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

To: Emile Vidrine who wrote (19971)	8/9/2000 5:35:49 PM
From: Leroyt	Respond to of 21342

My question is about the deal with NorthPoint (to move all DSL business there) and I have read that MOST of the installations for DSL were done by outside contractors. In fact, this was one of the issues the union had raised. The deal with NorthPoint seems to sidestep these issues. I think the MAJOR issue with the union is the wireless business so .... If MOST of the installations are done by outside contractors, will the DSL installations be significantly reduced? Earlier, many were worried about WSTL's available cash. The VZ strike may help reduce the exponential growth and made the near-term cash need more manageable. WSTL has several large customres not just VZ. (although with VZ and GTE it does look significant) Just a few thoughts. There are always hurdles to cross. later, leroyt

To: Emile Vidrine who wrote (19971)	8/9/2000 6:34:57 PM
From: kolo55	Respond to of 21342

Long strike doesn't make sense. Customers will go to other suppliers, either cable modems or other CLECs. Furthermore, Verizon is trying to sign up phone customers in their territory for long distance. Right now they are turning off the very customer base they are trying to tap. Verizon already has a million LD customers, and this potentially is a quickly penetrable large market. In fact, if Verizon slows up everyone's DSL ramp, then the regulators may suspend their ability to sign up LD customers. Then we should mention the fact that Verizon is putting $800 million into Northpoint. Why? Because they want to speed up the DSL ramp. T-1 lines just aren't significant compared to LD market and DSL market penetration... once a subscriber gets DSL it will take wild horses to drag the account away from the current provider. It is simply too painful to get DSL in the first place. Nevertheless, some interesting logic, and interesting ideas. Thanks, Paul

To: Emile Vidrine who wrote (19971)	8/9/2000 11:13:46 PM
From: Michael F. Donadio	Read Replies (6) \| Respond to of 21342

Is WSTL is the BEST BARGAIN on NASDAQ? The combination of Verizon and Northpoint can only be a big plus for WSTL who already has a 5 year contract with VZ. Clearly Verizon is determined to quickly deploy DSL nationwide. Northpoint's non-unionized workforce will be a plus for Verizon and allow it to hire the personnel it needs to accomplish the deployment nationwide. biz.yahoo.com Verizon President and co-CEO Ivan Seidenberg said, ``Our new company has already begun to realize the potential of a national footprint, as our wireless results indicate. Last week we passed the one million mark for New York long distance customers and the 250,000 mark for DSL lines, and we're on track to reach our year-end target of 500,000 DSL lines. Furthermore, our combinations with OnePoint and NorthPoint will take us a long way toward achieving national scale in our broadband operations and putting another piece of 'the bundle' in place.'' ************************ Verizon sold 71,000 digital subscriber line (DSL) lines in the second quarter, increasing the number of DSL lines in service by nearly 50 percent since the first quarter of this year, to approximately 220,000. Verizon ended the quarter with 1,712 wire centers ready to sell DSL services, with almost 29 million qualified residence and business access lines and nearly 14 million households qualified for the high-bandwidth Internet access service. Verizon is currently installing approximately 2,500 DSL lines a day -- double its June rate -- and aims to have 500,000 DSL lines in service by the end of the year. dailynews.yahoo.com Verizon Communications (NYSE: VZ - news) and NorthPoint (Nasdaq: NPNT - news) today announced a groundbreaking agreement to fundamentally change the dynamics of the broadband industry. The companies will merge their digital subscriber line (DSL) businesses to form a premier broadband communications company dedicated to accelerating the delivery of high-speed data services nationwide. The DSL businesses will be combined to create a ``new'' NorthPoint, positioning the company to rapidly scale its broadband service offerings and to deliver compelling benefits to consumers and businesses. *********************************** The ``new'' NorthPoint will become the national provider of choice for consumers, businesses and ISPs with the scale, scope and financial resources to aggressively expand availability of broadband services and applications. The combined operations of NorthPoint and Verizon expect to begin 2001 with the following assets: -- a broadband network, comprised of more than 3,000 unique operational central offices, passing approximately 63 million homes and businesses in 163 U.S. MSAs (metropolitan statistical areas); -- more than 600,000 DSL lines; wholesale relationships with Verizon Online, AOL, UUNET and Genuity, and strategic marketing relationships with RadioShack, Microsoft, Staples, Blockbuster and other industry leaders; -- approximately 3,000 employees dedicated to supporting the new NorthPoint's competitive, customer-focused strategy; and -- broadband ventures in Europe through VersaPoint and in Canada through NorthPoint Canada, addressing the rapidly emerging international DSL opportunity. WSTL is the BEST BARGAIN on NASDAQ.** JMO, Michael