Andy, Valueman may be frustrated by the repetition of information, or perhaps misinfomation would be a better term. He just went through the handset numbers issue with me a couple of weeks ago. And the numbers were restated in the meeting. So there is no need to go to a third source.
120,000 to 130,000 handsets by year-end 1999.
G* has backed manufacture of the first 300,000 handsets.
Producing 40,000 handsets per month year-end 1999.
600,000 handsets year end 2000, at 40,000 per month.
Possible upside is ability of handset producers to put out more if demand is there.
Jeff Vayda's implication is very well taken that the appearance of a second generation phone will quickly obsolete any first generations in inventory, explaining ericy's reluctance to ramp up to much too soon. Same for SP's.
One variable to be considered, however is the Hummer effect. Will people buy the larger G* phone as a status symbol, much like the Hummer has a market even though it's too big for use on the streets of NY? If so, people will find a way to carry it around, eg., in their attache cases next to the latest Vaio notebook. Just a thought.
(Is Andy ok as a nickname, to save typing in the future?) |
