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Liberty All-Star Equity Fund May 2004 Monthly Update
June 03, 2004 16:32:00 (ET)
BOSTON, Jun 3, 2004 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- All Star Equity .
May 2004 Monthly Update
Premium /
Performance NAV Market Price (Discount)
------- --------
Beginning of month value $8.92 $10.13 13.6%
Distributions (Ex-Date May 12) $0.22 $0.22
End of month value $8.95 $9.07 1.3%
Performance for month 2.8% (8.3%)
Performance year-to-date 3.0% 0.7% For daily data visit the Fund's website at www.all-starfunds.com or call 1-800-241-1850
-----------------------
Net Assets at Month-End ($millions)
-----------------------
Total $1,134.8
Common Stocks $1,148.1
Convertible Bonds $0.9 Percent Invested 101.3%
-----------------------
Top 20 Holdings at Month-End (29.0% of equity portfolio)
-----------------------
(Rank from previous month)
1 Boeing (2) 2.3%
2 Genentech (1) 2.1%
3 Intel (4) 1.9%
4 Progressive (3) 1.8%
5 Bank of America (5) 1.7%
6 Morgan Stanley (7) 1.7%
7 Citigroup (6) 1.4%
8 Amazon.com (12) 1.4%
9 Yahoo! (16) 1.4%
10 Amgen (8) 1.3%
11 Baxter International (10) 1.3%
12 Gap (14) 1.3%
13 eBay (15) 1.3%
14 Freddie Mac (13) 1.2%
15 Applied Materials (18) 1.2%
16 Novellus Systems (22) 1.2%
17 Cisco Systems (17) 1.2%
18 Liberty Media (11) 1.1%
19 Tyco International (23) 1.1%
20 CIT Group (27) 1.1%
-----------------------
Sector Breakdown (% of equity portfolio)(a)
-----------------------
Information Technology 23.5%
Financials 21.2%
Consumer Discretionary 16.0%
Health Care 15.7%
Industrials 9.6%
Consumer Staples 4.4%
Energy 3.0%
Materials 2.9%
Utilities 2.5%
Telecommunication Services 1.2%
-------
100.0%
New Holdings
--------------
Comcast
Genworth Financial
Limited Brands
Southwest Airlines
Holdings Liquidated
---------------------
BellSouth
Expeditors International Ruby Tuesday Washington Mutual
(a) Based on Standard & Poor's and Morgan Stanley Capital International Global Industry Classification Standard (GICS).
SOURCE: Liberty All-Star Equity Fund
Liberty All-Star Equity Fund Mark Haley, 617-772-3626
rruder FYI there is someone manning the customer service desk, but did you ever thnik that they are very busy and are bombarded with so many questions. I did pass on know_when_to_holdum's questions this morning to Tim Huff.
know_when_to_holdum
Email me at MAILMAN1@ragingbull.com i will see that Tim Huff gets your request for info on magicphone.
datsboss It will probably start around 7 or 8 pm. Tim Huff should put out something on the exact time and location within the next 30 days. See you there if you do go.
datsboss so a 4 hour drive makes you living in the Orlando area that's not too far. If you want to know more about the company yes it is worth the trip bring the wife make her a part of the investment and a night out. You can always stay over at a hotel/motel and drive back the next day, being that it is being held on a friday evening (no work next day)
Interview with Tim Huff by Larry Oakley ****this is his pick*****
Current Larry Oakley's Stock Pick:
Date Posted: 05/25/04
GlobeTel Communications Corp. (OTC BB: GTEL)
This Situation is a Sleeper
I interviewed CEO Tim Huff yesterday & am impressed. This is a situation you should seriously look into, because it has products & technology that are wanted & needed. It has long-term potential that is nothing short of huge in my opinion. In this, my first editorial coverage of GTEL, I only talk about one aspect of the company?s business. In future editorials, I?ll bring you up to date on other exciting products & technology.
A Paradigm Shift
GTEL will probably be the primary instigator in a paradigm shift or event. A paradigm event happens very infrequently. It?s the big event in history, or basic improvement in technology, that changes everyone?s life. Going back a bit in history, the automobile is a prime example. So is the airplane -- the electric light ? the telephone ? radio ? television ? the computer -- & more recently -- the Internet.
There are paradigm events within most industries as well. In the communication industry, there have been several, including cell phones, broadband computer connections, & the advent of satellites that afford services like Direct TV.
GTEL?s paradigm event is its ?Stratellite.? -- A Stratellite is similar to a satellite, but is stationed 13 miles up in the stratosphere rather than in orbit 22,500 miles up.
The Stratellite is a big dirigible. It?s about the size of a football field (about 275 feet long). It?s unmanned. It?s powered by the sun. It stays in one spot relative to the earth?s surface, guided by a GPS coordinate system. It takes only about three to four hours to deploy it from the ground.
At the relatively low altitude of 13 miles, each Stratellite will have clear line-of-site communications capability to an entire major metropolitan area as well as being able to provide coverage across major rural areas. The Stratellite will allow subscribers to easily communicate in "both directions" using readily available wireless devices. In addition to voice & data, proposed telecommunications uses include cellular, 3G/4G mobile, MMDS, paging, fixed wireless telephony, HDTV, & others.
It would take only about 13 Stratellites to cover the entire U.S. -- GTEL?s initial application, however, will be to areas that are more sparsely populated. Consider a small Third World country with little or no communication capability -- no hard wire system for telephones -- no towers for cell phones. A small number of Stratellites could cover the entire country. At each home or business that wants or needs telephone communication, a small antenna about the size of a saucer (cup & saucer size of saucer) is placed on a window or roof eve. A receiver that costs about US$70 is connected to that & to any number of telephones in the building. But telephone communication is not all that the simple setup can offer ? it can provide the signals for broadband computer connection to the Internet, high definition TV, cell phones, etc., etc.
The advantages of Stratellites is that with signals only having to travel 13 miles, the reception should be far better than from satellites where the signal has to travel 22,500 miles. I suspect that the signal will be able to have fewer problems associated with adverse weather as well. We have Direct TV, & during bad thunder storms, we have a problem getting a good signal.
Cost is a big consideration ? the cost of building & deploying 13 Stratellites, for example, would probably be a lot less that the cost of one satellite.
GTEL?s First Stratellite Deployment
On 5/5/2004, GTEL announced it entered into an agreement to deploy the world's first high altitude Stratellite platform for wireless voice, data, & digital broadcast services. Through its subsidiary, Sanswire Networks, GTEL entered into a binding heads of agreement with an Australian consortium that will provide funding to deploy the world's first Stratellites in Australia. The jointly owned company will operate the Stratellite network in Australia & New Zealand.
Tim Huff says: ?This agreement is a strong indication of the worldwide interest in the Stratellite technology, & independently validates the proposition that this technology, successfully deployed, will be a paradigm event in the history of telecommunication. The Australian press has already picked up on the importance of this partnership & we feel that this technology will change the landscape of the telecommunications market."
Tim Huff told me that there is a demonstration of the technology planned over Atlanta sometime in the next two months ? it will use a smaller version of the Stratellite temporarily positioned only about three miles up. When that takes place, I?ll update you on its results.
To learn more about the Stratellites, visit Sanswire Network's website at http://www.sanswire.com ? Sanswire Networks, LLC is a newly formed subsidiary of GTEL.
GTEL is an IP (stands for Internet Protocol) solutions/applications based company. Although international carrier termination business is the base & the beginning of its services, GTEL?s goal is to provide strategic advantages to commodity telecommunications based products. It takes such products as voice termination, prepaid calling cards, store valued debit cards, & IP adapters & gives those products & services unique market advantages. It does it through the deployment of its unique software & IP platforms. In each of these cases, GTEL has developed unique approaches that give it market advantages worldwide.
GTEL closed at $0.93 last evening (5/24/2004). Call Matt Maguire at 407-884-0444 or 866-843-2775. -- http://www.globetel.net .
