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Technology Stocks : MindSpring Enterprises (MSPG) Another ISP. -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Glenn Petersen who wrote (1174)	7/17/1999 1:38:00 AM
From: Mohan Marette	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 1434

Talk Lifts MindSpring Shares Despite the warnings of Messrs. Dell and Meredith, shares of MindSpring Enterprises Inc. climbed Friday on speculation that the Internet-service provider could be in talks with Dell for a possible business deal. Investors think MindSpring is a potential candidate as a party to Dell's U.S. Internet-access service plans because MindSpring has said twice within the past month that it is in discussions with an unidentified party for a possible business combination or other alternative. A MindSpring spokeswoman declined to comment on the speculation. Ladenburg Thalman & Co. analyst Youssef Squali said he doubts Dell would make an outright acquisition of an Internet-service provider because the relatively high valuations of such companies' stocks would reduce Dell's earnings. Instead, Dell might strike a strategic partnership with an Internet-service provider, a deal that could involve a partial equity transaction, Mr. Squali suggested. "It would make sense for some sort of alliance," he said. Last week, MindSpring canceled a meeting with analysts, citing ongoing talks with the mysterious party. The company's shares climbed $1.75, or 3.7%, to close at $48.75 Friday on Nasdaq. Sands Brothers analyst James Waggoner also thinks an alliance between Dell and MindSpring would be more likely than a Dell acquisition of MindSpring, assuming the companies are in talks. But in addition to MindSpring's high valuation as an obstacle, Mr. Waggoner cites MindSpring's "free-lance and free-spirit" corporate culture, which might clash with Dell's more established atmosphere. A partnership between Dell and MindSpring would expand Dell's customer base by accessing MindSpring's roughly one million subscribers, Mr. Waggoner said. The incentive for MindSpring and other Internet-service providers in such an alliance is to secure funding to remain competitive in a consolidating industry. Message 10546855

To: Glenn Petersen who wrote (1174)	7/27/1999 2:00:00 AM
From: Chi-X	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 1434

Dell set to launch ISP, e-commerce portal By Stephanie Miles Staff Writer, CNET News.com July 26, 1999, 6:25 p.m. PT Dell Computer will broaden its Internet offerings tomorrow when it launches the DellNet Internet service, sources said, and also is expected to announce a new e-commerce site with major Web players. Called DellZone, the new site will be a "a place for special offers with top-tier brands, exclusively for Dell customers," according to a message on the site. The site also lists e-commerce partners Amazon, EToys, The Wall Street Journal, WebMD, DrCoop.com,Virtual Vineyards, and Snap.com. (Snap.com is a joint venture between NBC and CNET, publisher of News.com.) Each of these e-commerce partners will offer discounts to Dell customers, while Snap.com will provide search, email, and content. Dell previously had been associated with Excite in its DirectConnect initiative.