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Technology Stocks : CheckFree Holdings Corp. (CKFR), the next Dell, Intel? -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Sam Biller who wrote (2848)	2/24/1999 11:34:00 AM
From: TLindt	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 20297

Electronic Bill Presentment and Payment 'EBPP': Real Market Opportunities and Threats 07:03 a.m. Feb 24, 1999 Eastern SANTA CLARA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 24, 1999--A report released today by Netroscope, the leading Internet market-research and consulting firm focused on evaluating cutting-edge computer technologies and market trends, identifies Electronic Bill Presentment and Payment (EBPP) market opportunities and threats for banks, billers and consumers. Netroscope's focus research report confirms that EBPP is a major requirement for customer attraction and retention today. "By carefully evaluating the EBPP approaches, and considering balanced customer, bank and biller perspectives, financial organizations can help minimize risks and maximize opportunities for these three principal constituencies involved in the billing and payment process," said Byron Patra, Senior Analyst at Netroscope. "By offering integrated services, tools and financial software, organizations can position themselves to up-sell and cross-sell products in the context of addressing their customers' specific needs. For consumers, besides convenience, the true value of EBPP comes from additional services in financial management or those offered by banks and billers in a cross-sell situation." Netroscope's recent survey confirms that most consumers are aware of electronic bill payment and an increasing number of consumers are now accessing available channels to interact with businesses electronically. According to this survey 96% of consumers have heard about electronic bill presentment and payment. However, only 18% of these consumers are currently paying some of their bills electronically. 27% of surveyed consumers plan to pay bills electronically within the next 12 months and 34% do not plan to pay bills electronically in a foreseeable future. According to this survey, convenience, ease of access, billing information management and retrieval, reduction in late/delinquency rate, and money and time savings are perceived advantages of EBPP by consumers. "Many roadblocks to EBPP's success exist today," said Patra. "Considering the current adoption rates for billers, banks, and consumers, there will be only a modest increase in EBPP in 1999. However, the advantages of EBPP are so compelling that we anticipate an 'explosive' surge after 2000. It is inarguable that control of the bill will ultimately lead to customer ownership and thus create additional retention and revenues. As such, we believe that Billing is the killer application to make electronic commerce a reality and expect to see banks and billers taking further steps to implement EBPP." Netroscope believes EBPP provides financial organizations with the opportunity to significantly reduce the cost associated with enhancing and maintaining customer relationships. Financial organizations that are focused on solving consumers' financial needs can maximize the return on their investment by working with billers and offering fully integrated and customized EBPP services. Furthermore, these organizations must work closely with vendors whose technology and products are focused on solving consumers' real problems. The report entitled, "Electronic Bill Payment and Presentment(EBPP): Real Opportunities and Threats" examines the key factors that contribute to a successful EBPP adoption, identifies potential market opportunities, discusses bill presentment and payment integration approaches, evaluates various technology components, and identifies the missing opportunities for both banks and billers in customer profiling, billing standards, and new services. This comprehensive study is available immediately for $495. Discounts are available for group and corporate orders. To order this report, please contact Netroscope at 408/562-6350 or netroscope@netroscope.com. About Netroscope Netroscope is a leading market-research and consulting company focused on evaluation and assessment of cutting-edge technologies and market trends, with the objective of supporting strategic business requirements of the industry. Netroscope's services include syndicated and customized research, marketing and sales support services, assessment of corporate and vendor trends, "thinking council" advisory services, monthly newsletters, and daily alerts. For more information about services offered by Netroscope, please contact Netroscope, Inc. Copyright 1999, Business Wire infoseek.go.com

To: Sam Biller who wrote (2848)	2/24/1999 11:46:00 AM
From: Charlie Smith	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 20297

Sam: I wonder if MCI at some point will offer CheckFree or Direct Debit customer's additional incentives (aka $) since the credit card billing option costs them more money. AT&T already offers discounts for direct debit payers, so it wouldn't surprise me. Anything for an edge in the cutthroat LD business. Charlie By the way, WCOM is technically not the first to offer on line presentment and payment for LD. AT&T customers who also use Worldnet as their ISP have been able to see and pay bills online for several months.