Anyone going to the GTEL shareholders meeting i have 9 rooms a a hotel blocked with a rate of $79 per night reg rate is $99 this rate is only good until 7pm tuesday 25th. If your interested in a room contact me at my Ragingbull.com email address. The hotel is 2.5 miles from the Ft Lauderdale airport and a few have stayed there at the last shareholders meeting.
SamDashada i think those are the feelings of all on this board even if they don't say it, i made this known to someone by email so you are not alone.
tpaero
email me at my RB email address would like to discuss something with you. TIA
Just so you all know one of the reason's that GTEL files late is that they get a better price for having thier audit done last compared to the larger companies. This was explained to me by Dr Hinton some time back and also now that the company has a lot more to acquisitions it does take a lot more time to get all the information that is needed for the audit. Some of you that have been shareholders since the Dengue fever kits days can appreciate that the company has come a long way since those days and as an ex-businessman i can understand what they are going through. Patience is the key we have a GEM here and i will be buying on any dips to increase my holdings as i have in the past. Been with this stock since 1996 just after they went public. Anyone that wishes to email me they can find my email address at RB in my profile will respond back ASAP. Have a great day ALL.
Rocky,ray s and ALL
The only thing i know so far about the new office is it is on a road that has 6 lanes vs 1 lane in Miami and from that i will say that the new office has got to be much larger than the Miami office was. I will try and get by there this week and check it out if i have the time and let you all know. Also i can tell you that all the people, officers and employees live within 15 mins of the office compared to 30-45 mins from the Miami office a lot less traffic to put up with.
PR 03/31/2004 GTEL gets $15M funding package.
GlobeTel Announces $15 Million Funding Package
March 31, 2004 09:13:00 (ET)
MIAMI, Mar 31, 2004 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- GlobeTel Communications Corp. (GTEL, Trade), today announced the signing of a Binding Letter of Intent with CFM Ltd., a Malaysian company. The company is made up of investors from the Asian and Eastern European regions. The agreement calls for a $15 million funding package to provide $5 million in working capital and $10 million in funding towards capital and equipment requirements to continue the worldwide deployment of the Money Magic program.
The definitive agreement will be completed in the next 30 days. The investors will receive preferred shares that will be held by the investor for a period not to exceed three years before the conversion to common stock. With the binding agreement, GlobeTel has started the construction of the US based data processing facility that will be located in Miami Florida. The Money Magic program is now supported out of the data switch located in Venezuela. The goal of GlobeTel is to have processing switches in South America, to process transactions in Latin America, in the US to handle North America and the Caribbean, and in the United Kingdom to process transactions in Europe and Hong Kong to process Asian transactions. These four core switches will give GlobeTel the regional presence and processing power to handle the global business that the Money Magic program supports.
Timothy Huff, CEO of GlobeTel stated: "The recent business interests in Mexico, the Philippines, China and Australia coupled with the financial abilities that this investment provides, makes GlobeTel's programs extremely powerful. Money remittance is a multi-billion dollar industry and adding this feature to the pre-paid calling card features that GlobeTel already deploys, makes this a very attractive product for many markets around the world. This investment brings major investment efforts to a close for the Money Magic program, Magic Phone and Text Card programs. With this funding now secured, the company has the right tools to accelerate to the speed to reach our goal of a $60 million dollar run rate by the end of 2004. Once we reach that revenue goal, the efforts will be to move GTEL to a larger trading market like the NASDAQ or the New York Stock exchange."
For more information about GlobeTel, visit the Company's website at http://www.globetel.net
Courtesy of pontiyak More on NASD rules
NASD Asks SEC To OK Tougher Short Sale Rules
By Carol S. Remond A Dow Jones Newswires Column NEW YORK
(Dow Jones)--The NASD is taking steps to further tighten short selling rules for its members. NASD has asked the Securities and Exchange Commission to approve a new rule that would require clearing firms to make delivery, or take affirmative steps to make delivery, within 10 business days after settlement date for all short sale transactions with no exemption. Under current NASD rules, bona fide market making activities and arbitraged positions are exempt from the 10-days delivery requirement. Under the new rule proposed by NASD, market making activities and arbitraged positions will no longer be exempt. NASD said the new delivery rule is needed to address abusive short selling activities, including naked short selling or short selling without first borrowing securities to make delivery. A short seller typically borrows stock from a broker to sell it into the market, betting that the share price will fall so that he can buy the stock back at a lower price and pocket the difference. NASD said that naked short selling "can result in long-term failures to deliver, including aggregate failures to deliver that exceed the total float of a security." NASD said it believes that such "extended failure to deliver can have a negative effect on the market." "Existing NASD rules are designed to address the settlement of short sales transactions, but NASD has concluded that these rules need to be revised and updated to address directly the current problems occuring in the marketplace," NASD said. The move by NASD to tighten delivery rules follows the approval by the SEC late last year of a more aggressive NASD affirmative determination rule that closed a loophole that allowed non-NASD members, mostly foreign brokerage firms, to short stocks without first borrowing shares. NASD's affirmative determination rule stipulates that brokers and dealers engaged in a short sale transaction must make sure that shares can be delivered by settlement time, three days later. Market makers engaged in bona fide market-making activities will continue to be exempt from affirmative determination under NASD's tougher rule which is scheduled to take effect on April 1. To address concerns that the non-exemption of market making activites could lead to a lack of liquidity, NASD said that clearing firms will be able to request two five-days extensions if they fail to deliver stock within
10-days. "If delivery is not made within the requisite time period, the following trading restriction will apply until delivery is effected: the account which has failed to deliver against its sale, or any other accounts held at the clearing firm by the legal or beneficial owner of such account, would be restricted from selling short the same security to which the failure to deliver pertains," according to the new NASD delivery rule. NASD said that the proposed rule change will reduce the amount of extended failures to deliver in securities and will enhance the integrity of the market and the clearance and settlement system. This is the first time that NASD acknowledges problems and mounting failures to deliver stock necessary to settle transactions. Although separate from it, the amended NASD affirmative determination rule and its new delivery rule fit tightly within new short selling regulations, known as Regulation SHO, being put forward by the SEC. Regulation SHO is currently under review by the SEC staff after a period during which market participants were invited to comment on it. As it stands, SHO will make it easier to short large-cap stocks since they would do away with the "uptick" rule, which bans short selling on a stock when the price is falling. But it when it comes to the small-cap markets, where it's often impossible to borrow stock, the impact of SHO will be the opposite, making it harder to short sell stock. Under SHO, a broker or an investor that fails to deliver within two days after the settlement date will effectively be unable to short sell that stock for
90 days. The new SEC rule sets a predetermined level of so-called clearing fails, cases in which a broker or investor cannot deliver stock within two days after settlement, which will trigger the 90-day blackout during which that customer will not be allowed to short sell that security. That 90-day exemption would also affect trading of U.S. securities outside the U.S. NASD said it will announce the effective date for its new delivery rule to members "no later than 60 days following (SEC) approval. The effective date will be 90 days following publication of the Notice to Members announcing (SEC) approval." (Carol S. Remond is one of four "In The Money" columnists who take a sophisticated look at the value of companies and their securities and explore unique trading strategies.)
-By Carol S. Remond; Dow Jones Newswires; 201 938 2074; carol.remond@dowjones.com (END) Dow Jones Newswires
18-03-04 2128GMT
ATC company announcements
Address:http://www.asx.com.au/asx/statistics/AnnHeadersForIssuer.jsp?ASXCode=ATC&radiobutton=radiobutton... Changed:2:09 PM on Wednesday, March 17, 2004
Courtesy of vucedol
By: vucedol 12 Mar 2004, 10:06 AM EST
Msg. 177892 of 178039
Jump to msg. #
GTEL...
http://www.hoovers.com/globetel-communications/--ID__115517--/free-co-factsheet.xhtml
My Forum Hot Stock Picks GTEL as #2 stock to watch
2. GlobeTel Communications Corp (OTC BB:GTEL.OB ) - GTEL Expects to offer the new IP phone service to the general public after March 15th. This company is a serious contender with regular phone services and having installed a world wide infrastructure it signals they are here to stay. Utilizing state-of-the-art VoIP technology, GlobeTel is establishing itself as a full service international telecommunications company offering a full array of communications services in the world markets. GlobeTel's core business development focus is on those emerging markets that have the potential to provide high growth and margins. GlobeTel offers to its customers a full portfolio of telecommunications services including: international voice, Data service, International Prepaid calling services, enhanced service platform, international subscription programs for international calling.
