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Technology Stocks : The New Qualcomm - a S&P500 company -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Jon Koplik who wrote (2251)	10/13/1999 7:36:00 AM
From: JGoren	Respond to of 13582

Pricing G* and G* asks handset providers to double production: Globalstar's Schwartz on New Telephone Service: Comment Geneva, Oct. 12 (Bloomberg) -- Following are comments from Bernard Schwartz, chairman and chief executive of Globalstar Telecommunications Ltd. and also chairman and chief executive of Loral Space & Communications Ltd., Globalstar's largest shareholder, about the company's Globalstar telephone service. Price for service: ''The telephone operators in Europe have gotten together and the telephone operators in the U.S. have gotten together and come out with uniform rates. The Europe and U.S. rate is $1.39 a minute. I think in most areas around the world it will be a comparable number.'' He estimates average use will be ''160 minutes a month. That's an amalgam of 100 minutes for mobile wireless phone to several hundred for fixed service. Our experience tells us, however, we may be underestimating in large parts of the world. In some places like Western Europe and the U.S. phone will be used perhaps a little less by the customer because they have other infrastructure uses. But when talking about Brazil, Mexico, Argentina, India, Indonesia, China and Russia where there is no service we expect since they've no infrastructure at all, this will be the basic communication tool. Will be used more than 160 minutes a month. On Internet access with Globalstar phones: ''We're gearing up to broaden our service so we'll be able to have greater access to the data marketplace. Our customer can in a limited way use this same phone for access to their computer and internet wherever they are in the world.'' Arrangements with service providers: ''The service provider is exclusive to Globalstar. Those are exclusive franchisee arrangements. Organizations like Ericsson who have distribution and other retailers will be handling other people's phones, but the basic service provider in each territory is exclusive to Globalstar.'' Financial arrangements with service providers: ''We're the wholesaler. Our average return per minute will be about 47 cents. And that's our only economic interest in the service. That's the only participation we have. On other hand, the retailer will set his own price according to his own market and will be around that 1.37 a minute.'' Number of telephone handsets available: ''In discussions we've asked each of our manufacturers (Ericson, Qualcomm and Telet) we've asked them to double their production lines as quickly as they can in order to come up to the requirement that we expect in the year. ''Next year's projections are based on their ability in the near term to double their capability, thereby having phones available for the million customers we expect will be waiting in line at end of this year for those phones.'' On forming partnerships with other companies: ''Globalstar and Loral for the data marketpalce are talking to a wide range of companies in the field. That in some cases is to share prdouction, research and development, share market opportunities, but that's really based on conversations occuring all the time. There's been no specific discussion nor do I expect there to be a corporate realignment. We're very satisfied as we are as a discrete company now.'' Oct/12/1999 11:16