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To: Maple Leaf who wrote (7060)	10/20/1998 11:14:00 PM
From: MD Bryant	Respond to of 18016

Some news on SBC... SBC buys $22 million stake in Concentric By Matthew Broersma, ZDNet SBC Communications Inc., the Baby Bell giant that includes Pacific Bell and Southwestern Bell, announced Tuesday it will integrate the business-oriented data services of Internet service provider Concentric Network Corp. into its own business product line. As part of the deal, SBC (NYSE:SBC) will buy a 4 percent stake in Concentric (Nasdaq:CNCX) at $24.15 a share or on the open market. Concentric will also give SBC an option to purchase another 4 percent of the company at a price of $21 per share within the next three years. The companies valued the deal at about $22 million. In midday trading, Concentric shares were trading at around $22. Softbank, the parent company of ZDNN publisher Ziff-Davis Inc., owns a stake in Concentric. "Our customers told us they want a full-service provider who can offer them advanced services on a turnkey basis... and who 'gets it' when it comes to data," said Mike Turner, SBC's executive vice president for corporate planning and capital management. "The deal with Concentric helps us become that provider." Boost for IP-based services In particular, the companies said the deal will allow them to speed up the deployment of IP-based business services such as virtual private networks, Web hosting, shared software and electronic commerce for business customers. "This deal increases the playing field for which we'll be able to offer our products," said Henry R. Nothhaft, chairman, president and CEO of Concentric. "We expand the potential customer base and revenues we can address through our contract with SBC." Due to heavy competition and low profit margins in their industry, ISPs have been turning increasingly to consolidation, value-added services and to the higher margins offered by the business services market. SBC's Southwestern Bell and Pacific Bell units will provide the local telecommunications link between a customer's location and Concentric's network. Customers will receive their interLATA long-distance transport from Concentric. The agreement will allow SBC to accelerate the marketing of its new product, Online Office, which offers medium and small businesses the benefits of data networking. Online Office Online Office will provide customers with local-area network equipment, services and network-hosted business applications, including desktop office applications, e-mail, calendaring and e-commerce. Online Office will introduce "e-beginners" to basic data and Internet services. It also will support more experienced businesses in expanding their data networking capabilities to include features such as Web hosting, intranet and extranet services, electronic commerce, remote access and more. San Antonio, Texas-based SBC posted a $998 million profit for its third quarter ended Oct. 15 -- up 19 percent from the year-ago period before the $826 million charge relating to its purchase of Pacific Telesis. Concentric, based in Cupertino, Calif., reported a net loss of $21.5 million, or $1.49 per share, on revenues of $19.7 million, for its second quarter ended June 30. For the second quarter of 1997, it reported a $12.9 million loss, or $1.86 per share, on revenues of $10.8 million. Reuters contributed to this report.