MyStockForum.Com Hot Stock Pick target price $5.00 in 5 years or less
Courtesy of Pete_Clay
By: Pete_Clay 11 Mar 2004, 11:12 PM EST
Msg. 177772 of 177778
Jump to msg. #
Somebody is taking notice of our new wireless solution
http://www.dailywireless.org/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=2202
http://www.bbwexchange.com/publications/newswires/page546-761369.asp
http://magicphone.globetel.net/cart.php
http://www.telecomlinker.com/
http://www.lightreading.com/document.asp?site=lightreading&doc_id=44296
http://www.1-unlimitedlongdistance4u.com/long-distance-categories/residentialvoip.html
http://www.sat-index.com/
http://www.newstream.com/us/public_user.shtml
http://www.satcom.co.uk/news.asp
Stratellite
Sanswire Technologies Stratellite Home
Address:http://www.stratellite.net/ Changed:11:15 AM on Friday, January 23, 2004
Sanswire Website
Sanswire
Address:http://www.sanswire.com/us-eng/home.htm Changed:10:56 PM on Wednesday, December 10, 2003
PR 3/10/2004
amtd/Story
Address:http://www.amtdrt.inlumen.com/bin/story?StoryId=Cqe6G0bKbmdCWyJC5ndq
Read the book on "Cellar Boxing"?
"CELLAR BOXING"
There's a form of the securities fraud known as naked short selling that is becoming very popular and lucrative to the market makers that practice it. It is known as "Cellar boxing" and it has to do with the fact that the NASD and the SEC had to arbitrarily set a minimum level at which a stock can trade. This level was set at $.0001 or one-one hundredth of a penny. This level is appropriately referred to as "the cellar". This $.0001 level can be used as a "backstop" for all kinds of market maker and naked short selling manipulations.
"Cellar boxing" has been one of the security frauds du jour since 1999 when the market went to a "decimalization" basis. In the pre-decimalization days the minimum market spread for most stocks was set at 1/8th of a dollar and the market makers were guaranteed a healthy "spread". Since decimalization came into effect, those one-eighth of a dollar spreads now are often only a penny as you can see in Microsoft's quote throughout the day. Where did the unscrupulous MMs go to make up for all of this lost income? They headed "south" to the OTCBB and Pink Sheets where the protective effects from naked short selling like Rule 10-a, and NASD Rules 3350, 3360, and 3370 are nonexistent.
The unique aspect of needing an arbitrary "cellar" level is that the lowest possible incremental gain above this cellar level represents a 100% spread available to MMs making a market in these securities. When compared to the typical spread in Microsoft of perhaps four-tenths of 1%, this is pretty tempting territory. In fact, when the market is no bid to $.0001 offer there is theoretically an infinite spread.
In order to participate in "cellar boxing", the MMs first need to pummel the price per share down to these levels. The lower they can force the share price, the larger are the percentage spreads to feed off of. This is easily done via garden variety naked short selling. In fact if the MM is large enough and has enough visibility of buy and sell orders as well as order flow, he can simultaneously be acting as the conduit for the sale of nonexistent shares through Canadian co-conspiring broker/dealers and their associates with his right hand at the same time that his left hand is naked short selling into every buy order that appears through its own proprietary accounts. The key here is to be a dominant enough of a MM to have visibility of these buy orders. This is referred to as "broker/dealer internalization" or naked short selling via "desking" which refers to the market makers trading desk. While the right hand is busy flooding the victim company's market with "counterfeit" shares that can be sold at any instant in time the left hand is nullifying any upward pressure in share price by neutralizing the demand for the securities. The net effect becomes no demonstrable demand for shares and a huge oversupply of shares which induces a downward spiral in share price.
In fact, until the "beefed up" version of Rule 3370 (Affirmative determination in writing of "borrowability" by settlement date) becomes effective, U.S. MMs have been "legally" processing naked short sale orders out of Canada and other offshore locations even though they and the clearing firms involved knew by history that these shares were in no way going to be delivered. The question that then begs to be asked is how "the system" can allow these obviously bogus sell orders to clear and settle. To find the answer to this one need look no further than to Addendum "C" to the Rules and Regulations of the NSCC subdivision of the DTCC. This gaping loophole allows the DTCC, which is basically the 11,000 b/ds and banks that we refer to as "Wall Street", to borrow shares from those investors naive enough to hold these shares in "street name" at their brokerage firm. This amounts to about 95% of us. Theoretically, this "borrow" was designed to allow trades to clear and settle that involved LEGITIMATE 1 OR 2 DAY delays in delivery. This "borrow" is done unbeknownst to the investor that purchased the shares in question and amounts to probably the largest "conflict of interest" known to mankind. The question becomes would these investors knowingly loan, without compensation, their shares to those whose intent is to bankrupt their investment if they knew that the loan process was the key mechanism needed for the naked short sellers to effect their goal? Another question that arises is should the investor's b/d who just earned a commission and therefore owes its client a fiduciary duty of care, be acting as the intermediary in this loan process keeping in mind that this b/d is being paid the cash value of the shares being loaned as a means of collateralizing the loan, all unbeknownst to his client the purchaser.
An interesting phenomenon occurs at these "cellar" levels. Since NASD Rule 3370 allows MMs to legally naked short sell into markets characterized by a plethora of buy orders at a time when few sell orders are in existence, a MM can theoretically "legally" sit at the $.0001 level and sell nonexistent shares all day long because at no bid and $.0001 ask there is obviously a huge disparity between buy orders and sell orders. What tends to happen is that every time the share price tries to get off of the cellar floor and onto the first step of the stairway at $.0001 there is somebody there to step on the hands of the victim corporation's market.
Once a given micro cap corporation is "boxed in the cellar" it doesn't have a whole lot of options to climb its way out of the cellar. One obvious option would be for it to reverse split its way out of the cellar but history has shown that these are counter-productive as the market capitalization typically gets hammered and the post split share price level starts heading back to its original pre-split level.
Another option would be to organize a sustained buying effort and muscle your way out of the cellar but typically there will, as if by magic, be a naked short sell order there to meet each and every buy order. Sometimes the shareholder base can muster up enough buying pressure to put the market at $.0001 bid and $.0002 offer for a limited amount of time. Later the market makers will typically pound the $.0001 bids with a blitzkrieg of selling to wipe out all of the bids and the market goes back to no bid and $.0001 offer. When the weak-kneed shareholders see this a few times they usually make up their mind to sell their shares the next time that a $.0001 bid appears and to get the heck out of Dodge. This phenomenon is referred to as "shaking the tree" for weak-kneed investors and it is very effective.
At times the market will go to $.0001 bid and $.0003 offer. This sets up a juicy 200% spread for the MMs and tends to dissuade any buyers from reaching up to the "lofty" level of $.0003. If a $.0002 bid should appear from a MM not "playing ball" with the unscrupulous MMs, it will be hit so quickly that Level 2 will never reveal the existence of the bid. The $.0001 bid at $.0003 offer market sets up a "stalemate" wherein market makers can leisurely enjoy the huge spreads while the victim company slowly dilutes itself to death by paying the monthly bills with "real" shares sold at incredibly low levels. Since all of these development-stage corporations have to pay their monthly bills, time becomes on the side of the naked short sellers.
