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Technology Stocks : InfoSpace (INSP): Where GNET went! -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Roger Sherman who wrote (26882)	4/12/2002 2:10:11 AM
From: Sr K	Respond to of 28311

From my view, Go2Net was never run like a serious long-term investment. Remember, they had options for 150% of the outstanding shares. Dilution galore. This was done as a project or meritocracy, and the INSP deal was, if done right, an exit strategy, a way to have liquidity. Companies managed as investments need to protect and value their shareholders' interests. IMO.

To: Roger Sherman who wrote (26882)	4/12/2002 6:56:43 AM
From: levy	Respond to of 28311

Regarding this "Many institutions" had raised "bad smell comments"......I do not recall a single institution stating anything in print negative about infospace............if they had it would have been posted here don't you think?????..... and it never was....... as the Merrill thing plays out infospace will be getting all this press over and over and over again about being being called "a piece of junk"....you can't buy press like that

To: Roger Sherman who wrote (26882)	4/12/2002 10:58:46 PM
From: KERRY.COLLINGS	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 28311

From NoGIMKS on the Yahoo board: post.messages.yahoo.com Has anyone kept track of Russ? Is any of this true? Stay tuned.... P.S. Do you still own any CHTR? Cheers kc

To: Roger Sherman who wrote (26882)	4/14/2002 6:36:19 PM
From: KLP	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 28311

InfoSpace warns of need for accounting adjustment From the Seattle Times: Thursday, April 11, 2002, 12:00 a.m. Pacific archives.seattletimes.nwsource.com InfoSpace warns of need for accounting adjustment SEATTLE — In a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission last week, InfoSpace, an Internet and wireless-services provider in Bellevue, said it would take a $100 million to $200 million non-cash charge in the first quarter of 2002 after adopting financial accounting rule SFAS 142. Financial Accounting Standard 142 applies to how companies account for goodwill and other intangible assets. The company says that it has hired an independent valuation firm to conduct the analysis and that the analysis may result in a non-cash charge "less than or in excess, perhaps substantially," of the $100 million to $200 million estimate. 888888888888888and this from The Seattle Times the day before: Business & Technology: Wednesday, April 10, 2002 Merrill Lynch analysts to face interrogation NEW YORK — Former and current analysts at Merrill Lynch will be publicly interrogated in the coming months as part of an expanding state investigation into allegations that Wall Street's stock analysts misled investors to promote companies that paid fees to the investment bank, officials said yesterday. Under a provision of New York securities law, state Attorney General Eliot Spitzer will require former Merrill Lynch star Henry Blodget and other Internet analysts to testify under oath about the stark contrast between their rosy public reports about the companies and their sometimes damning private remarks. In thousands of e-mail messages and documents, the Merrill Lynch analysts sometimes derided the very stocks they were promoting with encouragement from investment-banking colleagues, according to documents delivered to court Monday. One company, Bellevue's InfoSpace, was given a top rating by analysts but described in-house as "a piece of junk." Another, Excite@home, was called "such a piece of crap," even though analysts in Merrill's Internet group told investors to buy more of it for their portfolios. One analyst worried that regular investors "are losing their retirement" because of the misleading advice. Spitzer contends that the e-mail shows that analysts, who were purported to be offering independent advice, were misleading investors. John Coffee, a Columbia University law professor, likened the approach to congressional hearings that are likely to serve as "ceremonial humiliation" for Merrill Lynch and other banks. Officials at Merrill Lynch declined to comment yesterday. On Monday, the bank denied Spitzer's allegation in a prepared statement and said his conclusions "are just plain wrong." One personal familiar with the situation said Merrill Lynch officials believe that testimony taken from current and former employees supports their contention that the e-mail was taken out of context. Spitzer elaborated on his plans in an interview the day after a judge prohibited Merrill Lynch from issuing research reports unless the bank discloses the investment-banking relationships it has with report subjects. A hearing on the judge's order is scheduled for today. Spitzer said the investigation, which began last summer, will include other investment banks, whose records he has subpoenaed in recent weeks. He declined to identify them. He said he plans to use the testimony from hearings to build a case for stricter federal regulations on potential conflicts of interest in the investment world. "We need more than investment banks saying we will build better compliance departments," Spitzer said. He is using a provision of the state's Martin Act, one of the oldest and toughest securities laws in the nation. It provides wide latitude to conduct legislative-style hearings to gather evidence of securities fraud. The case adds to growing scrutiny of Wall Street practices. They were criticized after the Internet investment bust two years ago and again more recently when Enron collapsed while many analysts still rated its stock a "buy." On Monday, stockholders who lost billions of dollars when Enron declared bankruptcy added Merrill Lynch and several other investment banks as defendants in lawsuits, charging that they directly helped the Houston energy trader defraud investors. Copyright © 2002 The Seattle Times Company