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Technology Stocks : Inktomi (INKT) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: garrick le who wrote (965)	3/8/1999 9:17:00 PM
From: Jenne	Respond to of 1945

'Always-on' will drive broadband So says Inktomi CEO David Peterschmidt, predicting that speedy access is coming on fast. By Matthew Broersma, ZDNN March 8, 1999 5:19 PM PT BURLINGAME, Calif. -- You may have some notion of what lies ahead with Internet technology -- but you'll be shocked at how fast it is approaching. That was the picture described by David Peterschmidt, CEO of Inktomi Corp. (Nasdaq:INKT), at a networking technology conference here Monday. R E A D ZDNet Products: Battle for broadband @Home buys into Inktomi's caching technology Inktomi CEO sees Net's future -- and it's like TV More related stories Peterschmidt spoke before a group of elite networking investors and entrepreneurs at Technologic Partners' Network Outlook conference. High-speed Internet access systems, such as DSL (digital subscriber line) and cable modems, are on the cusp of wide acceptance, which will in turn accelerate the already rapid growth of online content, he said. Always on "Broadband is always changing behavior patterns, because it's always on," Peterschmidt said. He cited the example of an executive who began going online five times more often once he had a broadband access system installed. It is this "always-on" feature -- eliminating the need to dial up an Internet connection -- that Peterschmidt believes will drive broadband demand, once consumers understand it. Broadband, along with other factors, will lead to unprecedented growth in all areas of the wired world, from infrastructure to services to content. "This will have to scale like nothing has scaled before," Peterschmidt predicted. How can investors today take advantage of the Internet prodigy? Peterschmidt said one of the most lucrative areas will be value-added services, more than in hardware or even in the content users are trying to reach. Looking for add-ons "Today the telephone is given away, and telephone companies make their money on services that are enabled by software," Peterschmidt said, noting the growth in such services as caller ID, *69, voice mail and others. The same trend will come about in the world of the data network as well, he said, and the value-adds will be video and audio services, content filtering and "transformation." (The last refers to repackaging content from one network to another -- for example, making Web content viewable on a mobile phone.) Peterschmidt and other speakers at the conference warned investors not to expect a new Microsoft to emerge in the Internet world. "There are too many different pieces of technology constantly having to be brought together to make [the Internet] work," he said. "That's why you won't have a dominant player." Cisco Systems Inc. (Nasdaq:CSCO) Senior Vice President Howard Charney, speaking at the same event, emphasized that "change and flow" are what makes the Internet work, and those factors rule out the stifling influence of a single dominant player. "If the Internet were just one company's dominion, it wouldn't be so viable," Charney said. 'Center stage' He agreed with Peterschmidt's views on value-added services, saying that the convergence of entertainment, telephony and data around Internet protocol will put service providers at "center stage." Charney warned that service providers' great opportunities will be matched by challenges just as great, putting Internet service providers into direct competition with much larger telecommunications and cable-television companies.