At times it almost seems that the unscrupulous market makers are not actively trying to kill the victim corporation but instead want to milk the situation for as long of a period of time as possible and let the corporation die a slow death by dilution. The reality is that it is extremely easy to strip away 99% of a victim company's share price or market cap and to keep the victim corporation "boxed" in the cellar, but it really is difficult to kill a corporation especially after management and the shareholder base have figured out the game that is being played at their expense.
As the weeks and months go by the market makers make a fortune with these huge percentage spreads but the net aggregate naked short positions become astronomical from all of this activity. This leads to some apprehension amongst the co-conspiring MMs. The predicament they find themselves in is that they can't even stop naked short selling into every buy order that appears because if they do the share price will gap and this will put tremendous pressures on net capital reserves for the MMs and margin maintenance requirements for the co-conspiring hedge funds and others operating out of the more than 13,000 naked short selling margin accounts set up in Canada. And of course covering the naked short position is out of the question since they can't even stop the day-to-day naked short selling in the first place and you can't be covering at the same time you continue to naked short sell.
What typically happens in these situations is that the victim company has to massively dilute its share structure from the constant paying of the monthly burn rate with money received from the selling of "real" shares at artificially low levels. Then the goal of the naked short sellers is to point out to the investors, usually via paid "Internet bashers", that with the, let's say, 50 billion shares currently issued and outstanding, that this lousy company is not worth the $5 million market cap it is trading at, especially if it is just a shell company whose primary business plan was wiped out by the naked short sellers' tortuous interference earlier on.
The truth of the matter is that the single biggest asset of these victim companies often becomes the astronomically large aggregate naked short position that has accumulated throughout the initial "bear raid" and also during the "cellar boxing" phase. The goal of the victim company now becomes to avoid the 3 main goals of the naked short sellers, namely: bankruptcy, a reverse split, or the forced signing of a death spiral convertible debenture out of desperation. As long as the victim company can continue to pay the monthly burn rate, then the game plan becomes to make some of the strategic moves that hundreds of victim companies have been forced into doing which includes name changes, CUSIP # changes, cancel/reissue procedures, dividend distributions, amending of by-laws and Articles of Corporation, etc. Nevada domiciled companies usually cancel all of their shares in the system, both real and fake, and force shareholders and their b/ds to PROVE the ownership of the old "real" shares before they get a new "real" share. Many also file their civil suits at this time also. This indirect forcing of hundreds of U.S. micro cap corporations to go through all of these extraneous hoops and hurdles as a means to survive, whether it be due to regulatory apathy or lack of resources, is probably one of the biggest black eyes the U.S. financial systems have ever sustained. In a perfect world it would be the regulators that periodically audit the "C" and "D" sub-accounts at the DTCC, the proprietary accounts of the MMs, clearing firms, and Canadian b/ds, and force the buy-in of counterfeit shares, many of which are hiding behind altered CUSIP #s, that are detected above the Rule 11830 guidelines for allowable "failed deliveries" of one half of 1% of the shares issued. U.S. micro cap corporations should not have to periodically "purge" their share structure of counterfeit electronic book entries but if the regulators will not do it then management has a fiduciary duty to do it.
A lot of management teams become overwhelmed with grief and guilt in regards to the huge increase in the number of shares issued and outstanding that have accumulated during their "watch". The truth however is that as long as management made the proper corporate governance moves throughout this ordeal then a huge number of resultant shares issued and outstanding is unavoidable and often indicative of an astronomically high naked short position and is nothing to be ashamed of. These massive naked short positions need to be looked upon as huge assets that need to be developed. Hopefully the regulators will come to grips with the reality of naked short selling and tactics like "Cellar boxing" and quickly address this fraud that has decimated thousands of U.S. micro cap corporations and the tens of millions of U.S. investors therein.
NASD RULE 3370
0408ntm.txt
Address:http://www.nasdr.com/pdf-text/0408ntm.txt Changed:10:56 AM on Wednesday, February 18, 2004
Supplier of magicphone box.
Thanks to rwehapi2003 on RB for finding out who the supplier is and to Rocky for the comparison link......
Raging Bull: Post 173807 on GTEL Message Board
Address:http://ragingbull.lycos.com/mboard/boards.cgi?board=GTEL&read=173807
GlobeTel Provides Status Report
March 02, 2004 11:37:00 (ET)
MIAMI, Mar 2, 2004 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- GlobeTel Communications Corp. (GTEL, Trade), today announced a status report on the company's activities.
Magic Phone
When it was announced that 200 customers would be selected to serve as Beta Test customers for GlobeTel's new IP phone service, our web site received over 500 applications within the first four hours. The Beta Test will continue until March 15th when GlobeTel expects to offer the new IP phone service to the general public. Click on this link to read about this exciting new service. http://biz.yahoo.com/bw/040202/25771_1.html.
IP Traffic
IP based traffic is growing every month. Traffic to the United Kingdom is expected to surpass revenue traffic going to Latin America by the end of March. Traffic to China is also growing and is expected to see considerable growth in the next 90 days. With the operations centers now open in London and Hong Kong, these international gateways are providing many new opportunities that will increase our ability to provide our customers with unique solutions. For additional information click on http://biz.yahoo.com/bw/040120/205807_1.html.
Listing on the Berlin Stock Exchange
GlobeTel began trading last week on the Berlin Stock Exchange (GTEL.be). It is important to understand that the price on this German exchange is quoted in Euros not U.S. Dollars. On Monday in the U.S., GTEL closed at US$0.161. In Germany, GTEL closed at 0.14 Euros or US$0.174. Each share purchased in Germany has to be bought in the U.S. market. Naked shorting stock is illegal in Germany so brokers have to hold a share to trade a share. This requirement will cause available shares or float in the U.S. market to be decreased as shares are put into German "inventory". For additional information click on, http://biz.yahoo.com/bw/040202/25563_1.html .
Magic Money Debit/Credit Cards
Recent trips to Mexico, the Philippines and Hong Kong have warped the Magic Money program into high gear. The money remittance feature of the Magic Money Card was well received in these markets given their high amounts of money remitted each month. In the Philippines alone, over US$8 billion was reportedly remitted last year. The foreign interest in this product has caused a delay in the release of this product here in the U.S. The U.S. release date is now set for May 1, 2004. For additional information click on http://bigcharts.marketwatch.com
Text Card
Text Card has been officially launched in the United Kingdom. We expect to be operational by the end of March. This product is a first of its kind in Europe and is expected to significantly lower the cost of distribution of Pre-paid Calling Cards by 40 to 50 percent. For more information click on http://biz.yahoo.com/bw/040105/55408_1.html
This will be my only post here but wanted you all to have this info on Enterprise Florida,inc.....
Division of Corporations
Address:http://www.sunbiz.org/scripts/cordet.exe?a1=DETFIL&n1=N93000000732&n2=NAMFWD&n3=0000&... Changed:6:49 PM on Monday, February 23, 2004
Liberty All-Star Equity Fund Releases Tax Information
January 09, 2004 09:43:00 (ET)
BOSTON, Jan 9, 2004 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Liberty All-Star Equity Fund announces the final tax status for its 2003 distributions as follows:
Total Ordinary Long-
Amount Dividends term Return Payable per Non- Capital of
Record Date Date Share Qualified Qualified Gains Capital
(a) 11/15/02 01/02/03 $0.19 9.07% - 32.42% 58.51%
02/28/03 03/17/03 $0.17 9.07% - 32.42% 58.51%
05/16/03 06/30/03 $0.19 9.07% - 32.42% 58.51%
08/15/03 10/06/03 $0.20 9.07% - 32.42% 58.51%
(b) 11/14/03 01/02/04 $0.22 - - - - 100% of the Long-term Capital Gains distributions are from Post-May 5 Capital Gains. (a) Pursuant to Section 852 of the Internal Revenue Code, the taxability of this distribution will be reported in the Form 1099-DIV for 2003. (b) Pursuant to Section 852 of the Internal Revenue Code, the taxability of this distribution will be reported in the Form 1099-DIV for 2004.
