeper type functions, H.323 stability isn't? That also is why Franklin, whoever makes the judgement on what is or isn't news worthy is failing to commmunicate to possible customers and the competition.
For the lack of better understanding, I don't know why these two functions weren't news-worthy. Can you expect ISPs, integrators, OEMs and others looking into second and third webpages to find these things out? IMO, it was also important to find out that certain exec's are not selling shares, etc.
As usual, I don't go back and proof read my office97 thoughts. <g>
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ps...to me< What direction is the company headed, that is the a very serious concern here I think. Its the kind of concern, that warrants the company's response. In my opinion, thats why I don't see anyone jumping on FNet shares, not even at a buck. Its been 3 years since allot of us have purchased shares only to find out today, on one would even offer a dollar? There are a few old-timers that have offered me .50cents a share, what does that tell you? Friends, it tells me that the investors don't have a clue in the direction in which FNet is taking.
What direction is FNet taking, you can't say that their building a network. What is a network? A network is thousands of differnet things to million of different people, what kind of network are they building, what's in it, who are the players, what niche are they going after, how is it going to look any different than any other phone company being built.
And you wonder why no one is willing to offer a decent price for a company that's been around for 3 years !!!!! Where are the big-time investors pounding the doors off FNet making concessions just to be a part of it all. on and on, and on.........
ITS BECAUSE THE COMPANY HAS YET TO SET A DIRECT PATH IN WHICH TO FOLLOW BEHIND. THE COURSE IS DIVIDED INTO PATHS UNKNOWN, INVESTORS HAVE FEAR !!!!! WHEN DIRECT AVENUES ARE NOT SET IN PLACE !!!
You can't say you have operations in Bosnia, some in LA, some in ??, and hope that people will come and buy your minutes from others, literally millions of other company's doing the same thing. You've got to have a niche, customer base to start with, or something that will drive the horse before the cart ! What does FNet have beside a gateway that Franklin sells? Its not customers from three years of building your FNet subscribers, what is it?
I just hope like Hellllll, someone finds pity on this company and buys them out. I think 4 dollars would probaby be in order, don't you?
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