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 : EARTHLINK (ELNK) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Oeconomicus who wrote (2447)	6/26/2001 11:26:15 PM
From: Glenn Petersen	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 2553

Smart move: EarthLink raises monthly fee to $21.95 By Reshma Kapadia NEW YORK, June 26 (Reuters) - EarthLink Inc. <ELNK.O>, the No. 2 U.S. Internet service provider, on Tuesday said it was raising the monthly price of its basic, unlimited dial-up service by $2 to $21.95, a month after rival America Online increased its rates. The price increase, the first in EarthLink's history, came a bit earlier than expected and bodes well for the company's financial performance, Goldman Sachs analyst Anthony Noto said in a research note. "We are confident that the company should meet our 2001 estimates, with potential for upside surprise, as the majority of the price increase should fall directly to the bottom line," added Fred Moran, an analyst at Jefferies & Co., in a research note. "This move reaffirms the pricing power being achieved by the dominant ISPs." Shares of EarthLink rose 12.7 percent, or $1.56, to close at $13.83 on Nasdaq on Tuesday. Its shares have climbed about 130 percent year to date, outperforming most Internet stocks, but still down more than 9 percent from year-earlier levels. EarthLink said in a statement its new rate goes into effect on July 2 for new subscribers and on Aug. 1 for most of the Atlanta-based company's 3.1 million existing customers. Garry Betty, chief executive of EarthLink, said in a phone interview that it was too early to judge the impact of the price hike. "We will see some one-time uptick in churn (turnover) if people are upset about the hike. In general, we are going to see what happens and provide a more definitive set of guidance after earnings in July," he added. Betty said the move puts EarthLink at the same price level as some of its rivals, such as Microsoft Corp.'s <MSFT.O> MSN and AT&T Corp's <T.N> WorldNet, noting that EarthLink still sells its service for less than industry leader AOL, a unit of AOL Time Warner Inc. <AOL.N>. AT&T WorldNet offers unlimited access for $19.95 and offers bundled Internet access and long-distance for $7 a month for Web access and 7-cents-a-minute for the phone service. "I think the U.S. access market is healthy. We have seen access go from a boutique oddity relationship with its users to something that is very mainstream," Betty said. AOL raised its monthly fee to $23.90 from $21.95 in May. At the time of the AOL hike, EarthLink said it was weighing its options and might raise rates. MSN responded by launching an aggressive $50 million advertising and promotion campaign and offering subscribers the option of locking in a rate of $21.95 until Jan. 1, 2003. Both EarthLink and MSN have been battling to lure away some of AOL's 29 million subscribers to gain respective market shares. EarthLink said in April it had 4.3 million paying subscribers to its dial-up access service, with about 3.1 million affected by the price hike. MSN claims to have 5 million total subscribers, but does not specify how many are paying customers, and how many receive the service through various rebate programs. "This move suggests there are and will be little, if any, negative effect on subscriber growth and churn rates for any of the competitors that raise prices," SG Cowen analyst Scott Reamer said in a research note. "EarthLink underscores AOL's pricing power and market dominance." EarthLink also offered a special deal to customers who sign up for unlimited dial-up service this month, allowing them to pay $19.95 per month for 90 days from the date they sign up. Improvements in its basic service include more Web storage space as well as being able to add seven more e-mail boxes for home, work or other members of the same household, EarthLink said. 17:37 06-26-01

To: Oeconomicus who wrote (2447)	6/29/2001 3:55:59 PM
From: long-gone	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 2553

Thursday June 28 11:11 PM ET EarthLink Co-Founder Probe Widens SANTA BARBARA, Calif. (AP) - The FBI (news - web sites) has searched the home of a business partner and neighbor of Reed E. Slatkin, the bankrupt financial adviser who is accused of defrauding investors of at least $230 million. Agents spent at least eight hours Monday at the home of Ronald L. Rakow, FBI spokesman Matthew McLaughlin said Wednesday. The agents sought business and financial records for at least 10 corporations and partnerships that Rakow operated with Slatkin, according to a search warrant attachment cited by the Santa Barbara News-Press. The companies allegedly used money that Slatkin had raised ``for the purported purpose of investing money for others since 1986,'' according to the attachment. Slatkin, co-founder of Internet service provider EarthLink Inc., was accused by federal regulators of mismanaging $230 million that he invested for Hollywood celebrities and others while acting as an unregistered investment adviser. Slatkin, who resigned from EarthLink's board on April 26, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on May 1. Attorneys for the investors have said he may have as many as 850 creditors and claims could reach $600 million. The 52-year-old Santa Barbara resident has signed a consent decree in which he did not admit wrongdoing but agreed not to violate federal securities laws in the future. He remains under criminal investigation, although no charges have been filed. dailynews.yahoo.com