Lacey's Paper Round

You know the Internet is a crazy place when Business Week can report that Michael Moritz has made $1.3 billion in profits from a £2 million dollar stake in Yahoo! The good times may be over at Intel though - with one analyst predicting that the advent of the $200 PC will further depress processor prices. All this plus spammers may be sued in California and a City bank is going to be wiped out by hackers.

Lex approve of Barnes & Noble floating its Web site - Financial Times

The Lex column in the Financial Times, voiced barbed approval for the Barnes and Noble announcement that they are to float off their Web site in order to take advantage of sky high Net stock prices. Barnes and Noble's Web site is "catching up fast (on Amazon); its revenues grew 470 per cent in the second quarter against 316 per cent for Amazon.com, though admitedly from a lower base. And, importantly, it seems to be just as good at losing money". Lex Column, Financial Times, August 21, 1998.

"Figure out how to profit from the the Net" - Business Week

Michael Moritz made a cool $1.3 billion from a $2 million investment in Yahoo! So when he speaks on the subject of making money people tend to listen. Last week he told Business Week "If anybody's between you and your customers, you had better be shaking in your boots. Figure out how to profit from the Net, or it will drain the juice out of your marrow". Business Week, August 24-31, 1998.

$200 PCs could put squeeze on Intel - Wall Street Journal

The prospect of even cheaper PCs could squeeze margins for microprocessor manufacturers according to a report in the Wall Street Journal. The aticle refers to research carried out by Thomas Kurlak for Merrill Lynch. "Mr Kurlak wrote in a research report that PC prices could sink as low as $200, suggesting prices as as $30 for Intel chips." Wall Street Journal, Auguust 21, 1998.

iMac faces tough challenge from sub $1000 PCs - Financial Times

Whilst aknowledging the success of iMac and asking the quetion "Is Apple starting to matter again?" - the FT's Lex Column goes on to doubt whether the early success of iMac can be sustained in the face of tough competition from sub-$1000 PCs. "Early surveys look encouraging; apparently 15 per cent of iMac purchasers ar first time computer buyers. Whether this momentum will be sustainable in the face of a flood of sub-$1,000 machines is questionable." Financial Times, Lex Column, August 24, 1998.

California to regulate the spammers - The Guardian Onlinne

The Gurardian Online reports on a new move to regulate spammers in California, where legislation is expected to be passed which will enable ISP's to sue for up to $25,000 compensation from spammers. In another move to regulate spammers, Net users may be offered a discount on their Net charges if they agree to accept some spam. The Guardian, Online supplement, August 20, 1998.

Banks wide open to hackers - internet magazine

Banks are still wide open to attack according to Mike Hales, Online Editor of internet magazine. In the latest issue of the monthly magazine he states "One bank, which shall remain nameless, not only has a series of firewalls which are fairly easy to penetrate, but once you get through those you have access to the transaction systems, and when you get bored there, you can move straight to the bank's mainframe!"..."A major bank in the City will be hacked and wiped clean before the end of the year". internet magazine, September 1998.