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FWIW, Digitalway HD100 news also made it to Yahoo UK: http://uk.news.yahoo.com/030130/101/dpb3l.html
They used 'Drag 'n Rip', and also applied for TM registration of the term. http://www.edig.com/news/releases/pr072202.html
Zack, how do you reconcile this... "Why would a OEM pick up a competitively inferior product? Answer: they won't. Why would a OEM pick up a product six months from being reaching legacy-status? Answer: they won't. Why would DigitalWay OEM the product to sell in Asia and Europe when e.Digital is on the line to them for 5 million in purchase orders? Answer: they won't." with today's postings re the Digitalway MPIO HD100?
And whatever happened to that 12 cent PPS that you foresaw coming 'very soon' some weeks back?
It's really uncanny how inaccurate your predictions are.
Not enough evidence to convict.
doni, perhaps Samsung has decided to avoid saddling its jukebox with VoiceNav... not because it's not a fine system, but because Samsung chose not to subject its new baby to a massive campaign of pre-natal cyber-abuse at any English-language website that covers it. We already have folks sniping at Digitalway; the Odyssey 1000 coverage has suffered even more. I doubt that Samsung would be immune.
Zack, you are ignoring a basic fact... manufacturing electronics has always been a thin margin endeavor, whereas reselling of electronics does not have to be. Admittedly, high volume retailers such as BestBuy, Circuit City, etc operate on a low margin/high volume basis. However, an operation such as the Edig Store has miniscule overhead compared to the aforementioned brick and mortar vendors. A 28% margin is in no way atypical for etailers.
Redwing, here's a little about Digitalway
Digitalway is a leader in bringing innovative digital audio and multimedia devices to the consumer market. Founded by a pioneer in the MP3 industry, Digitalway is dedicated to providing leading-edge products to OEMs, distributors and end users. Digitalway started MP3 player development in July 1998 and grew to become the No.1 digital audio player manufacturer in the world. As the OEM to Samsung Electronics (Yepp) and RFC (Jazpiper), Digitalway grew into one of the world's largest manufacturers and has earned a reputation for the highest quality. In Asia including Japan, Korea and China, Digitalway's products are recorded as No.1 selling digital audio products. Worldwide brand market share is reported as 20%. (as of June 2002. Business Week)
Digitalway's technologies include portable music players, digital voice recorders, multi function digital still cameras, MP3 encoders and multi-function hybrid digital music devices. Digitalway has a hardware/software R&D center, industrial design team, four manufacturing factories, administrative organizations, and foreign subsidiary companies in U.S.A. -- Digitalway, Inc. San Diego, California, U.S.A., China -- Digitalway (Shanghai) Co., Ltd. Shanghai, China, and Germany -- MPIO-Peros GmbH, Schwarzenfeld, Germany. For more information on Digitalway, please visit: http://www.digitalway.co.kr or http://www.mpio.com.
http://216.239.57.100/search?q=cache:H2TATHtoD-wC:www.bizwiz.com/cgi-bin/continue.pl%3Fterms%3Djy8kw....
lickily, the 'wireless project info this quarter' factoid came from here: http://www.edigital.com/investors/FAQ.html
Warning - several posters here are flirting with a suspension. Our goal is to keep this board on topic - those who continually post the sort of junk and clutter that gets deleted are making no contribution towards that goal. You can start making amends by using the Private Reply feature if you feel it necessary to respond to this message.
Interesting new jukebox:
http://www.gogodot.com.tw/products/upcoming/M7170/M7170.htm
SGE, you can print out the full 74 page user's manual from this link: " target="_new"http://www.edig.com/product-support/Odyssey1000UsersGuide.pdf
Sinacull's O 1000 posts:
"So far the improvement from MXP-100 to the O-1000 is exponential. I have only charged my unit and scrolled through the menus and the user interface is excellent. It is stylish and feels great in your hand. So far so good."
http://ragingbull.lycos.com/mboard/boards.cgi?board=EDIG&read=1106059
"The O-1000 comes w/ two pre loaded titles. There is no ID3 tags. So you have to name the folder like "sample music" TWOMARLOWE - You Lied To Me. The name of the artist and and name of the song on the same line. I haven't found a stop button. The pause and play button are the same button. I haven't found how to turn it back on after it shuts off. I have to slide the upper on/hold/off back and forth to turn it back on. I haven't read the directions yet either. Just a few first impressions. You also have to push in the scroll wheel to select something. I just figured that out. The display looks great. Nice and big and plenty of room for info. The unit is a little thicker than I thought but I am not going to go running w/ it. The face is shiny like a mirror so I can see the reflection of my beautiful face when I look at the display lol. That's about it for now. Got to get back to work."
http://ragingbull.lycos.com/mboard/boards.cgi?board=EDIG&read=1106065
"Sentinel, agreed. Wow does this load music fast. I just downloaded 15 songs in about Five seconds. Awesome!! I am up and running. It sounds great too. A lot more sound settings than the MXP-100. I am the type of person who reads the directions as a last resort. I don't like the attitude of longs who think everyone is out to get this company(kind of funny coming from someone w/ the name "sinacull". I have owned this stock since aug 1999. I want them to succeed as much as all. All the best to those who continue to have an open mind."
http://ragingbull.lycos.com/mboard/boards.cgi?board=EDIG&read=1106088
"A little learning curve on my usb 2.0 pcmcia card. First time I used it. I had to "eject it" from the tool bar. Disconnecting the E: drive was not enough to disconnect the 0-1000. I corrupted the files. I had to delete the 15 songs I had on the player then download them again. However w/ the usb 2.0 it only took 17 seconds. A big difference from the MXP-100 days."
http://ragingbull.lycos.com/mboard/boards.cgi?board=EDIG&read=1106106
"I misspoke about the ID3 tags. The Odyssey does allow you to make a 1)Folder ie. Artist 2)subfolder ie. Album name 3)File ie. song name. It is not like the MXP-100 where you only have the Folder and files. I don't know what the big thing is about the ID3 tags??"
http://ragingbull.lycos.com/mboard/boards.cgi?board=EDIG&read=1106170
"If I were to tell edig to add a couple of features they would be the 1)ability to use a remote control 2) ability to block out certain folders when on random play. 3)ability to scroll down w/ voice nav with a "page down" function. When you open up a folder you can see 10 files or songs. If you have more than 10 songs in a folder you can't see them all. I am breaking down all my sub folders into 10 songs or less each. ie Folder "Avril Lavigne" Sub folder "Let Go side 1" files first 5 songs. Sub Folder "Let Go Side 2" files rest of songs. A voice nav. "Page down" feature would be huge."
http://ragingbull.lycos.com/mboard/boards.cgi?board=EDIG&read=1106174
"Yes you can "say it to play it" but when you get to my age I like to look at the selections. Scrolling through them all w/ a wheel is a lot less efficient than scrolling through by voice imo. There are a lot of folder/sub folders and files that I can remember but not all 400 cd worth. Plus the Odyssey is so good looking that I like to look at it while I listen to the great sound. Plus I get to look at myself while I am at it lol."
http://ragingbull.lycos.com/mboard/boards.cgi?board=EDIG&read=1106190
Ron, I have yet to see anything with decent bass response that will fit in any pocket (except headphones). The subwoofer cube I have is roughly 6" square by 8" high; the satellite speakers are approx. 3" wide, 6" high, and 3/4" thick. The whole setup fits easily in a suitcase. I'm sure Creative's unit sounds fine, but I have this thing about separation; to me, speakers less than 6-8' apart just don't produce enough stereo effect.
milplease, I have a set of these to use with my jukebox:
http://www.cyberacoustics.com/process/index.cfm?fuseaction=products&category=Speakers&model=...