The tax designations of the distributions were previously reported to shareholders on a tentative book basis. The final tax designations are based upon tax reporting requirements and should be used by shareholders for tax return preparation.
Liberty Asset Management Company is the fund manager of the All-Star Equity Fund, a multi-managed, closed-end investment company with more than $1.1 billion in net assets. The Fund's shares are listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol USA.
SOURCE: Liberty Asset Management Company
Liberty Asset Management Company Mark Haley, 617-772-3626 www.all-starfunds.com
Liberty All-Star Equity Fund - December 2003 Monthly Update
January 08, 2004 11:05:00 (ET)
BOSTON, Jan 8, 2004 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Liberty All-Star Equity Fund :
Premium /
NAV Market Price (Discount) Performance
Beginning of month value $8.70 $9.44 8.5%
Distributions - -
End of month value $9.13 $9.46 3.6%
Performance for month 5.1% 0.2%
Performance year-to-date 41.1% 56.7% For daily data visit the Fund's website at www.all-starfunds.com or call 1-800-241-1850 Net Assets at Month-End ($millions)
Total $1,152.9
Common Stocks $1,124.4
Convertible Bonds $6.4
Percent Invested 98.1%
Top 20 Holdings at Month-End (28.5% of equity portfolio) (Rank from previous month)
1 Boeing (1) 2.3%
2 Freddie Mac (2) 2.0%
3 Genentech (4) 2.0%
4 Progressive (3) 1.8%
5 Tyco International (8) 1.7%
6 CIT Group (5) 1.7%
7 Amgen (10) 1.6%
8 Amazon.com (6) 1.5%
9 Intel (7) 1.5%
10 Applied Materials (9) 1.4%
11 Cisco Systems (12) 1.3%
12 Aetna (13) 1.3%
13 Liberty Media (16) 1.2%
14 CIGNA (20) 1.1%
15 Agilent Technologies (11) 1.1%
16 Kerr-McGee (19) 1.0%
17 Yahoo! (17) 1.0%
18 Sanmina-SCI (14) 1.0%
19 Xerox (23) 1.0%
20 Loews (28) 1.0%
Sector Breakdown (% of equity portfolio (a)) New Holdings
Information Technology 24.2% Ashland
Financials 19.2% Nationwide
Consumer Discretionary 14.2% Newell Rubbermaid
Health Care 13.9% Nucor
Industrials 9.5% Valero Energy
Consumer Staples 5.5% Weyerhaeuser
Energy 4.8%
Materials 3.8% Holdings Liquidated
Telecommunication Services 2.8% Bowater
Utilities 2.1% InterActiveCorp 100.0% (a) Based on Standard & Poor's and Morgan Stanley Capital International Global Industry Classification Standard (GICS).
SOURCE: Liberty All-Star Equity Fund
Liberty All-Star Equity Fund
Mark Haley, 617-772-3626
Liberty All-Star Equity Fund November 2003 Monthly Update
December 02, 2003 15:12:00 (ET)
BOSTON, Dec 2, 2003 (BUSINESS WIRE) --
Liberty All-Star Equity
Fund
*T
Premium /
Performance NAV Market Price (Discount)
------ ------ ------ ------
Beginning of month value $8.73 $9.45 8.2% Distributions (Ex-Date
November 12) $0.22 $0.22
End of month value $8.70 $9.44 8.5%
Performance for month 2.2% 2.2%
Performance year-to-date 34.3% 56.2% For daily data visit the Fund's website at www.all-starfunds.com or call 1-800-241-1850
----------------------------
Net Assets at Month-End ($millions)
----------------------------
Total $1,083.6
Common Stocks $1,077.6
Convertible Bonds $6.4
Percent Invested 100.0%
----------------------------
Top 20 Holdings at Month-End (28.8% of equity portfolio)
----------------------------
(Rank from previous month)
1 Boeing (1) 2.1%
2 Freddie Mac (4) 2.0%
3 Progressive (3) 1.9%
4 Genentech (2) 1.9%
5 CIT Group (6) 1.7%
6 Amazon.com (5) 1.6%
7 Intel (7) 1.6%
8 Tyco International (11) 1.6%
9 Applied Materials (9) 1.6%
10 Amgen (8) 1.5%
11 Agilent Technologies (12) 1.4%
12 Cisco Systems (14) 1.3%
13 Aetna (20) 1.2%
14 Sanmina-SCI (33) 1.2%
15 Network Appliance (10) 1.1%
16 Liberty Media (22) 1.1%
17 Yahoo! (15) 1.0%
18 Maxim Integrated Products (13) 1.0%
19 Kerr-McGee (17) 1.0%
20 CIGNA (18) 1.0%
----------------------------
Sector Breakdown (% of equity portfolio) (a)
----------------------------
Information Technology 25.4%
Financials 19.5%
Consumer Discretionary 14.4%
Health Care 13.7%
Industrials 9.0%
Consumer Staples 5.9%
Energy 4.3%
Materials 3.2%
Telecommunication Services 2.5%
Utilities 2.1%
---------
100.0%
New Holdings
------------
H.J. Heinz
International Paper
Mattel
TJX
Holdings Liquidated
-------------------
ALLTEL
Eastman Kodak
Marathon Oil
(a)Based on Standard & Poor's and Morgan Stanley Capital International Global Industry Classification Standard (GICS).
SOURCE: Liberty All-Star
Liberty All-Star
Mark Haley, 617-772-3626
Liberty All-Star Equity Fund Declares Distribution
November 03, 2003 09:32:00 (ET)
BOSTON, Nov 3, 2003 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- The Board of Trustees of Liberty All-Star Equity Fund has declared a distribution of $0.22 per share payable on January 2, 2004 to shareholders of record on November 14, 2003.
The distribution will be paid in newly issued shares to all shareholders except those who are not participating in Liberty All-Star Equity Fund's Dividend Reinvestment Plan and who elect to receive the distribution in cash.
Liberty Asset Management Company is the fund manager of the All-Star Equity Fund, a multi-managed, closed-end investment company with more than $1 billion in net assets. The Fund's shares are listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol USA.
SOURCE: Liberty Asset Management Company
Liberty Asset Management Company
Mark Haley, 617-772-3626
www.all-starfunds.com
Travelzoo Completes Secondary Offering
October 29, 2003 16:55:00 (ET)
NEW YORK, Oct 29, 2003 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Travelzoo Inc. (OTCBB: TVZO), an Internet media company that publishes online advertisements of sales and specials for hundreds of travel companies, today announced that is has completed a secondary offering of 402,500 shares of common stock to more than 400 investors. The underwriter for the offering exercised the over-allotment option in full.
Wedbush Morgan Securities, Inc. acted as the sole underwriter for the offering. The offering was priced at $3.25 per share. The shares being offered are owned by Ralph Bartel, the chief executive officer and principal stockholder of Travelzoo Inc. The offering is expected to close on October 30, 2003.
A registration statement relating to the common stock has been declared effective by the Securities and Exchange Commission. A copy of the final prospectus related to the offering may be obtained by contacting Wedbush Morgan Securities, Inc., 1000 Wilshire Boulevard, Los Angeles, California 90017-2465, Attention: Mr. Jay Park.
This announcement does not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy, nor shall there be any offer or sale of the common stock in any jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such jurisdiction.
About Travelzoo
Travelzoo Inc. is an Internet media company that publishes online advertisements of sales and specials for hundreds of travel companies. Reaching over 5.1 million unique users per month (comScore Media Metrix 3/2003), Travelzoo lists sales and specials from approximately 200 advertisers, including Air New Zealand, Alamo Rent A Car, American Airlines, American Express Travel, Avis Rent A Car, Carnival Cruise Lines, Fairmont Hotels & Resorts, Gate 1 Travel, Ian Schrager Hotels, InterContinental Hotels, JetBlue Airways, Kimpton Hotels, Liberty Travel, Lufthansa, Mark Travel, Marriott, Omni Hotels, Pleasant Holidays, Royal Caribbean Cruises, Spirit Airlines, Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, The Venetian, Travelocity, United Airlines, US Airways, Virgin Atlantic Airways and Wyndham Hotels & Resorts.
