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To: H James Morris who wrote (86735)	12/8/1999 8:21:00 PM
From: Glenn D. Rudolph	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 164684

<<and neither am I>> Neither were the rat's that followed the Pied Piper. <<PRICELINE.COM INC(PCLN) James, This change and that article is very old news. It has been out for days. There is still some selling by Delta. Glenn

To: H James Morris who wrote (86735)	12/8/1999 8:34:00 PM
From: Glenn D. Rudolph	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 164684

NetTrends: Internet's builders at the choke point By Dick Satran SAN FRANCISCO, Dec. 8 (Reuters) - Anybody can put up a home page on the Web in a matter of minutes, but that doesn't mean that e-commerce systems are going to be built with do-it-yourself kits. The deceptively simple Internet, in truth, requires an intricate weave of communications, creative content, information and Web programming for running even a simple online business. And the challenge goes up exponentially for large businesses that need to connect existing computer systems to the new e-commerce engines handling real-time transactions for millions of customers. All are trying to capture an e-commerce market expected by some to grow to $1 trillion within five years. Demand creates opportunity, and a surge in the stocks of companies that build e-commerce services reflects the growing need of major companies to go online fast -- and a realization that only a limited number of companies can get them there. Some of the best known Internet services stocks have quadrupled in value since summer, and a number of analysts are forecasting still more gains. The sector's value derives from the fact that the companies control one of the "choke points" for speeding "mission critical" businesses onto the Internet. They also have a unique story to tell among money-losing Internet companies -- many are already profitable. Investors have responded. E-commerce site builder Scient Corp. <SCNT.O> has zoomed to a market value of over $5 billion, from less than $1 billion a year ago. USWeb Corp. <USWB.O>, one of the pioneers in the business, has tripled in value to over $4 billion. Meanwhile, two newly public companies -- Cysive Inc. <CYSV.O> and AppNet Inc. <APNT.O> -- have also seen market values rise fivefold in just a few months. "I wouldn't call the valuations irrational," said William Loomis, managing director of technology research at brokerage Legg Mason Wood Walker. "We're looking at very strong growth prospects and return on capital in the space for the next several years." The competitive need of major companies to be on the Net is driving the stocks. At a conference last week sponsored by Business Week magazine, Oracle Corp.'s <ORCL.O> Larry Ellison said traditional companies need to watch out for companies built for the Net, like Amazon.com Inc. <AMZN.O>, because all of their operations are dynamically connected to the Internet. "They'll eat your lunch," said the outspoken Oracle chief. Amazon created a $1 billion business in a mere three years from book selling -- thought to be a mature, low-growth industry. Its real-time accounting of each sale, and its firm grasp of vast book inventories, make it a tough competitor for brick-and-mortar competitors. The relative efficiency of online services lets them sell cheaper. A survey released Thursday by CNet/Audits & Surveys Worldwide found that nearly 90 percent of consumer items can be bought for less on the Web. A year or two ago, the competitive threat was being ignored by major companies, or played down. Not anymore. "When I go to a Fortune 500 company now, it's strange if I don't meet the chief executive," said Nelson Carbonell, chief executive officer of Cysive. "That's because it's becoming a lot more critical to their operations. A few years back, you never saw them." The high level of interest is being stirred up, Carbonell said, because "we're in one of the waves that radically change the landscape -- these periods create businesses that dominate over the long haul." An era, some say, like the turn of the century, when Ford and General Electric began a century in the economic spotlight. Even if that exaggerates the significance of the e-commerce boom, there's little doubt that business is booming for companies that set others up on the Web. The industry's growth should exceed 50 percent a year and grow to $39 billion in 2003, Legg Mason said in a rep...