Picked them up at Office Max on sale fo $9.95 after rebates; sound is excellent.
Digital Drivel might be more applicable in one or more recent cases.
Well, austonia; lets see how the pros do MP3 file management shall we? ...
"I got a Creative Labs Nomad Jukebox for Christmas - you know, one of those MP3 players that holds a lot of songs? Those babies aren't cheap. Amazon lists it for $235.
Last week I tried to connect it to my Windows XP/Home machine. (Hey, I've been busy. What can I say?) I plugged it into a USB slot on the PC, brought up the Windows Media Player, and... nothing. Zip. Nada. Neither WMP nor WinXP even "saw" the Nomad.
Oh boy. Driver time. I hopped over to Creative's Web site. "Creative has released Microsoft Windows XP-compatible drivers to enhance your digital entertainment experience. By leveraging on Windows XP's reliability, performance and integrated digital entertainment features, Creative products now offer you new levels of simplicity and enjoyment. Although Windows XP already includes built-in support for most of the NOMAD digital audio players, Creative has further optimized the drivers to take full advantage of the new Microsoft operating system." Oh boy.
To make a very, very long story short...
I downloaded and applied the firmware updates.
I downloaded and installed the Windows XP drivers. They worked! Yipppeee! Windows Media Player actually saw my Nomad. I got one song transferred from my PC to the Nomad Jukebox, when I suddenly discovered that WMP couldn't do anything with the songs on the Jukebox. It couldn't set up playlists - didn't even recognize the playlists I already had. It couldn't delete tracks on the Jukebox. It couldn't transfer songs from the Jukebox to the PC. It couldn't do squat, except transfer individual tracks from the PC to the Jukebox.
I contacted Microsoft. Guess what? The Nomad uses an incompatible file structure. Nobody at Creative figures it's important enough to make the Nomad Jukebox work with the Windows Media Player. Nobody at Microsoft figures they should be writing drivers for Creative.
So I installed Creative's software for the Nomad from the CD that came with the player. It's called PlayCenter 2, and the CD that came with the Jukebox included version 1.01.71.0. That should've tipped me off, right there. Can you imagine a version 1.01 driver that's gone through 71 updates? Anyway, I installed it, double-clicked on the icon, and Creative PlayCenter 2 informed me that I needed to upgrade to version 2.50 from the Creative Web site before I could work with the Jukebox.
So I went back to Creative's Web site, downloaded and installed the version update for Windows XP. Hours later, I double-clicked on the new, improved PlayCenter 2 icon - and PlayCenter froze; the splash screen wouldn't even budge, and it hid the PlayCenter itself.
I found myself, days later, juggling with the original version of PlayCenter, a set of updated Windows XP drivers, an update to PlayCenter - and no indication of which package needs to be installed before the others. Every way I tried, Creative's software locks up Windows XP. The whole thing's a mess. And I have a $235 Nomad Jukebox that doesn't work worth beans.
I've been struggling with Creative's lousy software since the days of the first 8-bit SoundBlaster. I've probably lost weeks, in total, to all of the Creative Labs driver screw-ups I've wallowed through in the ensuing ten years.
Now I'm mad enough to throw the Nomad Jukebox out the window."
http://www.woodyswatch.com/winxp/archtemplate.asp?2-n07
Hmmmm... On my $179 Classic XP3 10 GB jukebox (designed by e.Digital), I simply let MusicMatch & CDDB label all my tracks, cut 'n paste the artist and album names into the player's directory before downloading to the player (takes all of 30 seconds), then load 'em up. And navigation is a breeze, since the 3 levels of info (all of which are displayed whenever the player is on) allow me to zero in on a particular track without having to scroll thru a bunch of other tracks. Still, the playlist option (as well as the exclusive voice nav feature) might make me want to move up to the Odyssey.
WHAT'S NEXT AFTER THIS NEXT SONY CLIE?
Wednesday, January 29, 2003
Sony is on a tear with the latest version of its Clie Palm OS PDA, the PEG-NZ90. What makes this $799 (retail list) handheld so interesting is the integration of a 2 megapixel camera and MPEG 4 movie recording and playback. It has an empty slot for Sony's own $149 (read overpriced) 802.11b card, but has Bluetooth built in. I think it should have been the other way around. It still requires Sony's Memory Stick Flash RAM media for movie or MP3 audio playback, though. These handhelds, which are rapidly leaving behind their roles as personal info managers in favor of portable media players and communicators, scream out for tiny hard drives, like Toshiba's 20 GB PCMCIA drives that are in Apple's iPod, or Hitachi's upcoming 4 GB Microdrive. And Sony has opted to use a 200 MHz processor rather than a faster CPU, too. Obviously, the generation of these things that will catch on -- regardless of which operating system is running it -- will be a model that is still pocketable while offering digital photo functions, MPEG 4 recording and playback, movie playback (from a variety of codecs), wireless connectivity to a phone network, wireless LAN, MP3 audio (now a triviality), and some form of visual real-time communication via the wireless phone network or wireless LAN, at least 10 GB of HDD storage. Oh, yes, one more thing: a pricetag south of $400. Can't happen soon? Look at the current generation of PocketPC handhelds, now offered at a sub-$300 price point. If I had to bet on this, I'd put it at 24 to 30 months from happening.
IT'S THE CODEC, STUPID
Monday, January 27, 2003
(Note: this is long, but if you read it, I think you'll be ahead of the game.) You've often heard the manta chanted: "the Internet changes everything." No doubt, that's true in many cases. But for the entertainment business -- music, and now film and video -- the agent of change is not the necessarily Internet itself, but the codec. A codec, as you know, is that piece of digital software that allows wide-bandwidth audio, video and images to be compressed and uncompressed (coded and decoded, hence the name) so that they can be conveyed on modern (read "slow") data networks. It is not the Internet that is causing the near collapse of the music business, but the codec known as MP3, formally known as MPEG Audio Part 3. Indeed, the Internet is the means of conveyance for these compressed files, but without Fraunhofer's MP3 codec, the Internet would be of little use in the conveyance of audio files, since a 74-minute CD is 650 megabytes in size, vs. approximately 1/11th of that size when compressed in a manner most listeners find acceptable. Nobody, even on a cable modem, would wait all day to download a single CD. But an hour is an acceptable length of time.
