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 : Novell (NOVL) dirt cheap, good buy? -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: DJBEINO who wrote (23935)	10/8/1998 2:45:00 PM
From: DJBEINO	Respond to of 42771

Novell Plans Philippine Rep Office For 1999 MANILA, PHILIPPINES, 1998 OCT 8 (NB) -- By Erwin Lemuel G Oliva, Metropolitan Computer Times. Novell Inc. [NASDAQ:NOVL] announced recently that it will open a representative office in Manila next year, not this year as was reported previously. The announcement was made hours before the local launch of Netware 5, Novell's new version of its networking operating system. In a press briefing, Sam Ghebranious, Novell's managing director for the ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) region, described this move as the company's way of "getting close with customers." He said that the office is expected to open on the first quarter of 1999. "I see a big potential in the Philippines," the executive said, as he stressed that the growth of the Internet has been "phenomenal" in the country. Novell, he added, is likely to focus on several market segments including the Year 2000 (Y2K) problem and Internet service provider (ISP) market. The networking company is currently working on an agreement with a major local ISP on a "new ISP" concept, Newsbytes learned. There are three Novell representative offices in the ASEAN region, Ghebranious said. The biggest is located in Singapore, while the other two are in Malaysia and Thailand. The local representative office will house Novell's marketing and technical support arms. "We're setting up a local representative office because we want to focus on marketing," Ghebranious said. A former managing director of AST Computer of Southeast Asia, Ghebranious carries 15 years of experience in the IT industry. As Novell's managing director for ASEAN, he has geographical responsibility for Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, and Indonesia, as well as Pakistan and Indo-China. Novell, Ghebranious noted, is currently taking a different direction and is renewing its commitment with its customers. Unlike in the past, the executive said that company's higher level management is now listening to its customers. "In the past, we were the technology guys. Now, we're talking to CIOs (chief information officers)," he remarked. Ghebranious also said that another reason for setting the local representative office is to "restructure" its channels. He, in fact, stressed that starting November 1, Novell will require its authorized local resellers to have at least one Certified Novell Engineer. This is one way of ensuring that technical support is always closer to the customers, the executive said. This "requirement" will mean cutting down the number of Novell resellers in the Philippines, which implies a leaner channel for Novell in the country. Still, Ghebranious believes that this move "will not handicap" Novell's revenue. "I have always believed in the 80/20 rule," he added.