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Gold/Mining/Energy : Medinah Mining Inc. (MDHM) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Handshake™ who wrote (22349)	6/1/2000 9:33:00 AM
From: David L Kosakowski	Respond to of 25548

And price continues to drop over that same period!eom

To: Handshake™ who wrote (22349)	6/1/2000 9:39:00 AM
From: Mike Gold	Respond to of 25548

Mining royalty firm said to show interest in several companies By Keith Damsell Financial Post (National Post/Canada) Wednesday, May 31, 2000 The moribund gold sector was buzzing yesterday with increasing rumours that a major merger or acquisition is in the works. Franco-Nevada Mining Corp. Ltd., a Toronto-based mining royalty firm, is at the centre of much of the speculation. In an interview with Bloomberg News yesterday, Pierre Lassonde, president, said at least five companies look "interesting" to Franco-Nevada, including Gold Fields Ltd., AngloGold Ltd. and Vancouver's Placer Dome Inc. The company has about US$750-million in cash and interests in some of the world's most profitable mines, including Barrick Gold Corp.'s Goldstrike mine in Nevada. In March, Mr. Lassonde gave a Toronto speech that declared the time is right for mergers "There's so much speculation going on," said Willie Jacobsz, spokesman for Gold Fields. "We've been married off to everybody that's got a daughter." South African-based Gold Fields, the world's third- largest gold producer, said last week it was in talks "with a number of parties" that may affect its share price. Gold Fields, along with rival AngloGold, is anxious to diversify operations and its investment profile beyond South Africa's borders to North America. Gold Fields' Canadian ties are strong. A handful of the company's executives are Canadian, including Chris Thompson, chairman. Analysts speculate several Canadian companies are on Gold Fields short list. It's expected Gold Fields will have to use its depressed stock to complete any potential transaction. The company has a slim US$60-million in cash. Adding to the Gold Fields-Franco-Nevada intrigue was the conspicuous absence of both from a recent high- profile gold conference in Phoenix. "Where there's smoke, there's fire," said one Toronto gold analyst who asked not to be identified. "The reality is there's a lot of things going on in the backrooms. Everybody is just testing the waters." A number of analysts and firms refused to comment on the rumoured takeover, including Toronto's Barrick, Placer Dome and Newmont Mining Corp. of Denver. But many industry sources agreed consolidation is long overdue. "Everybody's been waiting," said Chad Williams, analyst at Toronto's TD Securities. "The industry has been anticipating rationalization for a long time." Gold producers lag their resource rivals when it comes to consolidation. Over the last 12 months, oil and gas, copper and aluminum players have joined forces to cut costs, boost their investment appeal and gain more control over commodity prices. Meanwhile, the absence of creative deal-making has diminished the sector's clout on Bay Street. The gold and precious metals sector's weighting in the Toronto Stock Exchange 300 index has gradually declined. The gold and precious metals sub-index holds a measly 3.4 percent of the TSE 300's value, down dramatically from 10.6 percent five years ago. Only nine gold producers in the world have a stock market value greater than US$1-billion. -END-

To: Handshake™ who wrote (22349)	6/1/2000 11:20:00 AM
From: John T. Hardee	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 25548

MM caught bashing, along with Broker. Company Finds Surprise Critic Among Message-Board Posters By AARON ELSTEIN THE WALL STREET JOURNAL INTERACTIVE EDITION A Miami company that has been relentlessly hammered by anonymous critics on the Internet has identified a surprising enemy among them: a trader at a securities firm that makes a market in its stock. Quest Net says it has won a court order from a Florida state judge barring Jerry Rosen, a trader at J. Alexander Securities, from continuing to post "false and defamatory" statements about the Internet service provider. Mr. Rosen, the company contends, posted messages on a Raging Bull message board (www.ragingbull.com) under the alias "Cats3." The court order, along with a confidential settlement with Mr. Rosen, is an interesting development in a cyberlibel lawsuit the company filed Feb. 17 against five of its message-board critics. It's highly unusual for a company to face criticism from among the ranks of its market maker. After all, the market maker maintains an inventory in the stock using its own money. "Stock brokers have been named in past cases," says Blake Bell, a New York lawyer who tracks cyberlibel suits."But this is the first time a company's market maker has been identified." Market makers are responsible for maintaining an orderly, or liquid, market in a stock, standing ready to buy or sell shares even when no one else will. According to the National Association of Securities Dealers, J. Alexander, based in Los Angeles, is the seventh-largest dealer in Quest Net stock. Mr. Rosen, who lives in Miami and consented to the court order, declines to comment on the settlement or the court order, which was issued March 23 by Judge Thomas S. Wilson. Quest Net's lawyer, Bob Pearce, also declines to discuss the case. "We have settled with Mr. Rosen and wish to move on," he says. James Alexander, president of J. Alexander, says the matter with Quest Net has been resolved and declined to comment further. In its original lawsuit, Quest Net had named only one of the defendants, David Engel, a former marketing manager at the company who, according to the suit, was fired on Feb. 4. The other four were identified by their online aliases. The company hasn't disclosed how it linked Mr. Rosen and Cats3. But companies usually identify anonymous posters through records subpoenaed from message board operators and Internet access providers. But even before the lawsuit an online poster had provided a lead, naming Mr. Rosen as Cats3. Quest Net's lawsuit, in general, alleges its online critics were short-sellers out to hurt the company's stock for financial gain. Short-sellers sell borrowed stock, hoping profit by replacing it with shares bought later at a lower price. The company is seeking unspecified damages and a court injunction ordering the defendants to cease their activities. The company alleged in the lawsuit that Mr. Rosen, through the online alias Cats3, was actively involved in posting false, derogatory and hurtful messages about the company. Cats3 has referred to the company as a "dog" and has posted messages discouraging investors from buying its stock. Cats3 posted a dozen messages about Quest Net from Jan. 21 to Feb. 28 on Raging Bull. One cited in the lawsuit suggested someone was trying to inflate the company's stock price. "Quit pumping this dog and get a real life," it said. "How much are they paying you to pump this stock????" David Ruder, a law professor at Northwestern University and former chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission, says securities rules require industry professionals to get clearance from their employers before making comments to the public about stocks handled by their firms. Officials from NASD, an industry self-policing, didn't return phone calls Wednesday, and the SEC declined to comment.