Now, once you change your thinking to being codec-centric, not network centric, you get a much better idea of what is in store for the motion picture and television businesses. This is because the digital revolution is not either network-oriented or packaged media-oriented, but will remain, just as it is today, accommodating of both delivery methods. Audiences (users) are fond of packaged media because they love to build libraries in which physical objects represent information and entertainment assets, and they like new high-capacity media like DVDs because of what they mean to quality. Yet these same customers also want the flexibility that easy-to-convey digital files convey, especially as more new hardware to play them -- most of which are networkable -- are introduced. The network is the highway that runs between the library shelf and the new consumer media hardware, and customers (as we have seen with MP3) are willing to trade a little quality for flexibility and portability.
It is this error in accurately identifying the codec as the agent of change that caused, in my opinion, the collapse of the SDMI, the music business's Secure Digital Music Initiative that was intended to solve the record labels' problems with a wave of the technology wand. You might also argue that another fundamental flaw -- like the assumption the rest of the world would go along with what was ostensibly an American solution -- did in SDMI. But I believe it was the fact that the self-absorbed SDMI bunch was entirely focused on networked audio devices like the RIO MP3 player and similar portable music players based on Flash RAM cards. I think SDMI was undone, in the end, by the 25-cent recordable CD, since there was no provision for an SDMI solution that covered CD players capable of playing CD-ROMs containing MP3 files. It was a HUGE hole in their thinking, and caused, no doubt, because they were not codec-centric in their thinking. While there are still Flash RAM MP3 players on the market, they are few and comparatively expensive. There are lots of cheap MP3 CD players and boom boxes, though.
Unbeknownst to the vast number of entertainment company executives, they are marching into the same maw as the SDMI guys because they haven't yet figured out that it's the codec that counts. If you mention H.264, the new and impressive codec also known as MPEG 4, Part 10, the average entertainment business person will glaze over. Yet this codec -- or Windows Media 9, or DivX or another as-yet-uninvented video codec -- will permanently change their business. If you simply consider how MPEG 2 was a vast improvement in quality and efficiency over MPEG 1, and permitted digital video to match or surpass the quality of the best analog video (at least to viewers), you'll understand the implications of this next generation of codecs. First, because these new codecs are more efficient (MPEG 2 is anything but), bit rates will be much lower, and so file sizes will be dramatically smaller. The importance, here, is two-fold. First, of course, the files can be more easily conveyed on the Internet. A file download that would have taken a day as an MPEG 2 file, can now be sent in real time, or near-real time over a typical cable modem or DSL wire. (See the similarity to the MP3 vs. CD situation, here?) This makes digital delivery of files (if not actual video on demand) practical almost immediately, opens the door for the telcos to deliver video products, and the studios to directly deliver their movies. And, second, it renders the recordable DVD moot, since a two-hour movie at near-DVD quality can now be stored on a single recordable CD at a bit rate of 800 kbps or less. This, in turn, means that they will be multiple millions of recording and duplication devices capable of duplicating movies -- CD burners -- already in place in American homes. The cost of a blank disc to record a movie drops to a quarter (or whatever CD blanks are these days), and the recordable DVD, then, becomes the leading candidate for recording high-definition content at home.
This is hilarious, because the arrival of HDTV packaged media is currently being debated long and hard by the entertainment business and consumer electronics behemoths. One aspect of this debate is between camps supporting the new Blu-Ray disc format -- an expensive, technologically sophisticated disc with a much higher capacity -- vs the original "red ray" disc, the conventional DVD encoded either with improved MPEG 2 video or, as Toshiba demonstrated at CES, encoded with the new H.264 codec. The debate is focused on which disc to use to introduce playback-only HDTV DVDs to the consumer market, but along the way, the answer to the problem of recording HDTV at home just got solved. Of course you'll use the current DVD-R (or +RW, or whatever), because with one of these new codecs, you'll get acceptable performance at home without the need for the new, ritzy, expensive Blu-Ray media and new burners. HDTV disc recorders might be on the market tomorrow (figuratively, if not literally) if you simply buy into one of the new codecs. But, if you're stuck on MPEG 2 as the proponents of the Blu-Ray disc are, then you'll wait considerably longer for the debate to settle down, the politics of who gets what licensing money to be solved, and to decide which digital rights management system is finally adopted. At that rate, HDTV, already in the middle of a long, painful labor, may be stillborn before it begins life. Even worse for the entertainment business and the big CE manufacturers, this delay opens the door for a renegade company (or group of companies) to introduce a High-Def video recorder based on the current DVD burner hardware and H.264 as a fait accompli, relegating their effort to the same round file in which SDMI now resides.
Now, some entertainment industry technology guys have already dismissed H.264, DivX and Windows media as not having the horsepower to get the job done. One of my studio friends sniffed at the Toshiba HDTV demo using H.264. "Unacceptable," he said. I reminded him that that was my opinion exactly the first time he showed me a DVD movie encoded with an early version of MPEG 2. But MPEG 2 got better -- much better -- just as these new codecs will.
The new codecs are also why I am so enamored of the new networked media players -- those settop boxes that play video, audio and image files stashed on you PC on a living room TV set or stereo. DivX and Windows Media 9 mean they will play movies with fidelity that comes surprisingly close to DVD, and gives me the flexibility to enjoy a massive MP3 library in the living room with guests.
My studio friend isn't dumb. He's quite smart, actually, but I don't think he understand that it is the codec that changes everything. This is the reason why music industry guys are going to be taking early retirement, and why the movie and TV companies don't yet understand what is causing the profound change in their businesses.
It's the codec, stupid.
http://mishima.onosko.com/~tim/2003_01_01_Archive.html
Sharp eyes pocket video - Portable MPEG player on sale in Japan
Sharp Electronics has developed a pocket-sized video recorder and player that can store and play a full episode of "The Sopranos" in high-quality video.
Sharp's customers in Japan can buy the player now and use it to watch movies or TV shows on their lunch breaks or while they ride the bullet trains.
But it may be a year or more before the player is available in the United States.
The player was on display last week in the Sharp booth at CEATEC, Japan's version of the annual Consumer Electronics Show. It's also for sale in a few stores in the Akihabara, Tokyo's famous electronics shopping neighborhood.
The Portable AV Player has a color LCD screen that's about 2.5 inches square built onto hard plastic frame. Record, play, pause, forward and reverse controls are built into the top of the frame.
The device can be held in your hand or positioned like a picture frame on a desk to other hard surface.
The unit uses the MPEG-4 video format, which compresses video images but retains a high level of resolution and detail. The samples playing on Sharp's demo units matched the quality of broadcast images displayed on a similar-sized screen.
