My Response.
You have asked for my response to postings lately on this chat line.
A chat line by definition of both the SEC and the VSE is in fact a PUBLIC FORUM and as such will be treated in the same way as disseminating any news or information that is not generally available to the shareholder. If the information contains any speculation, insider information, or forward looking projections that are not public knowledge that information will be deemed to be “insider information”.
I have been requested by S.I members and other shareholders to provide information using this chat line on the following subjects. Divulge the names of distributors who we are working towards agreements with, contractors and suppliers who we are negotiating with, specific individuals who we are working with, changes in design, changes in performance, expected costs, expected profits, expected earnings per share, specific hospitals, ambulance services, foreign distributors, sales in hand, specific time lines, projected sales, etc. etc. etc
Well, the fact is, that most if not all of this information is private to this corporation and “insider information” until we make it public, and not before. We cannot be expected to negotiate contracts and agreements, enhance our business relationships, negotiate costs, provide sales projections etc while making all this information available for debate in a public forum and we will not.
Failure to abide by rules of an exchange by disseminating private information or information that could be deemed to be “insider information” would seriously undermine, or in fact destroy our relationship with both the SEC and the VSE. There are rules for public companies and the Internet is not deemed to be separate for the purpose of public notice. A chat line that is subscribed for is especially subject and the SEC particularly monitors participants for such events.
It is my sincere belief that Dr. Johnson and I have attempted, given the guidelines that we must work under, both corporate and regulatory, to communicate with S.I members and have tried to answer as many questions as we reasonable can. Many S.I. members, call me directly and I address their questions, again given due consideration for the rules governing what can be and what cannot be disclosed. I believe I have always been open to that and I do not wish to change it. It is considered by me to be a private conversation between individuals, however, sometimes that confidentiality is broken when my comments are posted on this chat line. To add insult to injury they then come on this chat line and accuse us of failing to communicate with them.
Yes, our original time lines and projections have not been met, but we believe there is a very good reason for that. We could have, for example, gone right into production after receiving FDA approval in 1997 and that was our intention. In retrospect I believe our collective decision to go into field trials was a correct one and one that has provided a great deal of appropriate feedback for a much improved, better quality, better performing F.A.S.T 1 System. That product is now moving into production and will become available at the earliest date that it can be accomplished given due consideration again for abiding by the strict regulations governing such production. Field trials were extended however, that time was not lost as a better more effective device evolved from that time and process.
I make no excuses for making that decision with Dr. Johnson and Judy Findlay; it was then and is still today a good business decision. Our driving ambition is to deliver a life saving device to the emergency medical market first and foremost. That product is a culmination of all the hard work that we have put in to this technology and procedure and has proven to save lives and time. It will, we are firmly convinced, have a strong demand from the emergency medical market.
In as far as market projections are concerned, they are just that projections, and they do serve a purpose in our business plan, which all should realize is a living document, and they come from a well defined market study by Ference Weicker and Associates. We have always taken the conservative approach to market projections and our business plan reflects that. Projections, in the past have, come from our business plan and we believe them to be reasonable, but not set in stone, and can and probably will change either up or down.
Here again the regulatory bodies take hold and govern what you can and cannot project. In fact recently, as far as the VSE is concerned, projections forming a part of a business plan or contained in promotional material are only allowed to go out two years. We will be soon be at the point where actual sales will take place as the product comes to market and we can track them against projections.
We will continue to govern ourselves according to the securities regulations we are guided by and sound business practice, and medical device regulations ,which we have followed all along. I trust that this clarifies my position, as you're uncompensated but fully dedicated President and CEO. Michael
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