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

To: Al Gutkin who wrote (3231)	11/17/1997 8:34:00 AM
From: Frederick Smart	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 10227

What's So Great About Nextel? How about the fact that it leads the game in ARPU, new adds, end user savings, total functionality, etc. BUT "mainstreet" magazine editors have yet to really catch on. My current issue of Business week has two pages devoted to the new cell/PCS phones - the winner there is MOT's StarTrac. Be honest, most of the basic line-ups we see feature basic cellular against the giant PCS players that sell to retail. My feeling on this is that all this will end once the 6 oz. phone rolls to market early next year. This WILL be a killer-ap. Smaller and sleek, two phone lines - two phone numbers, perhaps one for personal one for an 800# or whatever - Caller-ID, data-link, more storage, more battery life, fax service, more Direct Connect dispatch directory functionality (which will play big with their Business Networks strategy) in additional to Direct Connect dispatch, paging, text, voice, etc. Nextel goes into the bigtime in '98. This will be a threshold year that WILL put them over the top. But getting back to my central question: what's so great about Nextel? It not only the technology, its the way Nextel is "integrating" iDEN and PowerPhone services into every client's technology infrastructure. I've said this before, but this kind of service is all value-added - something NONE of Nextel's competitors can offer in the same way. This brings Nextel into the inner workings of everyone of their clients and make the Nextel brand that much more valuable longer term. Why do Nextel's direct sales agents sell most of the product - because they act as more than just salepeople - they are digital wireless communication consultants and pushing Nextel fills this consulting need best. As for Nextel getting into the retail market. Their strategy is brilliant. With every Nextel user there are total work and lifestyle change implications that are very obvious - a compounded ability to communicate and offer better service at work, which implies a potential communication benefit to the average husband/wife/family unit. This is stealth marketing at it's best. Get to retail through the backdoor without sacrificing unit-driven ARPU through commodity-type pricing packages, etc. For most retail clients, the entire PCS picture is overkill. Layer Nextel into retail with the extra phone line - eg. for private use - paging, text with a cheap Direct Connect package and you've already hit the home run. Just visit CompUSA and you're family's in business. This technology WILL brand Nextel's value - for better or worse - into the heart and soul of families for years to come. Someone asked me about the Direct Connect nationwide Trading concept - if you want stay in touch with this I'd be happy to respond privately at the appropriate time. Suffice it to say that for most users the more communication you have, the more you want...etc....but offering "instant communication" - via Direct Connect - in the world of trading goes five steps beyond basic communication over trunk line by offering one the means of contacting AND controlling immediately: which is THE heart of the trading game. With Direct Connect, Nextel has a huge winner on it hands and the game of marketing to our industry IMHO hasn't even begun. Look for critical brand awareness increases across the country in my industry - securities - as we move into '98. Again I say Nextel is a very compelling buy at these prices. Good luck!