The player that Sharp sells in Japan comes with 64MB of storage in its internal memory. That's enough storage to hold about one hour of video.
The units also had a slot to accept an SD memory card, which currently offer up to 128MB of memory.
Theoretically, a user could store an entire feature film on one of Sharp's players. But company officials said the battery used in the player would run out before the movie ends.
Sharp officials said they want to increase battery life and lower the price of the player before bringing it to the U.S. market.
The units on sale in Japan carry a list price that equates to about $350. Sharp thinks that's too expensive for teenagers, the group that it thinks will be most interested in the player.
The player would also benefit from a more convenient source of program content, such as programs pre-recorded on SD cards.
Anyone wanting to use the player to watch a TV show would have to record the program in digital form on a computer, convert the file to the MPEG-4 format, then download it to the player.
Only the most tech-savvy teenager -- or the most devoted "Friend" fan -- would tackle a chore like that.
http://portables.about.com/library/weekly/aa101002.htm
Gil, this one may have slipped thru our DD web:
(as far as the multi-codec thing, I'm still looking)
ViewSonic Announces Initiative to Enter Portable Video Player Category
ViewSonic PVP Expected to Be One of the First in Portable Video Player Category
January 2003 (Newstream) -- At the Consumer Electronics Show (CES), ViewSonic® Corp., a worldwide Visual Technologies™ leader, on January 9 announced plans to participate in a Microsoft® and Intel® initiative to create a new category of mobile devices -- the portable video player.
The Visual Technologies leader will extend its brand through the creation of a portable video player, tentatively called the ViewSonic PVP (Portable Video Player), designed to build upon its current offerings in the entertainment arena, including the M2000 and M1000 Digital Media Centers that are also being announced at CES. The ViewSonic PVP combines the functionality of a MP3 jukebox, a portable DVD player and a digital photo album -- all in a single portable device -- making it the most complete method for users to enjoy all their favorite digital content while on the go.
Among the first portable media players built upon Microsoft's Media2Go platform, the ViewSonic PVP features a 3.5-inch 240X320 color display and a 10GB hard drive that is large enough to store up to seven hours of video content.
"Over the last few years, ViewSonic has taken great steps in making visual technology portable through products such as our Tablet PCs, Pocket PCs and Smart Displays," said Marc McConnaughey, senior vice president, Advanced Technology Group, ViewSonic. "The ViewSonic PVP combines this mobile experience with our growing multimedia capabilities to bring consumers the freedom to play and view all of their digital content with one compact device."
ViewSonic's creation of the product stems from the desires of more than 50 percent of U.S. PC households that want to use their computer to listen to music, write CDs and view photos, according to Forrester Research's Consumer Technographics May 2002 report. With the ViewSonic PVP, consumers can access these entertainment files when in or outside the home.
Expected to be available in the fall of 2003, the ViewSonic PVP will be sold through authorized ViewSonic resellers. Photos of the ViewSonic PVP prototype are available at: www.viewsonic.com/productimages. Pricing is not yet available.
Visitors to CES 2003 at the Las Vegas Convention Center from January 9-12, 2003, can learn more about the ViewSonic PVP and experience the company's display products -- including Smart Displays, Tablet PCs, Pocket PCs, LCD TVs, Digital Media Centers, projectors, LCDs, CRTs, and plasma displays -- by stopping by the ViewSonic booth # 35021.
About ViewSonic
ViewSonic Corporation, a Visual Technologies leader, offers comprehensive display solutions for today's business, Internet, education and entertainment markets. The company's products have won more than 1,000 awards globally from independent publications and organizations.
Headquartered in Walnut, Calif., ViewSonic was founded in 1987 and is a privately held corporation. For further information, please contact ViewSonic Corporation at tel: 800-888-8583 or 909-869-7976; fax: 909-468-3736; or www.ViewSonic.com.
Trademark footnote: All corporate names and trademarks
Link to Odyssey 1000 manual:
http://www.edig.com/product-support/Odyssey1000UsersGuide.pdf
50+, here's a little tidbit re PortalPlayer and cellular:
...Portalplayer, a pre-IPO company, is among the few IT companies which covers the entire gamut of hardware, software, embedded firmware and software solutions bundled into one.
"The response to our solutions has been very positive. With digital solutions for encoding and decoding in demand world over, this will be a sought after technology", Mr Mallard said.
"We are also working with a few cellular companies. With technologies such as Bluetooth, we will be able to connect a host of gadgets in an environment." (Mallard is CEO of PortalPlayer)
http://www.blonnet.com/businessline/2001/01/31/stories/153139ee.htm
Oh dear, jtdiii; this is going from bad to worse. EDIG never traded above 14 cents in 1998. What matters is your credibility, which appears, from the 'facts' you purport, to be sorely lacking.
jtdiii, you stated that you bought into EDIG in 1997 at $1.25.... how do you reconcile this with the fact that EDIG never traded above $1.16 that year, and only traded above $1 on 1 day?
jtdiii, you are free to interpret my remarks in whatever fashion you wish. Your interpretation, however, may be erroneous.
CDR, AA had this to say about Echostar-type services:
"...employees have in recent months written to the alaskasworld.com suggestion box proposing installation of satellite TV on Alaska aircraft flying long-haul routes. It would be a competitive trump card, they say."
"It's an amenity that we would like to be able to offer," says Dave Palmer, managing director of marketing. "The problem is that systems currently available to us are too costly."
"Specifically: The cost of installing an in-flight entertainment system, such as LiveTV, averages $500,000 per aircraft. In other words, equipping just 20 of Alaska's 102 aircraft would run $10 million."
Additional fuel burn stemming from the added weight of the system's hardware would be considerable. There are fees for the programming itself."
In other words, 'nulis prenti'.
jtdiii, if I'm not mistaken, the PR from APS and EDIG was issued in late October of 2002, which is at least a month AFTER the convention you cite. Has it crossed your mind that APS may not have had anything worthy of display at said convention, given that their previous stock in trade was cargo loader bumpers, cockpit door barriers, etc. (somehow I don't see those as being a big draw at an IFE expo). And while I'm on the subject, where do you suppose a poor ramp attendant found the spare change to fund a private corporation, website, and the sundry other obligatory accoutrements needed to market (or license for manufacture) the aforesaid products? Get real; the poor dude is grossing $30K a year or less at AA. Does the term 'silent partner' seem appropriate in this case? Or did some AA VP just feel charitable enough to hook said ramp attendant up with all those accoutrements. Since APS is a private company, that info just isn't out there for us to peruse. At this point, ya gotta go with instincts.
What else did Alaskan Airlines say???....
"We continue to watch the market and explore new systems to see if we can find a financially viable solution and, in fact, are still in discussions with a couple of in-flight entertainment providers. At this point, though, nothing on the market pays for itself," Palmer says.
A more realistic near-term approach is to make DVD players and movies--currently offered complimentary to first-class customers on long-haul flights--available for a fee in coach.
