BCE Emergis mulls sale of TotalNet Internet unit
By MICHAEL LEWIS
The Financial Post - April 16, 1999
Committed to rapid expansion, Canadian
e-commerce leader BCE Emergis Inc. says it is
"re-evaluating its non-core assets" and may sell the
Internet company it acquired in 1997.
Rory Olson, executive vice-president in charge of
business development, said TotalNet Inc. "could be
sold," suggesting that, as an Internet service
provider aimed at consumers, the unit is out of step
with his company's focus on the e-commerce
market.
Emergis provides software and Net services that
allow companies to move from paper to digital
transactions.
Mr. Olson emphasized that Emergis is weighing its
options for TotalNet, which include retaining the
company, selling it, or melding it with Sympatico,
Bell Canada's Internet unit. Both BCE Emergis and
Bell are controlled by BCE Inc. of Montreal.
TotalNet was acquired in April 1997 in a share
swap valued at less than $7-million, but Mr. Olson
said any sale would have to reflect its 39% growth in
subscribers to 57,000 and the increasing value
attached to Internet companies.
The company, meanwhile, says it will provide new
details this month about a contract to provide
e-commerce products and services to a consortium
of banks, a deal analysts value at more than
$1-billion over 10 years.
"It will be the largest e-commerce contract in the
world," said Emergis spokeswoman Anne
Belliveau.
Shares in Emergis, which is 65% owned by BCE,
have been among the top gainers on the Toronto
Stock Exchange this year. The shares, valued at
about $7 six months, are now trading around $44.
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