Silicon Investor (SI) -- The First Internet Community

STOCKTALK

We've detected that you're using an ad content blocking browser plug-in or feature. Ads provide a critical source of revenue to the continued operation of Silicon Investor. We ask that you disable ad blocking while on Silicon Investor in the best interests of our community. If you are not using an ad blocker but are still receiving this message, make sure your browser's tracking protection is set to the 'standard' level.

Technology Stocks : John, Mike & Tom's Wild World of Stocks -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: John Pitera who wrote (1320)	6/14/2000 2:10:00 PM
From: John Pitera	Respond to of 2850

pat Mudge with Provocative MRVC thoughts..... To: brightlake2 who wrote (1722) From: pat mudge Wednesday, Jun 14, 2000 12:13 AM ET Reply # of 1738 Brightlink -- I appreciate the high compliment, but when a company starts acquiring at MRV's rate, I have to ask why. At one extreme you have companies like SDLI and JDSU who've added key technologies to support their core competencies. And at the other extreme you have TERN who's added companies all over the spectrum, almost as if they were running a social service agency for failing start-ups. Where along that spectum is MRVC? If they're really attempting to be another CMGI then I have to ask why each company was chosen. If a start-up has cutting edge technology and good management, their first choice is to get VC funding followed by key vendor financing. Only if that fails do they consider being sold. That's generally a last-ditch solution. If any of MRV's companies don't have good management then they have a huge challenge: keeping them from imploding. The minute a company is taken over, key employees leave, lured away by competitors. What's the burn-rate of the companies already bought outright? What is it for the ones they've taken positions in? If you really want to know what they've bitten off, find out the burn-rate for Charlotte's Web. (I'll bet it's enough to choke a horse.) While I'm asking questions, what's happened to the IPO dates of Zuma, Hyperchannel, and the optical networking company (I forget its name)? I believe these were the three slated to come out first back when I was following the company. If MRV decided to become a technology incubator based on last year's hot IPO market, how long can they afford to support these companies while waiting for the IPO environment to become favorable again? As an investor, I find it overwhelming to even contemplate following them. They've made a pile of acquisitions and now they have to either 1) keep them in-house in which case they need to become profitable or 2) spin them off once they have enough revenues to attract tier-one backers. Recent numbers show that's a costly process: biz.yahoo.com I like new challenges but trying to get my arms around MRV would be like teaching an octopus to knit. Pat