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Technology Stocks : Visual Data (VDAT) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Fundamentls who wrote (162)	4/4/1999 10:19:00 AM
From: nord	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 405

Happy Holidays to all. A little peace in the Balkans would be a nice. I think we should be getting some more affiliations announced out of Pompano over the next couple weeks that will go a long way to establishing the value of VDAT and its model and partnering:)) This company has just begun to get the attention it will. Content, Hollywood quality production capabilities, the proven leadership of managemnt and now the rollout and recognition of the importance of broadband access over the net. Norden Internet video sector boosted by Broadcast.com deal ------------------------------------------------------------------------ By Eric Auchard NEW YORK, April 1 (Reuters) - The planned $5.7 billion merger of Internet media network Yahoo! Inc. YHOO.O and Broadcast.com Inc. BCST.O, the top supplier of audio and video programs over the Web, speeds the day when Internet viewers will watch and listen to video instead of reading endless pages of static text. Investors responded Thursday by bidding up the stocks of not only Yahoo and Broadcast.com, but a host of rival players in the field of Internet broadcast services and software. Already, many Internet users are gearing up to view thousands of video channels over personal computers or cable televisions using high-speed Internet links. Millions use Internet audio software to tune into hundreds of radio stations, investor conference calls and football games carried over the Internet. The video-viewing technology has been spotlighted over the last six months to watch President Clinton's grand jury deposition tape, John Glenn's space flight and the Victoria Secret fashion show. "You are seeing a scarcity value start to pop up in this segment of the Internet market, said Abi Gami, a stock analyst with William Blair & Co of Chicago. "Some very valuable assets are being taken off the table for the first time." He compared the Yahoo-Broadcast.com merger with deals like the proposed merger of AtHome Corp. ATHM.O and Excite Corp. XCIT.O and the pact between online news and commerce company CNet CNET.O with General Electric Co.'s GE.N NBC network. Such combinations pave the way for the convergence of the Internet and television broadcasting, analysts believe. Toward that end, motion picture company Trimark Holdings Inc. TMRK.O last month agreed to license at least 50 films from Trimark's library, including its "Leprechaun" horror series and "Eve's Bayou" for free or pay-per-view. "There's a feeling that if you don't go and acquire the next best player, you will be shut out," Gami said of the rush by investors to snatch up Internet video stocks, both for their long-term potential and for their near-term status as takeover targets. InterVu Inc. ITVU.O, a behind-the-scenes broadcaster of Internet audio and video programs, surged 30 percent to $57.87, up $13.50. RealNetworks Inc. RNWK.O, the top supplier of audio and video software to Web programmers like Broadcast.com, jumped 12.5 percent to $137.50, a gain of $15.31 on Thursday. Both stocks traded actively on the Nasdaq stock market. RealNetworks' stock acclerated after analyst David Readerman of San Francisco brokerage Thomas Weisel Partners started recommending the Seattle-based company with a "buy" rating. "In our view RealNetworks is the leading arms merchant for streaming media software," Readerman said. Streaming media is the computer industry phrase for programs that deliver audio and video programming over the Internet. Another Internet video company attracting attention was Visual Data Corp. VDAT.O, a company that specializes in producing original Internet video programming. The Pompano Beach, Fla., firm has more than 300 camera crews to film Web events. The stock rose 87.5 cents to $13.94. <b/> Other gainers included AudioHighway.com AHWY.O, a supplier of audio programming, which rose $1.69 to $12.75. Meanwhile Yahoo stock swelled $7 to $175.37 shortly after midday, while Broadcast.com gained $10 at $128.19. Many more firms specializing in Internet video programming are set to go public in the coming year, Gami noted. Bill Relyea, an analyst with brokerage Josephthal & Co., said InterVu differs from Broadcast.com in that it sells its broadcast services under the brand names of its many radio, television and other media partners. InterVu delivers Web broadcasts of 650 radio stations worldwide, and news and information broadcasts for Time Warner Inc.'s TWX.N CNN, financial news provider Bloomberg, and MSNBC, a joint venture of General Electric Co.'s GE.N NBC and Microsoft Corp. MSFT.O. REUTERS Rtr 15:02 04-01-99 Copyright 1999, Reuters News Service