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Technology Stocks : VLSI Technology - Waiting for good news from NASDAQ !!! -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Don Ciphon who wrote (4015)	8/4/1998 9:58:00 AM
From: esterina	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 6565

I'm sure Stein will announce a buy back at these prices.

To: Don Ciphon who wrote (4015)	8/4/1998 2:33:00 PM
From: Maui Jim	Respond to of 6565

My understanding is that wireless began as a small back office project over in Europe, and from there gradually emerged as VLSI's number one market segment, with those responsible such as Thierry getting promoted accordingly. Rich didn't start it, but he made it VLSI's profit center. What happens next?...

To: Don Ciphon who wrote (4015)	8/4/1998 5:13:00 PM
From: Joseph E. Caiazzo	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 6565

Don: I'm not one to be sentimental about Beyer's past contributions to the company. His firing was just plain stupid because he is now available to the competition. Wherever he goes he brings all of vlsi's strategic, if not technical knowledge. If he joins Lucent, Intel or even IBM, the damage that he can do to vlsi is incalculable. Al Stein's hubris may just have accelerated the beginning of the end of this company. Every large chip company now wants a piece of the wireless market and they are much better financed than vlsi. Although they do not have the technical expertise to make chips as good as vlsi's right now, with the appropriate dosage of R&D spending, they will surpass vlsi's skills in the next few years, possibly sooner. I don't have hard data on this, just my view after following the semi-conductor market for the past several years. But my point is this... VLSI MUST PARTNER WITH A LARGER COMPANY TO SURVIVE THE ONSLAUGHT OF COMPETITION. We all saw what happened when competition struck other segments of the chip market...first DRAMS, then SRAMS, now MICROPROCESSORS. Prices fell by as much as 90%, no chip co. is making money there, except Intel and their margins are under pressure. So now they all have their sights on wireless, the fastest growing segment of the chip industry. The competition is coming whether Al Stein likes it or not, and over the long run vlsi is not big enough to survive without help. Maybe he didn't like the LSI deal because he wasn't the one who was smart enough to negotiate it. Or maybe he didn't like the terms of the deal (that means not enough dough for him personally). In any case, he has a LOT of explaining to do. Personally I think we shareholders should compel him to do his explaining at a pre-suit deposition, such things are permitted by the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. The shareholders will get a chance to hear him explain his actions and more important, perhaps get a Temporary Restraining Order to prevent the company from adopting a so-called "shareholder rights" provision. That's the poison pill that incompetent management forces the sheep on the Board of Directors to adopt to insure that competent people do not get a chance to buy the company (and take away the present management's piggybank). My argument is simple...the handwriting is on the wall, VLSI MUST HAVE A DEEP POCKET PARTNER TO WEATHER THE STORM OF COMPETITION AND IF AL STEIN AND HIS EGO STAND IN THE WAY THEN HE IS THE ONE WHO MUST GO. If any other shareholders agree with me, e-mail me at skqa18a@prodigy.com and lets explore some legal options. You vlsi insiders..feel free to circulate this note within the company, especially to the Board of Directors. Also send a copy to the legal department. It might remind them of their obligation to the COMPANY, not to the ego maniacs who occupy the executive suite. This way when Stein comes calling on the lawyers with the question.."What should I say?" The lawyers will know the ethical answer.."Al, you're on your own on this one" JEC