So, later this fall, Alaska plans to launch an agreement with InMotion Pictures, with outlets at many Alaska airports on the West Coast, to offer customers discounts on rentals of DVD players and movies. Customers will be able to go to alaskaair.com and, after making their air reservation, link to InMotion to reserve units online."
So we got near-term DVD rentals that were to be implemented in the fall of 2002. What steps will be taken beyond that remain conjecture at this point. What steps have been ruled out are not evident from the article. Which makes jtdiii look rather presumptious in my book. (With all due respect, of course.) Furthermore, given the timing of the article (published 9/02 so probably a final edit in early 8/02), it would seem that the EDIG/APS PR of 10/23/02 could indicate that AA decided to explore opportunities beyond the InMotion solution. JMH&PO, of course
http://www.alaskasworld.com/news/2002/09/30_entertainmentoptions.asp
Despite any negative opinions expressed in the cloned TorF post, the fact remains that there is genuine, verifiable information in it that may be of interest to EDIG investors. That is the primary reason it was considered for resurrection. Despite the frequent accusations of various malcontents, this board is not devoted solely to EDIG cheerleaders.
Also, I would like to remind all posters that we have certain rules regarding post content and acceptable topics. (See http://www.investorshub.com/boards/read_msg.asp?message_id=125939 ; PM me if you need clarification.) If the level of off-topic postings doesn't return to acceptable levels, it may be necessary to enforce the rules a little more strenuously. Various chatrooms and boards are available for OT chit-chat, as well as the Private Reply feature. Please use them when appropriate and keep this board focused on its declared subject.
In response to requests from several longs, the following post from 'Spongebob1997' is being reinstated, sans some OT musings; draw your own conclusions as to its merit:
Posted by: SPONGEBOB1997
In reply to: sky56 who wrote msg# 28011 Date:1/27/2003 8:25:43 PM
Post #of 28012
Important DD on APS:
(Note: this is a bit long, but very worth it. It will surprise most of you).
On 10/23/02, e.Digital released the following PR about a partnership with "APS" to develop and market in-flight entertainment (IFE) systems:
http://www.edig.com/news/releases/pr102302.html
In the FAQ section of the EDIG website, management state (regarding this IFE relationship): "We view this as one of the major developments for e.Digital for this year and in years to come. Becoming part of the infrastructure that supports our IFE systems may generate multiple revenue streams for us." i.e., management is promoting this partnership as one if the major developments for the future.
However, when one reviews the PR, it is clear that it has very little information about APS and what is said is very ambiguous. No web site or contact information for APS was given.
As I previously pointed out, e.Digital erred in referring to Aircraft Protective Systems, Inc. (APS) as "APS, Inc." in its description of the company. However, in looking further into the situation, I believe that e.Digital has grossly exaggerated the potential revenue from this partnership and been very misleading in describing APS.
First of all what is APS and what does it do? The web site for APS is http://www.airprosys.com. The company has 3 products it seems to offer for sale (although no pricing or order information is given. These products are a (cargo) belt loader nose, a cargo door protector and a kevlar flight deck barrier. There is no mention about any IFE products or services.
APS is privately owned by William (Bill) Boyer, Jr. who also works for Alaska Air as a "Ramp Service Agent." The following is the Alaska Air job description:
Ramp Service Agent
-----------------------------------------
Ramp Service Agents at Alaska Airlines load and offload luggage and cargo. Duties also include working in the cargo area of the aircraft, transporting luggage and cargo to various airport locations, maintaining ramp and warehouse areas, and pushing-back and de-icing our aircraft.
The minimum requirements for the Ramp Service Agent position are as follows:
*Valid driver`s license and excellent driving record
*Ability to routinely lift 100 lbs
*Flexibility for shifts, including holidays and weekends
*Able to accept a starting wage of $9.10 per hour
*Must be a non user of nicotine products for the last six months
*High School diploma or equivalent
http://www.alaskasworld.com/Jobs/ASjobs/JobAlaskaDescr.asp?n_group=142&txtGroup=Airport+Jobs
Here is the article from the Alaska Air employee web site which describes how Boyer ended up marketing his design for a cargo door protector and making a prototype of the belt loader nose (designed by a VP at Alaska Air):
http://www.alaskasworld.com/news/2002/11/12_BeltBumper.asp
"The idea took wing when Bill Boyer, an enterprising ramp service agent based in Seattle, approached Prewitt, Alaska's vice president of safety, about an aircraft door protector he developed and hoped to market. Prewitt then described his bumper idea. After putting their heads together to refine the idea, Boyer went back to his shop and created a prototype.
So, the President of APS, e.Digital's partner in this major development, is employed as a cargo loader for Alaska Air. Now for more...
The EDIG PR quoted Boyer as saying:
Bill Boyer, Jr., President of APS, said, "As a certified airline service and equipment provider, we have established key relationships with major airlines. In our business dealings with these airlines we recognized the substantial cost they would have to incur to upgrade their fleets with embedded IFE systems. Beginning with a major U.S. airline, APS and e.Digital are providing the first portable IFE solution to the airline industry at a significantly reduced cost."
It has already been established that APS and EDIG are NOT providing "the first portable IFE solution to the airline industry" as a company called InMotion had been renting DVD Players and DVD movies to airline passengers at NO charge to the airlines long before this PR was release, so that statment is false.
Also, what is meant by the term "certified airline service and equipment provider?" EDIG also described APS with this phrase in its description of APS in the PR:
About APS, Inc.
APS, Inc. is a privately owned, Tacoma, Washington-based company. A certified airline equipment and service provider, APS provides solutions, industrial design, and manufacturing services for companies who have specialized product needs.
Forget that the description given seems to be a gross exagerration of what APS does, what certification does APS have? The web site makes no mention whatsoever about any kind of certification. If it were ISO 9000 or AS 9100 Certified both the PR and the web site would be expected to state that. So what "certification" does APS have?
I think I found the answer. I found a company called Shaw Aero which appears to be the real manufacturer of the belt loader nose sold by APS (See the photos):
http://www.shawaero.com/documents/New%20Devel-Apr.pdf
Home page: http://www.shawaero.com/devicehomepage.htm
Shaw Aero has a "Certified" Supplier Program that APS may be part of (it appears it would be the "non-inventory" type):
http://www.shawaero.com/documents/71602%20Certified%20Supplier.pdf
Is this the "certification" being touted?
Now, as for "IFE" - how did Boyer get involved in that?
According to the following article on the Alaska Air employee website that describes how employees were making suggestions for IFE systems, including live TV. Alaska found that live TV was not suitable for them and that passengers won't switch airlines due to IFE options.
Instead of outfitting their flights with embedded IFE systems, Alaska Air signed an agreement with InMotion to offer IFE to Alaska Air passengers at a 25% discount without any financial risk to the airline. Furthermore, Alaska Air management was quoted as saying:
"We don't want to get into the business of being our own supplier of equipment or videos for several reasons," Palmer says.
