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Technology Stocks : Westell WSTL -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: jlong who wrote (18228)	3/9/2000 7:52:00 PM
From: Michael F. Donadio	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 21342

The story just keeps getting better. Now add SBC. dailynews.yahoo.com Thursday March 9 4:52 PM ET SBC, Bell Atlantic to Test IBM Web Device By Mark Weinraub NEW YORK (Reuters) - IBM, which is set to start a major Internet campaign, said on Thursday it signed deals for local U.S. telephone providers Bell Atlantic and SBC Communications to test IBM's new line of Web access devices with their high-speed Internet connection services. ``We will partner ... with industry partners to bring this to market to their customers,' said Brian Connors, vice president of net device alliances in IBM's personal systems group. ``IBM will provide the appliance and the management of the appliance.' Connors declined to say how many of the yet-to-be named devices -- consisting of 10-inch color monitors and keyboards for direct Internet access -- would be tested in the trials. Pam Price, senior director for SBC's (NYSE:SBC - news) alliance partnerships, said the company would test the device with a small sampling of its customers throughout its regions but declined to specify how many. Representatives at Bell Atlantic Corp. (NYSE:BEL - news) were not immediately available to comment. In a bid to reinvent its flagging desktop PC business, International Business Machines Corp. (NYSE:IBM - news) has said it would shift its focus away from the stand-alone bulky personal computer to focus on a new line of sleeker devices designed specifically to access the Internet. IBM said in a statement it also signed partnership deals with business Internet services providers LaserLink.net and Planet Computer. ``IBM is working with these companies because they offer the technological underpinnings needed for high bandwidth that support a range of rich Internet applications,' Connors said. An IBM spokeswoman said it had not been determined if IBM will provide the devices to its partners for free and take a portion of the revenue from sales, or sell the devices to its partners. Last month, IBM announced a similar partnership with No. 1 U.S. long-distance telephone service provider AT&T Corp. (NYSE:T - news) The company also signed deals with mutual fund company Fidelity Investments and Internet media company Lycos Inc. (NasdaqNM:LCOS - news) related to the Web device. Connors said in a telephone interview the companies planned to conduct the SBC and Bell Atlantic trials during the second quarter, with a full roll-out expected in the third quarter. Bell Atlantic said in a statement it would test the device with its digital subscriber line (DSL) service, which takes advantage of unused capacity on existing phone lines to offer high-speed Internet connections. IBM's new line of Web access devices and desktop computers is code-named EON for Edge of Network. The company is expected to unveil the brand name for the new line of computer devices during a marketing campaign later this month. ``High-speed Internet access will be the key to the success of Edge-of-Network services,' said Amy McIntosh, president of Bell Atlantic Network Data Inc. ``The use of our Infospeed DSL service as the access service in this test will position our customers to take advantage of these developments quickly and efficiently.' Price said SBC planned to test the product with its existing DSL customers as well as subscribers to its slower dial-up service. ``We want to extend broadband to as many customers in as many ways as possible,' she said. Connors said IBM was in different stages of talks with multiple companies around the world about testing the devices. He declined to name the companies, but said that some of them contacted IBM about partnerships. In addition to communications companies, IBM was initially looking to partner with companies in the finance and retail distribution industries, he said. The company planned to target the health-care and travel industries in the future. IBM's shares closed up 1 3/4 at 107 5/8, while Bell Atlantic's finished up 1 15/16 at 58 7/16. SBC's stock closed down 1/16 at 41 9/16. All of the companies trade on the New York Stock Exchange. Every day gets better. If you haven't bought Westell yet, it is still not too late before it really takes off, but don't delay,-- JMHO. Michael