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.

Strategies & Market Trends : The Thread Formerly Known as No Rest For The Wicked -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Junkyardawg who wrote (44134)	5/21/1999 3:08:00 PM
From: JakeStraw	Respond to of 90042

Anyone watching MAVK? Somethings up....

To: Junkyardawg who wrote (44134)	5/21/1999 3:08:00 PM
From: JeffA	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 90042

NBC & IDTC?! GE Capital sees Snap, Net2Phone deal NBC played role in investment; IDT Corp. gets upgrade By Steve Gelsi, CBS MarketWatch Last Update: 2:54 PM ET May 21, 1999 Also: NewsWatch STAMFORD, Conn. (CBS.MW) -- NBC-affiliated portal Snap Online is eyeing Internet phone service with IDT Corp.'s Net2Phone unit to boost its e-commerce offerings, an official with GE Capital told CBS.MarketWatch.com Friday. GE Capital's managing director, Jeff Coats, said NBC had approached General Electric's financing unit about investing in an upcoming $50 million Net2Phone IPO, which was filed on Tuesday by parent IDT Corp. (IDTC: news, msgs). Both NBC and GE Capital are units of industrial giant General Electric (GE: news, msgs). Snap, a Web portal, is a joint venture between NBC and CNet (CNET: news, msgs). GE Capital will own 5.4 percent, or 2.3 million shares, in Net2Phone, according to IPO papers filed Tuesday. See story. IDTC NASD Last Chg. 26 3/4 +0 3/16 % Chg. Vol. +0.71% 763,700 Day Lo. Day Hi. 26 1/2 27 7/16 Open Prev. 26 7/8 26 9/16 As of May 21/99 3:05 pm ET Last Trade May 21/99 2:50 pm ET 15 MIN. DELAY "NBC has an investment in Snap, and they've been getting deeply into Internet commerce," Coats said. "This was a natural. Net2Phone (is) certainly going to be a great e-commerce support and enabling vehicle. We like their management and technology." Months of courtship Coats said that nothing has been signed yet but that there's been an interest from NBC in Net2Phone for months. Snap ranks as the 12th most popular site on the Web, with 9.8 million unique visitors a month, according to the latest estimates from MediaMetrix. Net2Phone, which already has distribution deals with Yahoo and Netscape, would gain reach and possibly increase its customer base by adding Snap. Net2Phone doesn't disclose the worth of such deals, but the company is slated to post $70 million in revenue in fiscal year 2000, up from $40 million in 1999, according to Friedman Billings Ramsey. Analyst Riyad Said of Friedman Billings Ramsey said a "crude" estimate of the worth of a possible Snap deal is $12 million or more a year in revenue. Shares of IDT were up 1/8 to 26 11/16 Friday afternoon. Today on CBS MarketWatch Stocks drop in tech sell-off Jury gets Genentech patent case Ciena beats outlook on lower sales DLJ sets online broker offering New tools for the Fed More top stories... CBS MarketWatch Columns Updated: 5/21/99 1:48:44 PM ET Upgrade In a related move concerning Hackensack, N.J.-based IDT Corp., Friedman Billings Ramsey raised its rating on the company to "buy" from "selective buy" and set a 12-month price target of $38. "We believe that execution of this long-awaited Net2Phone IPO will enable the company to unlock the value and exploit its leadership position in this burgeoning market segment," analyst Said said in a research brief. "This will also enable investors to more easily track both the core telecom business and the Net2Phone business going forward." GE Capital strategy GE Capital's first investment in the Internet space was the $8 million it put into Auto-By-Tel in 1996. The online car dealer went public six weeks ago. Coats aid GE saw an opportunity to boost GE's auto financing, insurance and leasing businesses by backing Auto-By-Tel. "It was a beautiful relationship to get started with," he said. "We tend to work with our sister operating businesses in the investments that we make." GE Capital is nearing a business-to-business Internet deal in the next few weeks, he said. Other beneficiaries of GE Capital Web investments include shopping site ValueVision; Xoom.com; Preview Travel; and Telescan, a financial information site. "We find investment opportunities, (and then) we take it to our sister business and we'll do the underwriting and due diligence," he said. "We manage the investment for them." He wouldn't say specifically what GE Capital's return on its Internet investments has been. "It's on a par with what other investors are experiencing in this space," he said. "It's a very healthy return."