Articles by Chet Dembeck

Microsoft Corp. announced yesterday that it's pumping $15 Million (US$) into DSL.net Inc., a provider of high-speed Internet service, in order to deliver a MSN portal to small and medium businesses This comes just one week after New Haven, Connecticut-based DSL.net had postponed its initial public offering -- due to market conditions. Microsoft's i...

Last week the leadership of both eBay Inc. and E*Trade Group Inc. did little to inspire stockholders -- or help the price of their shares from falling ebay, the No. 1 online auctioneer, had yet another system crash which lasted more than nine hours -- pushing shares of its stock down 10 percent. At almost the same time news came that two top E*Trad...

NexTag.com Inc. launched an online buying service today, where brand-name sellers compete for buyers. This is a switch from the popular e-commerce model where buyers bid against each other for products The San Mateo, California-based company said the new e-commerce site would help small businesses and individuals to negotiate easily and simultaneou...

The ongoing cyber street fight between Microsoft and America Online over instant messaging is just the opening gamut of a battle between the two Internet titans that could end up shaking the foundations of both companies The dispute flared up a few weeks ago, when AOL began to electronically block messages from MSN members trying to contact AOL sub...

RealNetworks Inc., the top maker of software used to download music online, announced yesterday that it was teaming up with Warner Music Group, and Trans World Entertainment Corp., to let Internet users download and play songs for free from various Warner artists While terms of the deal weren't disclosed, later this month users will be able to samp...

When Red Hat Inc., a seller of Linux software, makes it's debut on Wall Street this week, the world will be watching to see if the much-touted Microsoft-killer passes its biggest test of date: getting investors to pump money into it Aside from the cult-like exuberance of Linux devotees, this will be the first time the operating system has faced the...

Microworkz.com Corp. announced late last week that it would begin offering free Internet access to all personal computer users in the U.S. beginning October 31, 1999 The Seattle-based firm, which makes the $199 iToaster device to access the Internet, said that as a result of a $300 million (US $) deal with AT&T, it will offer 150 hours a month of I...

So far this week, four highly touted Internet initial public offerings have come out of the box flat. Some think their less than spectacular performance could be a signal that finally the supply of new IPOs has caught up with -- or exceeded -- Wall Street's demand For instance, 1-800-Flowers.com, an online florist, sold more than $2 (US$) below its...

Cyberian Outpost, Inc., an online e-marketeer of computer products, and chain store Tweeter Home Entertainment Group, Inc. announced Monday that they have joined forces to sell consumer electronics via the Internet Darryl Peck, chief executive officer of Cyberian Outpost, told the E-Commerce Times in an interview yesterday that the joint venture wo...

Starbucks' new Internet strategy does little more than sugarcoat its weak earnings, so says a report released last week by Cambridge, Massachusetts-based Forrester Research, Inc. Furthermore, the report is highly critical of the Seattle, Washington specialty coffee retailer's "nebulous plan" to launch a lifestyle Internet portal "Starbucks will dil...

The UK's Gameplay.com, an online computer game portal, hopes to raise 31 million pounds ($51 million US$) today, by selling 23 million shares in an initial public offering on London's Alternative Investment Market The IPO comes only five years after Dylan Wilk, the 25-year-old founder of Gameplay.com, started the company using a 2,500 pound ($4,100...

In an attempt to raise millions of dollars to fund their mounting expenses in an e-commerce "War of the Roses," FTD.com and 1-800-Flowers.com -- two rival online florists -- are slated to make their debuts on Wall Street this week Analysts say that along with the optimism surrounding the launch of both IPOs, potential investors should also consider...

Internet merger mania is accelerating at a speed most analysts would have deemed impossible a few short months ago. The money being pumped into the mergers of high-tech companies has soared to $545 billion (US$) during the first six months of 1999 -- easily surpassing last year's record of $488 billion for the entire 12 months This hyperactivity, s...

By announcing this week that it would be packaging one-year free Internet service with its PCs, Dell joined the crowd of companies fighting to capture new computer buyers. But the Round Rock, Texas giant hardware maker also showed that it too must begin focusing on e-commerce -- if it hopes to survive The new Dell computer priced at $959.00 (US$), ...

Microsoft Corp. cried foul last week when America Online gave Bill Gates and Company a taste of its own medicine The dispute flared up when AOL began to electronically block messages from MSN members contacting AOL subscribers using Microsoft's newly launched instant messenger. This angered Microsoft officials, who piously argued that instant messa...

An avalanche of computer sales sparked by the "Free PC" promotion between America Online and South Korean-owned eMachines is banishing the ordinary seasonal lull experienced by most electronics retailers this time of the year According to Reston, Virginia-based PC Data, computer sales have climbed 35 percent because of the giveaway promotion and ot...

Amazon.com may be hemorrhaging red ink, but at the same time the growth of its customer base is exploding. Its number of registered customers grew to 10.7 million from about 3.14 million a year earlier. So despite posting a $138 million (US$) loss last week -- when it reported the results of its second quarter -- its growth strategy is still firmly in place...

Freeserve, the U.K.'s top Internet-service provider, is poised to make its debut on Wall Street today in an attempt to raise money that could be used to thwart attempts by America Online to become the dominant online player in Great Britain Its parent company, Dixons Group Plc, will reportedly sell about a fifth of Freeserve on the London and Nasda...

One thing Wall Street hates is uncertainty. So last week, when companies such as IBM and Microsoft put a damper on their spectacular earnings -- by making statements that they couldn't predict what impact Y2K would have on the rest of the year's earnings -- the stock market nose-dived Particularly hard hit was the Nasdaq, which tumbled 98 points, o...

When IBM announced its profits soared 65 percent for its second quarter, the company confirmed what most analysts already knew: "Big Blue" has regained its luster -- and then some The world's No.1 computer maker's net income for this quarter rose to $2.39 billion (US$) on revenue of $21.9 billion -- compared to $1.45 billion on revenue of $18.8 bil...