Certain statements contained in this press release that are not historical facts may be forward looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities and Exchange Act of 1934. These forward looking statements may include, but are not limited to, statements about our plans, objectives, expectations, prospects and intentions, markets in which we participate and other statements contained in this press release that are not historical facts. When used in this press release, the words "expect," "predict," "project," "anticipate," "believe," "estimate," "intend," "plan," "seek" and similar expressions are generally intended to identify forward looking statements. Because these forward looking statements involve risks and uncertainties, there are important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by these forward looking statements, including changes in our plans, objectives, expectations, prospects and intentions and other factors discussed in our filings with the SEC. We cannot guarantee any future levels of activity, performance or achievements. Travelzoo undertakes no obligation to update forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances occurring after the date of this press release.
Travelzoo, Top 20, and Weekend.com are registered trademarks of Travelzoo Inc. All other company and product names mentioned are trademarks of their respective owners.
SOURCE: Travelzoo Inc.
Travelzoo Inc.
Kelly Ford, 212-521-4216 (Media)
kford@travelzoo-inc.com
Liberty All-Star Equity Fund Announces New Portfolio Manager
October 08, 2003 10:37:00 (ET)
BOSTON, Oct 8, 2003 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- The Board of Trustees of Liberty All-Star Equity Fund have appointed Pzena Investment Management, LLC as one of the Fund's five investment managers effective October 15, 2003, replacing Oppenheimer Capital, LLC.
Richard S. Pzena, founder and president of Pzena, will serve as the portfolio manager to the Fund. Prior to forming the firm in 1995, Mr. Pzena was the Director of U.S. Equity Investments and Chief Research Officer for Sanford C. Bernstein & Company. He has 18 years of investment experience.
Mr. Pzena and his investment team, which includes portfolio managers John P. Goetz and A. Rama Krishna, practice a large-capitalization value investment style which will be used to manage their portion of the Fund's assets. Liberty All-Star Equity Fund's other four portfolio managers are Boston Partners Asset Management, L.P., Mastraspasqua Asset Management, Schneider Capital Management and TCW Investment Management Company.
Liberty Asset Management Company is the fund manager of the All-Star Equity Fund, a multi-managed, closed-end investment company with more than $1.0 billion in net assets. The Fund's shares are listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol USA.
SOURCE: Liberty All-Star Equity Fund
Liberty Asset Management
Mark Haley, 617-772-3626
www.all-starfunds.com
http://www.businesswire.com
Liberty All-Star Equity Fund September 2003 Monthly Update
October 06, 2003 14:47:00 (ET)
BOSTON, Oct 6, 2003 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- September 2003 Monthly Update
September 2003 Monthly Update
Performance NAV Market Price Premium/(Discount)
Beginning of month value $8.29 $8.45 1.9%
Distributions - -
End of month value $8.12 $8.43 3.8% Performance for month (2.1%) (0.2%)
Performance year-to-date 22.3% 36.3%
For daily data visit the Fund's website at
www.all-starfunds.com or
call Net Assets Trial 1-800-241-1850
Net Assets at Month-End
($millions)
Total $999.5
Common Stocks $976.9
Preferred Stocks and Convertible Bonds $9.0
Percent Invested 98.6%
Top 20 Holdings at Month-End (32.5% of equity portfolio)
(Rank from previous month)
1 Freddie Mac (1) 2.4%
2 Genentech (3) 2.1%
3 Progressive (2) 2.1%
4 Countrywide Financial (7) 2.0%
5 Amgen (5) 1.9%
6 Amazon.com (6) 1.8%
7 Tyco International (9) 1.7%
8 Boeing (8) 1.6%
9 Citigroup (12) 1.6%
10 Microsoft (4) 1.6%
11 Cisco Systems (13) 1.6%
12 Intel (11) 1.5%
13 ChevronTexaco (15) 1.5%
14 Network Appliance (14) 1.4%
15 Dell (17) 1.4%
16 Applied Materials (10) 1.4%
17 Teradyne (18) 1.3%
18 Agilent Technologies (16) 1.2%
19 Procter & Gamble (26) 1.2%
20 MedImmune (20) 1.2%
Sector Breakdown (% of equity portfolio)(a) New Holdings
Information Technology 26.9% BASF Financials 17.7% Berkshire Hathaway
Consumer Discretionary 15.2% Fisher Scientific
Health Care 13.4% Seagate Technology
Industrials 8.6%
Consumer Staples 7.1% Holdings Liquidated
Energy 4.4% Biovail
Materials 2.8% Edison International
Telecommunication Services 2.5% El Paso
Utilities 1.4% FirstEnergy
100.0% Motorola
Nippon Telegraph and
Telephone
PartnerRe Ltd.
Wachovia
(a) Based on Standard & Poor's and Morgan Stanley Capital International Global Industry Classification Standard (GICS).
SOURCE: Liberty All-Star Equity Fund
Liberty Asset Management Company
Mark Haley, 617-772-3626
http://www.businesswire.com
Cassara no they are not connected to globalstar communications in any way. GlobeTel has their own system.
Travelzoo Expert on How and Where to Find the Best Travel Deals Available for Interview
October 01, 2003 08:02:00 (ET)
NEW YORK, Oct 1, 2003 /PRNewswire-FirstCall via COMTEX/ -- Travel companies continue to offer fantastic deals. You just need to know where to find them. Travelzoo Inc. (TVZO, Trade), publisher of the Travelzoo(R) website (www.travelzoo.com) which helps consumers find great travel offers, is available to speak about where to find the very best deals on the Internet.
Travelzoo, which also publishes the weekly Travelzoo Top 20(R) newsletter, independently researches over 200 travel companies for their very best specials.
WHO: Chris Loughlin, Co-Editor, Travelzoo Top 20. Chris Loughlin has been featured on ABC, CBS, FOX News, and Travel Channel Radio as a travel deals expert.
WHERE: Chris Loughlin is based in Chicago, IL. He is available for
newspaper, magazine, radio and television interviews by phone
or in person.
WHEN: Today through November 30, 2003.
WHY: Travelzoo sees travel companies continuing to offer outstanding fall travel bargains-particularly for international airfare. Chris can give suggestions on how and where to find the best
travel deals this fall.
CONTACT: Please contact Kelly Ford at Travelzoo at 212-521-4216 or via
e-mail at kford@travelzoo-inc.com to schedule time with Chris
Loughlin.
About Travelzoo
Travelzoo Inc. is the Internet's largest publisher of sales and specials available directly from hundreds of travel companies. Travelzoo's media products include the Travelzoo(R) website (www.travelzoo.com) and the Top 20(R) and Weekend.com(R) e-mail newsletters. Reaching over 5.1 million unique visitors per month (comScore Media Metrix 3/2003), Travelzoo lists sales and specials from more than 200 advertisers, including Air New Zealand, Alamo Rent A Car, American Airlines, American Express Travel, Avis Rent A Car, Carnival Cruise Lines, Fairmont Hotels & Resorts, Gate 1 Travel, Ian Schrager Hotels, InterContinental Hotels, JetBlue Airways, Kimpton Hotels, Liberty Travel, Lufthansa, Mark Travel, Marriott, Omni Hotels, Pleasant Holidays, Royal Caribbean Cruises, Spirit Airlines, Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, The Venetian, Travelocity, United Airlines, US Airways, Virgin Atlantic Airways and Wyndham Hotels & Resorts.
Certain statements contained in this press release that are not historical facts may be forward looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities and Exchange Act of 1934. These forward looking statements may include, but are not limited to, statements about our plans, objectives, expectations, prospects and intentions, markets in which we participate and other statements contained in this press release that are not historical facts. When used in this press release, the words "expect," "predict," "project," "anticipate," "believe," "estimate," "intend," "plan," "seek" and similar expressions are generally intended to identify forward looking statements. Because these forward looking statements involve risks and uncertainties, there are important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by these forward looking statements, including changes in our plans, objectives, expectations, prospects and intentions and other factors discussed in our filings with the SEC. We cannot guarantee any future levels of activity, performance or achievements. Travelzoo undertakes no obligation to update forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances occurring after the date of this press release.
