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To: Glenn D. Rudolph who wrote (99361)	4/6/2000 6:25:00 PM
From: mogwai8myball	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 164684

Is it time to buy GM and its PE of 9? GM to Connect Drivers to Internet With New Services By Michael Ellis DETROIT (Reuters) - General Motors Corp.(NYSE:GM - news), anticipating a day when every vehicle will have a dial tone and an Internet connection, announced three new services to keep drivers connected while commuting. Beginning this fall, GM will offer ``Personal Calling,' a hands-free, voice-activated cell phone service, and ``Virtual Advisor', which will read e-mails and other information from the Internet such as sports scores and stock quotes. Hardware for the two services will be included on all GM cars and trucks with OnStar communications service -- currently available as an option or a standard feature on 30 of 54 GM vehicle brands sold in the United States. GM also will offer this fall on the 2001 Cadillac Seville and DeVille luxury sedans a voice-controlled Infotainment System which integrates a color screen navigation system with radio, CD-ROM, Internet e-mail access and voice memo recorder. To maximize safety, drivers will be able to read e-mails off the Infotainment System color screen only when the vehicle is parked. Otherwise, e-mails and other information off the Internet will be read aloud while the vehicle is moving. ``We're offering consumers multiple roads to the Internet, and an easier way to make cellular phone calls while driving,' Mark Hogan, president of e-GM, GM's Internet business unit, told reporters on a conference call Wednesday. GM officials expected a high percentage of consumers with vehicles outfitted with OnStar to subscribe to the personal calling service, creating a significant source of new revenues and making it among the largest reseller of cellular services in the United States. The service will be the biggest single user of the new nationwide wireless network created by Verizon, the new wireless company by Bell Atlantic Corp. (NYSE:BEL - news) and Vodafone AirTouch Plc (VOD.L). ``We think every GM vehicle deserves a dial tone,' Hogan said. ``There's great potential -- 50 to 70 percent of all cellular minutes are completed in the vehicle.' GM expects about 1 million vehicles to be outfitted with OnStar by the end of this year, with 125,000 to 150,000 vehicles being added every month by the fourth quarter. Prices for the three new services have not been finalized, but customers may be charged for the cell phone minutes they use for Personal Calling and Virtual Advisor with no additional monthly fee. The Infotainment Service may cost about the same as navigation system hardware, which costs about $2,000, GM officials said.