Among them are:
It's complicated. Transporting equipment, determining how many players are needed and what movies are offered can quickly become a logistical nightmare. Plus, equipment would need to be cleaned, recharged and possibly repaired after each flight. This would require additional staffing.
It's expensive. Players would first have to be purchased and contracts would need to be reached with various content providers--with slim hope of recovering direct costs.
http://www.alaskasworld.com/news/2002/09/30_entertainmentoptions.asp
Therefore, it does NOT appear that Alaska Air intends to buy any personal video devices directly from APS. In fact, an RB alias that popped up on the day of the PR who seemed to know a lot about Boyer and APS (was it Boyer himself?), seemed to indicate that the plan was for APS to offer the kind of service that InMotion does, talking the financial risk. See:
http://ragingbull.lycos.com/mboard/memalias.cgi?member=goldwingin
In summary, I believe that the APS partnership and e.Digital's potential revenue from the partnership has been grossly exaggerated by management.
=================================================================================
(My thoughts on the above - TR)
It can be directly inferred from the above info that a) an enterprising ramp service agent at Alaska Airlines has managed to partner with an AA VP in starting up a new company with a built-in customer; and b) EDIG has found a good connection to assist in funding development of a new product line. I find it very hard to see a downside in all this, unless EDIG throws too much of their own funds into the project.
OTC Bulletin Board Companies Unite to Assert Issuers' Rights to Opt Out of DTC Share Transfer System and Protect Shareholders
Dow Jones Newswire Reporter Remond Misses the Point of Companies' Actions
BLAINE, Wash., Jan. 27, 2003 IBC NEWSWIRE -- The following is being issued by Investor Communications International, Inc.
In another installment from the flow of misinformation by Dow Jones Newswire's Carol S. Remond, the reporter has again confused investors and misled issuers about the status of the country's electronic transfer system. Operating from a shrouded source of information, Remond continues to file edicts produced apparently by an entity other than duly authorized and knowledgeable officials, about the status of the system.
Remond's newswire Friday, January 24, 2003 claims that actions of The Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation (DTCC) to move to a "paperless" electronic transfer system for securities has led to the DTC (a subsidiary of DTCC) refusing any exit by a public company seeking to remove stocks from the global electronic system in favor of the physical delivery of share certificates. Indeed, the DTC has no authority to establish such guidelines and could contravene Federal Depository rules in any attempt to block the withdrawal from its system.
According to a spokesman for the OTC Bulletin Board companies, "Our legal research indicates that DTC's reliance upon UCC Article 8 (law governing share transfers) is misplaced and provides insufficient legal authority to prevent a public company from removing its securities from the DTC system. The primary reason is that the DTC, as a branch of the Federal Reserve, is required to abide by Fed rules as a depository. One of the rules states that DTC cannot hold shares that bear any sort of restriction. Refusing to exit securities and continuing to hold them in the name of their nominee could potentially represent a violation of Federal Reserve rules, as well as perpetuating and possibly facilitating naked short selling."
There are numerous types of restrictions that an issuer can place on its securities. Some examples are "private offering not eligible for purchase by a US citizen", "shares subject to trading restrictions", "lock up agreements" and many others.
The misleading statements by Remond are nothing new. Her comments have been consistently inaccurate and inflammatory, precipitating numerous public responses by the companies she has attempted to implicate as operating outside of the system. Rather than address the underlying problem, Redmond twists facts regarding the withdrawal process and refers to the OTCBB companies as attempting to thwart "short selling", instead of "naked short selling" -- a very different and legally compelling distinction.
Short Selling is legal and routinely takes place. A short sale is a transaction where stock is pledged against stock to be sold. The seller makes the sale anticipating that the share price will decline so that a purchase or "buy-in" can be made later at a price below the sale to create a profit from the difference between the sale and purchase.
Naked Short Selling is not legal, according to US SEC rules. Naked short selling takes place where shares sold are never borrowed, never delivered by the seller, but nevertheless the seller collects money for the stock not delivered within the three days prescribed by NASD guidelines. The three-day settlement system run by the National Securities Clearing Corporation ("NSCC") does not ensure that shares that are sold in a transaction are ever delivered.
Case in point is Genemax (GMXX), which by the transfer agent's records, clearly establish total tradable shares of less than 400,000 -- with "fails to deliver" totaling in excess of a million shares. This means illegal short sellers -- primarily Canadian firms, often managing accounts of U.S. residents -- openly violate NASD and SEC guidelines requiring a short seller to obtain an "affirmative determination" before executing any short sale.
The actions of DTCC surround the move by a growing group of OTC Bulletin Board companies, led by GeneMax Corp. (OTC Bulletin Board: GMXX), that began exiting the system in 2002 in favor of Certificate Only holdings. Others joining the move to withdraw from the DTC include Ten Stix Inc. (OTC Bulletin Board: TNTI), Midas Trade (OTC Bulletin Board: MIDS), Hadro Resources (OTC Bulletin Board: HDRS), and Vega Atlantic Corporation (OTC Bulletin Board: VATL), among others. Other companies, including Intergold Corporation (OTC Bulletin Board: IGCO) have applied for or expressed their intent to withdraw. These companies are opting out of the DTC system to combat the Naked Short Selling abuses made possible by the electronic transfer system, which is flawed.
The primary reason that moving to a non-DTC eligible status works in curtailing the illegal activity of Naked Short Selling is the responsibility for the completion of the purchase transaction. A DTC eligible security clears through the NSCC (National Securities Clearing Corporation), which in turn is responsible for making sure that the seller of the shares electronically delivers the position to the buyer. In the case of a naked short sale, the NSCC does not require the seller to deliver the shares -- as is the case with the Canadian naked short sellers, who hide behind IDA Rule 100, which allows them to short shares without borrowing them first.
This electronic system, called CNS (continuous net settlement), simply does not require these Canadian and offshore firms to ever deliver the shares they illegally sell, earning the nickname among market participants, in a parody of the CNS system, as "Continuously Never Settle." This is how, in electronic form, companies like Jag Media Holdings (JGMHA) can have an estimated short position which purportedly exceeds the total outstanding by two or three times.
In physical form, the responsibility to complete the transaction (i.e. receive the shares that were purchased) falls to the purchasing broker, who, on settlement day, expects to receive the physical certificate. When this process begins, the broker can execute a "buy-in" -- buying shares from the market to complete the transaction for his customer -- who typically has no idea that the shares they paid for were never delivered.
The ongoing efforts to extol the virtues of the market makers and their clearing houses by a lapdog reporter is becoming the central focus uniting all OTC Bulletin Board companies to act against this misuse of the public trust.
