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 : AUTOHOME, Inc -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: ahhaha who wrote (2430)	7/11/1998 1:26:00 PM
From: Daniel Liberty	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 29970

ahhaha, I liked your discourse on the free enterprise system so much that I printed it out to keep. I don't do that very often but your words are quite thought provoking. Happy trading. Dan

To: ahhaha who wrote (2430)	7/12/1998 2:54:00 AM
From: Robert Scott	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 29970

Your view that "Competition is inherently unfair" is a personal ethical observation I believe. For example, would you view 2 Pizza parlors on the same street as unfair even though they compete for business? What is unfair about this? Perhaps they will both prosper because the demand for pizza is greater than they can both supply. Perhaps one will do better because it has better service or food quality or taste. Legally, unfair competition involves unethical actions that are designed to hurt the other side's business to your benefit. I would view non-competition as unfair because it is a false market in that pricing has no correlation to supply and demand and there is no need to build in quality. All you have to do is look at Microsoft and see what I mean. The pricing for their operating systems has not come down, in fact I believe it has gone up and the quality is very suspect. As a consumer, you have no real choice and must accept all the crap they keep building in to the bloated operating system. Perhaps this is the price you pay to have a universal platform for development which is in many regards a good thing for all of us.

To: ahhaha who wrote (2430)	7/12/1998 8:59:00 PM
From: Hiram Walker	Respond to of 29970

ahhaha, TCI is going to get run out of Chicago on a rail,ala Mayor Daley. TCI is also going to lose part or all of their franchise in Tacoma,Washington. They lost their franchise in Cedar Rapids,Iowa. 21st Century is the company to watch,they are really impressive,puts both the RBOC's and the cable companies to shame. The only cable company that can ever walk in their footsteps is COX. They have a war chest of $260 million dollars,WOW! They held a press conference,they were so excited,and could not say anything. Well they got the $250 million dollar funding arrangement. It is looking pretty good for them. Hey if they go public(everyone does),why not jump on this company? They have the best telecom management around,sound financing,licenses to provide both video and telephony. Read the press releases,they are competing with both Ameritech,and TCI,and going to kick them both out of Chicago. The old Chicago Mayor Daley Democratic convention style whooping. Well maybe Chicago and Tacoma won't renew TCI licenses. Observed Robert J. Currey, President and COO, "Since the completion of our $250 million high yield and preferred securities offering in mid-February, our team has focused its attention on executing our marketing and sales strategy. We are encouraged to have the sales pipeline filling with significant bulk and ROE contracts increasing the video and data connections to our Network. As of April 30, 1998 we have signed bulk contracts with 26 multiple dwelling units (MDUs), representing approximately 5,000 bulk subscribers, and ROE contracts with 104 MDUs representing a sales target of over 5,000 homes passed. Of these 130 MDUs, 107 are yet to be connected to our network and actively marketed with our full array of services. We expect the sales pipeline to continue to expand as network construction enables the activation of an increasing number of MDUs during 1998." Currey also noted, "The installation of our state-of-the art telephone switching system is on schedule. We have received regulatory approval from the State of Illinois to provide local exchange service, completed an interconnection agreement with the incumbent local exchange carrier and selected a long distance wholesale carrier. We plan to launch local and long distance telephone service to our growing customer base by the third quarter of 1998. At that time 21st Century will be able to offer bundled video, data and voice services - each component representing an outstanding value to our customers and together providing an unprecedented bundle of communications services to our target residential and commercial audience." In April of this year, 21st Century was awarded a franchise to provide cable service to the Village of Skokie, Illinois. Skokie is a Chicago suburb located just northwest of the Company's existing Chicago Area One franchise. Glenn W. Milligan, Chairman and CEO, commented, "We are pleased to have the opportunity to provide our video, data and voice services to the residential and commercial customers in Skokie. These additional 22,000 homes can be served efficiently and economically by the extension of our Chicago Area One DRS Network." 21st Century is a facilities-based competitive communications service provider, franchised in the Chicago Area One and Skokie, Illinois communities. Its leading edge DRS fiber optic network, designed to provide high capacity data and telephone transport and distribution, establishes last mile connectivity which enables 21st Century to be the only ubiquitous provider of bundled video, data and voice services to residential and commercial consumers in its franchised service territories. Hiram

To: ahhaha who wrote (2430)	7/12/1998 9:06:00 PM
From: Hiram Walker	Respond to of 29970

ahhaha, here is the Tacoma article, people building up war chests to wipe out TCI,$100 million in Tacoma. mediacentral.com Tacoma's Public Utility To Launch Cable System By K.C. Neel Armed with a $100-million warchest, the city of Tacoma, Wash., is within weeks of launching an attack on Tele-Communications Inc. by offering a state-of-the-art cable system < Click! Network < that can also deliver high-speed data and power monitoring. Tacoma Public Utilities, the 100-year-old, city-owned utility, decided to upgrade its network after U S West Communications Inc. designated the city as a "Grade B" city and TCI postponed its plant upgrade in the area that counts about 140,000 residents, says spokesman Diane Lachel. TPU had hoped to use those telecom providers' infrastructures toward their goals of better power monitoring and communications. Preliminary talks between TCI and TPU to jointly develop an integrated and advanced network foundered early on, according to Lachel. So, the utility decided to build its own hybrid fiber-coax plant that would do a myriad of things including deliver data as well as video to consumers. The network also lets the utility company communicate between its divisions and remotely monitor gas and electricity customers. Eventually it could offer delivery of local phone service. Hiram