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Technology Stocks : Phone.com [PHCM] -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: ynot who wrote (354)	8/26/1999 9:24:00 PM
From: Mark Oliver	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 1080

I post this because DDI is PHCM's lead customer in Japan. Regards, Mark Thu, 26 Aug 1999, 9:12pm EDT DDI to Merge Nine PHS Mobile Phone Units, Write off 76 Bln Yen in Debts By Junko Fujita DDI to Merge PHS Units, Write Off 76 Bln Yen in Debt (Update3) (Adds company's comment in 4th paragraph, revised earnings forecasts in 5th paragraph.) Tokyo, Aug. 26 (Bloomberg) -- DDI Corp., Japan's third- largest telecommunications company, said it will combine its nine personal handy-phone system units in a move to save as much as 10 billion yen ($90 million) a year. DDI Tokyo Pocket Telephone Inc., the new unit, will issue shares worth 29.7 billion yen to DDI. The parent company, in turn, will write off 76 billion yen it lent six of the nine PHS units. The move comes as DDI, which serves 60 percent of Japan's PHS users, is again repositioning its PHS service to take advantage of its data transmission capabilities while the number of PHS phone users is stagnating. The company also is trying to present PHS as an alternative to fixed-line service for access to the Internet. ''The market has changed drastically and technology has advanced at such a speed that we need to merge the companies into one,'' said Haruo Taneno, executive vice president at DDI. The company lowered its earnings forecast for the year ending March to reflect the write off of loans. DDI said it expects a net loss of 24 billion yen from a net profit of 20.5 billion yen earlier forecast. The company raised its group net profit forecast for the year through March to 31.5 billion yen from 3 billion yen. The much larger group profit forecast is a result of an accounting change. Under new accounting rules, companies can set aside as assets an amount of money equivalent to their tax breaks. The money is considered as cash reserves. Loss-making companies will benefit from the system because it can use these reserves to help offset the losses. DDI's nine PHS units, which now cover all of Japan, have lost 143.6 billion yen since they started business in 1995. The losses will be reduced to 60 billion yen after the merger in part because the 76 billion yen in written off loans will appear as profit. DDI wants to eliminate the losses within five years. ''DDI wants to merge them to consolidate management and encourage quick decision making,'' said Hironori Tanaka, an analyst at Morgan Stanley Japan Ltd. ''It's necessary because DDI needs to streamline its PHS business.'' The company introduced cheaper monthly charges in April 1998 to retain users and to appeal to more potential users. The company has also tried to attract new customers by emphasizing PHS' larger capacity to transmit data and better sound quality. PHS is superior to cellular phone service in both sound and data transmission because the base stations transmitting the radio signal are closer together, making the quantity of radio waves is greater. More PHS base stations are needed, though, because each is smaller and less powerful than cellular base stations. PHS service also limits the users' ability to speak or transmit data while moving. Personal handy-phone system was introduced in Japan in 1995 and marketed as a cheaper alternative to cellular phones. Competition forced cellular phone operators to cut prices on phone calls, resulting in a narrowing of the price gap between PHS and cellular phone services. PHS customers started switching to cellular phones because of the more consistent service and the lower prices. The number of PHS users in Japan stood at 5.71 million at the end of July, compared with 44.80 million cellular phone users, according to government figures. DDI had 3.4 million users in July, down from 3.45 million users in the previous month. The company also has 5.76 million cellular phone users and offers long distance and international phone services. NTT Mobile Communications Network Inc., Japan's dominant cellular phone, and Tokyo Telecommunication Network Co. also offer PHS service. DDI shares closed at 728,000 yen, up 22,000. quote.bloomberg.com

To: ynot who wrote (354)	8/27/1999 12:40:00 AM
From: pat mudge	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 1080

**OT*** Short term I would put CMTO on your watch list. DOCSIS testing is complete this week and results will be announced on Sept. 2. They're expected to pass, so any rise in price and volume will indicate good news. (They missed last round and the stock got killed.)[next generation cable modems, contracts with all Paul Allen's MSOs, TCI and more. . .] AUDC has a small float and moves up and down in about a 10-pt range. It's pulling back right now. I don't do TA, so can't tell you where it'll reverse. All I know is that it moves fast when it starts. [VoIP, voice compression, H.323 patents. . .] NN is my largest position and management has stated it'll have significant news close to the annual meeting on Sept. 23. It's a long term play with far more upside than down. [ATM/IP networking gear, ASND close comparison. . .] These all pale compared to SDLI and JDSU. Both are energizer bunnies and only for experienced momentum players at these levels. [Fiber optic components for both terrestrial and submarine DWDM systems. . .] The next IPO to sell your first-born for is Akamai. Check their website for their management team. They don't get much better. [web caching/directory stuff. . . ] All in my opinion --- and a novice one at that. Pat