According to the Transfer Agent handling the withdrawal from the DTC, Robert Stevens of Global Stock Transfer, "The overwhelming response to the concept of 'certificated trading' by public companies -- including NASDAQ stocks -- confirms that the concept is timely and correct. This clearing style is acceptable for not only OTC BB Companies but also NASDAQ small cap and NMS companies as well, provided they follow jurisdiction requirements."
In response to shortfalls of the system and focused attacks by the likes of Remond, an association has been formed by Investor Communications International (ICI) to bring the entire group of OTC Bulletin Board companies together as a common voice. The National Association Against Naked Short Selling was launched in January 2003 and has forwarded a registration and participation letter to all OTC BB companies. The letter explains that the group's mandate is to form a common interest against these illegal and unethical abuses, provide information to the Federal Authorities at all levels and begin a national scale public relations campaign for awareness amongst the responsible and independent leading media and investment industry contacts. The goal is to ensure enforcement of the existing legislation which would safeguard shareholders and the companies they invest in.
OTC Bulletin Board companies seeking to protect themselves against predatory trading and Naked Short Selling can take immediate action by registering with the National Association Against Naked Short Selling (www.nakedshortselling.com) at its website, sponsored by ICI. Companies can also find how to carry out the process of opting for Certificate Only trading by contacting ICI, toll free at 800-209-2260 or registering online at www.icihome.com.
SAFE HARBOR STATEMENT
THIS NEWS RELEASE MAY INCLUDE FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS WITHIN THE MEANING OF SECTION 27A OF THE UNITED STATES SECURITIES ACT OF 1933, AS AMENDED, AND SECTION 21E OF THE UNITED STATES SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934, AS AMENDED, WITH RESPECT TO ACHIEVING CORPORATE OBJECTIVES, DEVELOPING ADDITIONAL PROJECT INTERESTS, THE COMPANY'S ANALYSIS OF OPPORTUNITIES IN THE ACQUISITION AND DEVELOPMENT OF VARIOUS PROJECT INTERESTS AND CERTAIN OTHER MATTERS. THESE STATEMENTS ARE MADE UNDER THE "SAFE HARBOR" PROVISIONS OF THE UNITED STATES PRIVATE SECURITIES LITIGATION REFORM ACT OF 1995 AND INVOLVE RISKS AND UNCERTAINTIES WHICH COULD CAUSE ACTUAL RESULTS TO DIFFER MATERIALLY FROM THOSE IN THE FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS CONTAINED HEREIN."
SOURCE Investor Communications International, Inc.
/CONTACT: Marcus Johnson of Investor Communications International,
800-209-2260, or www.icihome.com/
http://www.otcbbnn.com/fpdb/active/html/otcbbdtc012703.htm
(originally posted at RB by wireless2004)
CDR, it's a typical basher post, full of insinuations and assumptions. If it troubles you, the onus is upon YOU to separate the truth from the fiction. Somehow, I doubt that I'd be comfortable with others watching over the propriety of MY investment.
Although Mr. Ferguson may have gotten a little overzealous with PRs and run afoul of the SEC, as a homebuilder he is undoubtedly the recipient of a good bit of hard cash courtesy of Fannie Mae and numerous mortgage companies. Something worth considering. Also and FWIW, Netvan did a 1:10 reverse split last year.
That could have been said of Dataplay, too.
If I were APS, I'd be asking for a cash only deal; looks like Netvan/COHIA may owe a few bucks to the Man if the Jan 15th '03 retraction was acceptable:
Litigation Release No. 17741 / September 24, 2002
SEC v. Composite Holdings, Inc., aka Composite Industries, Inc. fka World Homes, Inc., and Merle Ferguson, Case No. CV-S-01-0658-PMP-LRL (USDC D.Nev.)
On September 13, 2002, the Honorable Philip M. Pro, United States District Judge, entered an order holding Defendants Composite Holdings, Inc., aka Composite Industries, Inc. fka World Homes, Inc., and Merle Ferguson in civil contempt for violations of the January 14, 2002, Judgment which, among other provisions, enjoined Composite and Ferguson from violations of the antifraud provisions of the federal securities laws.
The Court further ordered that Composite and Ferguson will remain in contempt until such time as Composite and Ferguson have conclusively demonstrated that they are not engaging in conduct enjoined by the January 14, 2002, Judgment. The Court also ordered that until Composite and Ferguson purge themselves of the contempt by conclusively demonstrating that they are not engaging in conduct which violates the January 14, 2002, Judgement, each defendant will pay a penalty of $120,000 plus $5,000 per day until they have corrected their false and misleading public statements.
http://www.sec.gov/litigation/litreleases/lr17741.htm
And to add a little spice to the soup, there's a Sony/Motown/Marantz connection!!!
"Merle Ferguson (Chief Executive Officer)
Mr. Ferguson spent 22 years in the construction industry, as a real estate developer, in California, Oregon and Washington States. His professional motivation was in creating affordable, quality homes for first-time and low-income homebuyers. In the early 1990s he began researching non-timber construction materials and methods, frustrated by the engineering limitations and poor quality at the low-end of the market, and recognizing the impending significance of worldwide deforestation. Domestically, the market for alternative building materials is at the high-end, but Mr. Ferguson perceived the need for durable low-cost housing of high construction standards and energy efficiency, in the U.S. market and in the huge percentage of the world that lives in poverty.
In 1997 Merle's research paid off. He was introduced to Joseph Zawada, the inventor of Z-MIX and co-founder of Zawada Technology, who merged into Merle's company, which is now Composite Industries of America, Inc. (OTC BB: CIAI).
Through this merger Merle was introduced to the high tech building materials world and immediately began to explore the potential to build low cost, durable housing solutions without using timber. Today, Merle, has put together an impressive, experienced team of professionals that includes Bill Morris, one of the founders of SONY, former president of Sony/Marantz, CFO of Hollywood Reporter, CFO Motown Records and many other successful and world renowned companies. Bill, too, prior to joining CIAI, had committed himself to finding a solution to the high cost of housing. Together, Bill and Merle have successfully negotiated contracts to build hundreds of thousands of homes for over 15 foreign countries, working directly with the heads of state in most cases.
William Morris - Chief Financial Officer
Bill Morris has been a Chief Financial Officer for 27 of his 38-year career. At one time, he was the youngest CFO of a New York Stock Exchange company, at Sony/Superscope, Inc. Before he came to CIAI, he was the President of his own consultancy firm, William Morris, where he used 38 years of acquired expertise in corporate financial matters. Mr. Morris has been CFO to companies with the polish of world renown-Motown Industries, The Hollywood Reporter, the Marantz Company, Inc. of Japan. Bill Morris brings to CIAI three decades of invaluable experience, and his talent and intelligence already are moving the company in new and strategic directions. In recent weeks, he has finalized with Merle Ferguson the hiring of Presidents for each of CIAI's Subsidiary Companies."
http://www.otceagle.com/eagleboard/messages/579.html
We seem to be living in interesting times.