NOTE: Travelzoo, Top 20, and Weekend.com are registered trademarks of Travelzoo Inc. All other company and product names mentioned are trademarks of their respective owners.
Travelzoo Inc.
590 Madison Avenue, 21st Floor
New York, NY 10022
Phone 212-521-4200
Fax 212-521-4230
Media Contact:
Kelly Ford
212-521-4216 direct
kford@travelzoo-inc.com
SOURCE Travelzoo Inc.
Kelly Ford of Travelzoo Inc., +1-212-521-4216, or
kford@travelzoo-inc.com
http://www.travelzoo.com
From Dr Hinton
RE: Sale of stock (466,500 shares)
Having sold no stock nor taken any salary for over two years, I had agreed to take stock in lieu of salary, knowing that at some point, I'd have to sell some stock for personal income.
In fact, I believe since March, 1995, that I have only received a total of twenty something thousand dollars in actual salary but of course have received stock and stock options for salary, expenses and loans to the company. In past years, in order to be able to continue our operations, I have loaned the company considerable amounts of money and also exercised options, paying the company some
$ 500,000 (at $ .08 a share) for the options - all being set forth in detail in our filings. Other shareholders and officers have also loaned monies to the company and received and/or agreed to accept stock as consideration.
Yes, I also have to live and it was decided to use company monies for operations to build the company and enhance revenues in lieu of paying me a salary and also in paying others their agreed upon compensation.
There are monies due for accrued salaries as well as other obligations to shareholders that will be satisfied by stock considerations as was stated in a new release.
Jerry
Everyone notice all the bashers on the RB GTEL board
they all came out of the woodwork today. I will say this watch for the price to drop down to around .016-.018 again before they let it run again and that is a good entry point for anyone interested in buying more JMO.
I asked Tim if there was anything he can share with the troops and his reply was there are a lot of things in the works but nothing that he can release to me as yet so you all know as much as i do.
Travelzoo `Hotel Direct` Program Generates Buzz
September 03, 2003 08:02:00 (ET)
NEW YORK, Sep 3, 2003 /PRNewswire-FirstCall via COMTEX/ -- Travelzoo Inc. (OTC Bulletin Board: TVZO), the Internet's largest publisher of sales and specials available directly from hundreds of travel companies, today announced that its "Hotel Direct" program more than doubled in size to include over 140 hotels in the last six months. The success of the program has generated high praise from participating properties nationwide.
Each property was promoted for one week on Travelzoo's website and in the Top 20(R) newsletter. All bookings were sent directly to the hotel's website or reservations telephone number. Participating properties reported a significant rise in occupancy and revenues during their promotional periods with Travelzoo.
Among the advertisers from the leading chains and independent hotels who participated in Travelzoo's Hotel Direct program are: Affinia Hospitality, Aston Hotels & Resorts, Embassy Suites Hotels, Fairmont San Francisco, Grand Hyatt Hotel New York, Hotel Marlowe, Hotel Monaco San Francisco, Hotel 71, Irvine Marriott, Millennium Hilton, Miramonte Resort, Ocean Edge Resort & Golf, Radisson Plaza Lord Baltimore, Sheraton Biscayne Bay Hotel, Silverado Resort, Swissotel Chicago, The Mansfield Hotel, and Wyndham Tremont Boston Hotel.
Positive feedback about the program came from properties at all price points and locations:
Aladdin Resort & Casino, Las Vegas: "I was truly astounded by the volume of reservations we received from the Hotel Direct program," said Jania Lambert, Vice President of Marketing. "A typical newspaper ad generates about half of the bookings at approximately twice the cost of Travelzoo's program."
Beekman Hotel, New York: "Our parent company, Affinia Hospitality, has promoted over five properties including the Beekman Hotel via the Travelzoo Hotel Direct program," said Alvin Lopez, General Manager. "The response rate from the Top 20 newsletter kept our reservation lines busy for two days straight."
Fairmont Hotels & Resorts: "We've featured six of our properties on Travelzoo this year, all with a positive return on investment," said Jens Thraenhart, Director of Internet Strategy. "Our recent promotion for the Fairmont Chicago Hotel was no different."
Hotel Monaco, New Orleans: "I've been in the hotel business over 10 years and have never seen anything like this. We booked hundreds of rooms in the first few hours after the Top 20 was released," said Jason McCormick, Revenue Manager. "What's amazing is that the ADR for the promotion is actually higher than the offer, so these folks are buying upgraded rooms, and the average length of stay is 2.75 nights!"
Marriott Monterey: "We've advertised twice this year in the Hotel Direct program and both times even after the offer ran, consumers continued to call our reservation number, saying they had seen our ad on Travelzoo," said Brendon Bainbridge, Director of Marketing.
Savoy Hotel, Miami: "The Hotel Direct program is the most effective advertising on the Web," said Chuck Castiglia, General Manager. "The program generated a return on investment that was sixteen times greater than the cost. We are already signed up to participate again."
Sheraton Safari Hotel, Orlando: "We were extremely pleased with the phenomenal number of room nights and revenues booked through this program," said Cheryl Cain, Director of Revenue Management.
"We attribute the continued success of the Hotel Direct program to three main factors," explained Chris Loughlin, Vice President of Business Development at Travelzoo Inc. "First, each promotion reaches and influences Travelzoo's large audience of frequent travelers. Second, the program provides maximum visibility for each participating hotel, since Travelzoo strictly limits how many properties can participate within a given regional market. Finally, the program provides properties with upsell and upgrade opportunities since hotels take all bookings directly," he concluded.
About Travelzoo
Travelzoo Inc. is the Internet's largest publisher of sales and specials available directly from hundreds of travel companies. Travelzoo's media products include the Travelzoo(R) website (www.travelzoo.com) and the Top 20(R) and Weekend.com(R) e-mail newsletters. Reaching over 5.1 million unique visitors per month (comScore Media Metrix 3/2003), Travelzoo lists sales and specials from more than 200 advertisers, including Air New Zealand, Alamo Rent A Car, American Airlines, American Express Travel, Avis Rent A Car, Carnival Cruise Lines, Fairmont Hotels & Resorts, Gate 1 Travel, Ian Schrager Hotels, InterContinental Hotels, JetBlue Airways, Kimpton Hotels, Liberty Travel, Lufthansa, Mark Travel, Marriott, Omni Hotels, Pleasant Holidays, Royal Caribbean Cruises, Spirit Airlines, Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, The Venetian, Travelocity, United Airlines, US Airways, Virgin Atlantic Airways and Wyndham Hotels & Resorts.
Certain statements contained in this press release that are not historical facts may be forward looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities and Exchange Act of 1934. These forward looking statements may include, but are not limited to, statements about our plans, objectives, expectations, prospects and intentions, markets in which we participate and other statements contained in this press release that are not historical facts. When used in this press release, the words "expect," "predict," "project," "anticipate," "believe," "estimate," "intend," "plan," "seek" and similar expressions are generally intended to identify forward looking statements. Because these forward looking statements involve risks and uncertainties, there are important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by these forward looking statements, including changes in our plans, objectives, expectations, prospects and intentions and other factors discussed in our filings with the SEC. We cannot guarantee any future levels of activity, performance or achievements. Travelzoo undertakes no obligation to update forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances occurring after the date of this press release.
NOTE: Travelzoo, Top 20, and Weekend.com are registered trademarks of Travelzoo Inc. All other company and product names mentioned are trademarks of their respective owners.
SOURCE Travelzoo Inc.
