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Technology Stocks : CheckFree Holdings Corp. (CKFR), the next Dell, Intel? -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Shane M who wrote (8872)	8/8/1999 7:11:00 PM
From: David H. Zimmer	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 20297

Two welcome postings which support what has been conveyed to CKFR for quite some time -- it is quite often women who pay the bills. I have spoken to the powers at be at CKFR on several ocassions concerning this point. On one ocassion the portal iVillage was discussed at length as being a potential partner. They are aware of the demographics and have assured me that proactive steps are being taken. I would be quite concerned if they did not understand their demographic of the potential user who has not signed up. The "ATM" adoption rate is a useful measure when attempting to determine how long it will take for the public-at-large to begin paying bills this way. In any case, it is going to happen and the leader is, will be and will remain the company that can service the customers, both the billers and the bill presenters, CKFR.

To: Shane M who wrote (8872)	8/8/1999 7:12:00 PM
From: Erik T	Respond to of 20297

I suspect that we were all somewhat concerned about online trading until we made a couple trades. My bet is that most of us now can't imagine having to talk to a broker. Free trials for EBPP will allow billpayers to get that same feeling regarding writing and mailing checks. I think we may have to wait out a period of "word-of-mouth confirmation." I envision this as a time when friends, relatives and co-workers who have ventured into online banking and bill paying tell others that it is safe and reliable. Online brokerages have made many comfortable transacting online, and this paves the way for EBPP. If early adoptors give rave reviews about EBPP, then the next phase of exponential growth can begin. I began online bill paying by paying only one bill, and waiting to see how the process went. After all went well, I added new billers as they arrived. Now all bills are paid online and I tell others about the ease of use, etc. When two friends tell two friends and so on, and so on, word gets around fast. I also agree that a small incentive to use electronic bill paying may be enough to get people hooked. People love to save, even if it is a fractional amount. AT&T offers an extra penny off each long-distance call minute to those who receive and pay bills online. I bet this is all it would take. It would be interesting to hear Checkfree's management give their insights into how they see mass adoption occurring. Erik

To: Shane M who wrote (8872)	8/8/1999 7:22:00 PM
From: tktom	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 20297

Noisrider, I look at it this way.. My number might be off, but I thought the computer penetration rate in U.S. households is 40%-50%. Of that, CheckFree will capture some of these users as customers. How many? Who knows. But, at Yahoo, AOL and Eschwab distribution sites, there is a 100% penetration rate..These are choice customers to go after... Plus, if you look at all the "net appliances" in the offering over the next 12 months, there should be many ways of exposure to pay bills. Especially, if the USA Today article of a few days ago is correct, where AOL and Yahoo will heavily promote bill pay at each of their respective sites. If you can stand the wait, it should be big. I receive two E-Bills, and it is the greatest thing to view each bill, and with the click of the mouse pay that bill.....

To: Shane M who wrote (8872)	8/8/1999 8:29:00 PM
From: Tapcon	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 20297

The above two posts raise some excellent concerns on how to reach the bill-paying target audience and convert them to go the EBPP route. I hope the marketing and strategic planning folks at CKFR monitor this site closely. I too have read stats on who pays the bills in most North American households. And I can imagine it would be quite easy for the executives at CKFR to forget that they would be targeting a predominantly female audience. (Look how long the PC game industry took to develop some decent software titles for little girls, tho it is a vast market.) The marketing department has a real (but exciting) challenge going forward. And it seems to me that portals DO have an inside track at the outset. Combine the popularity of those portals with a traditional media promotion campaign which addresses the fears of : Who is going to help me if I make a mistake? How hard is this to learn? And how about this one: Is there a way to immediately talk to a HUMAN BEING rather than a voice menu if something goes wrong! I could picture this as a great comparison to prompt people to try the new method: Show a picture of somebody trying to straighten out a credit card mistake and getting a voice menu versus: somebody getting a human being on the service side of EBPP. Boy! Would that hit a responsive chord!

To: Shane M who wrote (8872)	8/9/1999 12:10:00 AM
From: Big Al	Read Replies (3) \| Respond to of 20297

Shane, your post was very informing. I did have some difficulty with one thing you said. "Paper checks are familiar and they always work." Always work? Have you ever been charged a late payment on your credit card bill when you sent it in way before the due date? I have.They have no proof that you mailed it in on the day you said in the physical world. The e-bill way, you do have proof. BTW, E-bill is the first driver in this ramp up. Then, the rest of the market is measured in time. Time is the challenge, not if but when and how fast. IMHDATGMAKITMO.