Here ya go, cksla:
Natvan NTVN is going higher target 3.0013644
STOCK ALERT: BUY OTC Pink Sheets : NTVN
-- go to pinksheets.com for info
The company profiled below is expected to announce several
major accomplishments via Press Releases, which could
dramatically effect it's stock price over the next 30-days.
You can be among the first to receive this information by
opting-in to our mailing list at this time. You will
receive live and timely updates regarding the company
profiled below as well as free trials to valuable
investment tools. See Opt-in instructions below.
Buy OTC Pink Sheets : NTVN - Investors who are still making
money in the stock market are those who know what stocks
are in play or stocks about to be promoted / syndicated.
By now you probably realize that stocks don't just go up
but are pushed up by brokerage firms that give companies
exposure and analyst coverage - they promote them! To make
money, an investor needs to buy at the beginning of the
PUSH and sell within a 60-day period.
We report on which stocks are being pushed and at what
price levels to buy and sell at. Our current pick, OTC
Pink Sheets : NTVN is ready to move quickly with news
to be released and a promotion underway.
Company------------Natvan Inc.
Symbol-------------NTVN -pink sheets.com for quotes
Current Price------$0.30
52 Week High-------$0.68
52 Week Low--------$0.10
Target Price $2.5 in Q1/2003
Update: 2003 stocks in play Natvan (otc : NTVN)
Major increase in revenues and stock price.
Investment Highlights - Overview
Composite Holdings, Inc., and Natvan, Inc., are emerging
growth conglomerates focused on infrastructure industries
with exceptional revenue and earnings growth opportunities.
CEO Merle Ferguson (26 years as a builder and developer),
leads the group of Company's as the chief architect of
their rapid revenue and earnings growth through a
synergistic acquisition campaign.
Mr. Ferguson is currently finalizing the acquisition of
Composite Holdings, Inc. (OTC : COHIA) and its operating
subsidiaries by Natvan, Inc (OTC : NTVN) and its operating
subsidiaries.
In addition, two recent agreements to acquire APS, Inc.
(agreements to deliver in-flight entertainment with Alaska
Air, Southwest, Twentieth Century Fox, Paramount) and
Great Lakes Petroleum (GLP's current annual revenues of
approximately $100M) add significantly to the Company's
ability to attract investors due to the high-profile APS
airline and entertainment industry relationships as well
as GLP's multi-hundred million revenue capability.
The combined Company's projected revenue for 2003E is
expected to exceed $150 million with net income of more
than $20 million. Mr. Ferguson has received a tentative
offer from a leading Broker Dealer to underwrite a
secondary financing in excess of $50 million upon the
completion of the signing of a NTVN (combined NTVN/COHIA)
merger agreement with a listed company. Additional debt
and equity financing would then be readily available to
the combined entities due to the conglomerates strong
balance sheet, capable management and realistic growth
through acquisition and an internal expansion plan,
already endorsed Mr. Ferguson's banking and brokerage
contacts.
A conservative valuation of the combined NTVN/COHIA
Company's shares upon successful completion of a merger
with a listed company would be well in excess of $400
million currently based upon the acquisition calendar Mr.
Ferguson has committed to and the factors listed below:
1. APS Inc. has signed exclusive agreements with Alaska
Air, Spirit Air and Twentieth Century Fox for content
distribution based upon the Company's proprietary and
licensed IFE system; All of these major public companies
will be issuing press releases outlining their business
relaitnships with APS and the "to-be announced" public
entity upon successful completion of a vend-in agreement.
2. Additional $200 million in revenue from existing sales
at COHIA's Mooney Oil locations, Great Lakes Petroleum and
acquisitions of additional Sunoco brand locations already
on its calendar for early 2003E (including land with less
than 70% loan-to-value mortgages);
3. COHIA's U.S. BioTec will be marketing its Lawn &
Garden products in Home Depot and other major retail
chains in early 2004, expected to bring immediate mass
exposure and revenue for the Company; The subsidiaries
Agriculture division will be labeling their BioStimulants,
BioPesticides and BioInsecticides and distributing them
in regions where test marketing is now complete; U.S.
BioTec chemists will begin work on attaining certification
for the Conglomerates Z-Mix immediately, allowing World
Homes to begin bidding on large scale housing developments
worldwide;
4. Natvan, Inc.'s Auto Lending Group is currently
generating in excess of $12 million in sales and
approximately $1 million in net income annually; in
addition the Company is implementing an expansion and
acquisition program in 2003E which is expected to more
than triple revenues to $50 million and increase the
net margin to above 10%.
5. Natvan's Certus Data is on the verge of releasing
its latest, low-cost version criminal evidence forensic
software and systems. The system is expected to be
installed nationwide at all levels of law enforcement
as a mandatory requirement for compliance with the
Homeland Security Act. Agencies effected will include
all police & sheriff sub-stations, all state & federal
criminal courts and any agency dealing with crime.
6. Natvan's CLG & HLG subsidiaries are expected to
generate significant revenue in 2003E and 2004E,
expanding the Company's commercial R/E construction
lending, residential R/E lending and business equipment
leasing presence to all major regions across the U.S.
7. Additional revenues from COHIA's electric utilities
subsidiaries expected to exceed $200 million within 3-to-5
years (beginning in 2004E subject to additional research
and successful completion of funding).
8. COHIA's Z-Mix composite material certification
should be complete in 2003E with sales beginning in
2004E, effecting revenue and eps by 2004E year-end.
9. Consolidated Revenue & Valuation Targets 2002 - 2005
(Average market capitalization of comparable competitors
have a valuation of 2.5x revenue -to- 3x revenue) :
Revenue consolidated restated;
2002E $125 million
2003E $150 -to- $175 million
2004E $200 -to- $250 million
2005E $300 million plus+
http://www.xtdnet.nl/paul/spam/2003/519.html
Get your Silhouette here...
http://www.digitallyunique.net/digitally-unique/13830960.html
CD3O's system doesn't sound much like our Voice Nav... "The optional Voice-Guide allows the user to select songs from a keypad guided by an electronic voice. Another unique feature is CD-DJ, which announces the song title and artist prior to the selection."
http://www.cd3o.com/news.html
A little more on the Bantam jukebox: http://gear.ign.com/articles/372/372006p1.html
Hmmm - due 12/20/02... but not yet on Bantam website ( http://www.bantamusa.com/ ) and now scheduled for 'Q1 2003' ( http://www.evolutionmc.com/bantam/media/pdf/Innovations2003.pdf ) - with a track record like that, it's gotta have EDIG inside!
OT: The hell with it; trash up the board with idle chatter all you want. Just don't blame us if we can't find the basher posts amongst all the clutter. I'm off-line until Jan 7th if anyone asks.
How long has our Silhouette player been in stock? Did I miss a post on the subject?
http://store.yahoo.com/ustronics/edcomcdplayw.html
donatos, I seriously doubt it. IMHO, Samsung or Sony could easily buy Apple outright if they so desired.