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Technology Stocks : Datastream Systems, Inc. (Nasdaq: DSTM) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Shane M who wrote (635)	6/14/1999 11:13:00 PM
From: Wright Sullivan	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 721

Shane- It's funny, I had that same "it didn't click until just now" feeling when I saw how they could enable comparison shopping. Yeah, Grainger has a catalog full of their own part numbers, and so do Wesco and the other guys. In the past it probably worked to mildly stifle competition, but this type of thing will eventually crack it wide open. Do you see what I mean about the amazon vs. bestbookbuys comparison? And, while some of the suppliers won't like being shopped around, it beats being left out entirely. Which is why amazon lets bestbookbuys comparison shop them. And it works out OK for them in the end--if you're only saving two bucks, why would you want to buy from somebody you haven't tried before and lose amazon's great service? Same applies to e-MRO. DSTM gets their 2%, just like a credit card transaction fee. And they have a large customer base to start from. Don't be too put off by the CEO's folksy "I didn't know from internet" routine. I think the point he was really trying to make is that their strategic direction is all basic common sense, very simple, and also that he has surrounded himself by young, dynamic people who will live and breath e-commerce. It was an older crowd of hometown shareholders he was playing to. I was one of the younger ones (at 34). He said that their average employee age has finally crept over 30, or something like that. Alex, the CFO, appeared relatively young, quick-witted, and sharp. They also stressed that their accounting will be conservative going forward (w.r.t. capitalizing software). I'm not saying DSTM is going to be some huge e-commerce outfit in five years. But what they are doing makes sense to me, and big things are made of small, logical steps. Larry repeatedly said that their strategy consisted of making many many small punches instead of trying to make one big knockout blow. I like this approach. I have tried to run my small firm the same way. Home runs are unnecessary. Just hit singles and doubles and don't get out. Next thing you know, you're up by ten. I hope it works that way. If not, DSTM still has one heck of a good software and consulting business. Best regards, Wright p.s. Don't misunderstand me: I think that significant profits from the eMRO venture are a couple years off. But if they play it right, it could snowball rapidly at that point. We'll see.