Dana Carmel of Travelzoo Inc., +1-650-943-2425, or
dcarmel@travelzoo-inc.com
http://www.travelzoo.com
Travelzoo Top 20 Sails Past 5 Million Subscriber Mark
August 21, 2003 16:00:00 (ET)
NEW YORK, Aug 21, 2003 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Travelzoo Inc. (TVZO, Trade), the Internet's largest publisher of sales and specials available directly from hundreds of travel companies, today announced that its weekly Top 20(R) e-mail newsletter surpassed the 5 million subscriber mark earlier this month.
With 5,207,000 current subscribers, the Top 20 is one of the most widely distributed travel special newsletters in the U.S. The number of subscribers to the Top 20 has grown steadily since the newsletter's introduction in October 1999.
Each Top 20 lists the 20 travel offers which Travelzoo's producers deem to be the week's most exceptional travel values in the U.S. Offers are selected from among hundreds of submitting companies, including airlines, hotels & resorts, cruise lines, vacation packagers, and car rental companies. The Top 20 is e-mailed to subscribers weekly on Wednesdays.
"The growing popularity of the Top 20 is a testament to the quality of information found in each issue," noted Ralph Bartel, CEO of Travelzoo Inc. "Travelers today are looking for great ideas, great values, and breadth of choice, and that's what the Top 20 delivers each week," he added.
Subscription to the Top 20 is free and is available at www.travelzoo.com.
About Travelzoo
Travelzoo Inc. is the Internet's largest publisher of sales and specials available directly from hundreds of travel companies. Travelzoo's media products include the Travelzoo(R) website (www.travelzoo.com) and the Top 20(R) and Weekend.com(R) e-mail newsletters. Reaching over 5.1 million unique visitors per month (comScore Media Metrix 3/2003), Travelzoo lists sales and specials from more than 200 advertisers, including Air New Zealand, Alamo Rent A Car, American Airlines, American Express Travel, Avis Rent A Car, Carnival Cruise Lines, Fairmont Hotels & Resorts, Gate 1 Travel, Ian Schrager Hotels, InterContinental Hotels, JetBlue Airways, Kimpton Hotels, Liberty Travel, Lufthansa, Mark Travel, Marriott, Omni Hotels, Pleasant Holidays, Royal Caribbean Cruises, Spirit Airlines, Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, The Venetian, Travelocity, United Airlines, US Airways, Virgin Atlantic Airways and Wyndham Hotels & Resorts.
Certain statements contained in this press release that are not historical facts may be forward looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities and Exchange Act of 1934. These forward looking statements may include, but are not limited to, statements about our plans, objectives, expectations, prospects and intentions, markets in which we participate and other statements contained in this press release that are not historical facts. When used in this press release, the words "expect," "predict," "project," "anticipate," "believe," "estimate," "intend," "plan," "seek" and similar expressions are generally intended to identify forward looking statements. Because these forward looking statements involve risks and uncertainties, there are important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by these forward looking statements, including changes in our plans, objectives, expectations, prospects and intentions and other factors discussed in our filings with the SEC. We cannot guarantee any future levels of activity, performance or achievements. Travelzoo undertakes no obligation to update forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances occurring after the date of this press release.
Travelzoo, Top 20, and Weekend.com are registered trademarks of Travelzoo Inc. All other company and product names mentioned are trademarks of their respective owners.
SOURCE: Travelzoo Inc.
Travelzoo Inc.
Dana Carmel, 650-943-2425 (Media)
dcarmel@travelzoo-inc.com
Travelzoo Launches `Newsflash`
August 15, 2003 08:04:10 (ET)
NEW YORK, Aug 15, 2003 /PRNewswire-FirstCall via Comtex/ -- Travelzoo Inc. (OTC Bulletin Board: TVZO), the Internet's largest publisher of sales and specials available directly from hundreds of travel companies, today announced the launch of Newsflash(TM), an innovative new e-mail media product for travel advertisers. Newsflash(TM) gives travel companies near instant ability to promote time-sensitive travel offers to millions of consumers.
Unlike newspapers or even e-mail newsletters which are published according to fixed schedules, Newsflash(TM) can be published whenever a newsworthy travel offer becomes available. This gives travel advertisers the ability to actively promote offers according to their changing inventory and business needs. Newsflash(TM) subscribers benefit by receiving first notification of an outstanding travel deal whenever it may become available. Newsflash(TM) is a free service to consumers.
Each Newsflash(TM) features only a single noteworthy travel offer. This gives each Newsflash(TM) advertiser maximum visibility to promote a specific time-sensitive travel deal, for example a just-announced airfare sale from San Francisco to Hawaii, or a late-breaking weekend hotel special in New York. Newsflash(TM) e-mails also target subscribers in a specific geographic area. This lets travel advertisers target a regional audience.
Newsflash(TM) features only compelling travel offers which have just been released or are just beginning to be advertised. This ensures that subscribers receive unique and exceptional offers which are truly newsworthy. Because Newsflash(TM) e-mails are sent by Travelzoo, they carry the editorial endorsement which Travelzoo users have come to know and trust.
"The traditional media model requires advertisers to conform to a publication's pre-determined release schedule," noted Ben Jennings, Publisher of Travelzoo's Newsflash(TM). "The innovation of Newsflash lies in empowering advertisers to promote offers with flexible and near instantaneous timing," he added.
Travelzoo's Newsflash(TM) is currently published in the regions of: Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Dallas/Fort Worth, Denver/Colorado Springs, Florida, Houston, Los Angeles, Michigan, Minneapolis, New York City, Philadelphia, Phoenix, Pittsburgh/Cleveland, San Francisco Bay Area, Seattle, St. Louis, and Washington D.C./Baltimore.
More than one million subscribers have already signed up for the Newsflash(TM) service. Free registration is available at www.travelzoo.com/newsflash.
About Travelzoo
Travelzoo Inc. is the Internet's largest publisher of sales and specials available directly from hundreds of travel companies. Travelzoo's media products include the Travelzoo(R) website (www.travelzoo.com) and the Top 20(R) and Weekend.com(R) e-mail newsletters. Reaching over 5.1 million unique visitors per month (comScore Media Metrix 3/2003), Travelzoo lists sales and specials from more than 200 advertisers, including Air New Zealand, Alamo Rent A Car, American Airlines, American Express Travel, Avis Rent A Car, Carnival Cruise Lines, Fairmont Hotels & Resorts, Gate 1 Travel, Ian Schrager Hotels, InterContinental Hotels, JetBlue Airways, Kimpton Hotels, Liberty Travel, Lufthansa, Mark Travel, Marriott, Omni Hotels, Pleasant Holidays, Royal Caribbean Cruises, Spirit Airlines, Starwood Hotels & Resorts, The Venetian, Travelocity, United Airlines, US Airways, Virgin Atlantic Airways and Wyndham Hotels & Resorts.
Certain statements contained in this press release that are not historical facts may be forward looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities and Exchange Act of 1934. These forward looking statements may include, but are not limited to, statements about our plans, objectives, expectations, prospects and intentions, markets in which we participate and other statements contained in this press release that are not historical facts. When used in this press release, the words "expect," "predict," "project," "anticipate," "believe," "estimate," "intend," "plan," "seek" and similar expressions are generally intended to identify forward looking statements. Because these forward looking statements involve risks and uncertainties, there are important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by these forward looking statements, including changes in our plans, objectives, expectations, prospects and intentions and other factors discussed in our filings with the SEC. We cannot guarantee any future levels of activity, performance or achievements. Travelzoo undertakes no obligation to update forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances occurring after the date of this press release.
NOTE: Travelzoo, Top 20, and Weekend.com are registered trademarks of Travelzoo Inc. All other company and product names mentioned are trademarks of their respective owners.
CONTACT: Dana Carmel of Travelzoo Inc., +1-650-943-2425, or directdcarmel@travelzoo-inc.com.
SOURCE Travelzoo Inc.
Dana Carmel of Travelzoo Inc., +1-650-943-2425, or
directdcarmel@travelzoo-inc.com