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Technology Stocks : MRV Communications (MRVC) opinions? -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Dee Jay who wrote (6783)	1/20/1998 11:39:00 AM
From: FChang	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 42804

When MRVC issues those warrants of 500,000 shares exercisable at $35, doesn't that mean that they expect their stock price to be at $35 when these warrants expire?

To: Dee Jay who wrote (6783)	1/20/1998 12:46:00 PM
From: Michael Kahn	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 42804

This is a difficult question for me to answer. At the time that I left, they were just conceiving the EdgeBlaster - but they had no real good product strategy - that's why I left. When Xyplex was first formed (early 80's), it was started by 3 former DECies (one whom supposedly worked on the original Ethernet spec). They made terminal servers. As time went on, they got into what they termed the "remote access" business. What they meant by remote access was branch office - main office type of communication (ISDN, ...). Then they made a hub (the 9000), and decided they needed to put ethernet switch modules into the hub (that's the product I worked on). The switch was somewhat of a failure in the marketplace (people wanted stackables, not racks). The EdgeBlaster (I believe) was supposed to get back to the internetworking/remote access roots. Here's the problem tho - sometime after I left, the hardware group dwindled down to a size of about 3 engineers - I'm not sure how small the software group got - but how do you design a product the scope & size of the EdgeBlaster with no engineers? I don't know the answer to that question. One positive I will add - there were some architectural gurus there that were really sharp. If they are still at the company then MRVC got themselves some good talent. There's also a loyal customer base and a very good sales and support organization (or at least there was). I think the company's problems had more to do with the fact that they were bought by other companies that really did not know what to do with them, than with anything else. I remember being extremely disappointed when Whittaker bought Xyplex - thinking that "if Raytheon (a defense company) had problems integrating us, then why will Whittaker (a defense company) have an easier time?" I was really hoping for a comm company (Ascend and Cabletron floated around as rumors)