.

Papal - Can you explain this post?

I am sorry for being so positive on this one as that new update was out of the blue and very smelly I think. It will need a very clear results statement to make this move as CCR was not mentioned in the latest trading update and this is the retail side they were looking to get 10 million growth from this year. They did make a new statement on the trading update to show who owns what in the last section. The main thing now is if they can get some money (placing) they can tidy up and divest Seven for anywhere from 2 million to 8 million is the estimates

I posted the other day that my guess was 2-8 million however I am just a member of the public who has limited knowledge of stocks and shares. You have posted this to possibly mislead others into buying, I can see no other reason.

Same story as yesterday ?

Early selling by scared P.I's

Institutions scooping up the cheap stock

Cheers,
PM

Morning paul,
Looks like it,hope we have the last laugh on this one and see 5p one day

peteark for someone who has told their story many times and said its their final post many times and for someone who can sleep easy now they have Envesta out of their life you spend a lot of time getting it back in by reading and posting here. I hold shares in EVS and you do not and you want to forget it so why do you keep coming back and putting it in your life every day when you say you want it out of your life ? If I wanted Envesta out of my life I it would be a no go area to make sure its forgotten. To answer your question in that sentance you quote it said if and estimates and that is nothing more than if's. If they got placing money and if they tidied up the cash collection problems, if that happened then what would you estimate Seven is worth ? I know that answering that question makes you go back on the many times you said its your final post but would like to know what your estimate is.

It was a good recovery play (unless you had inside info) when the Nomad puts out a new upgraded forecast on the 9th of September, but the trading update blew that away. The trading update makes the July trading statement suspect and also the trading update is suspect in my opinion. Why no mention of CCR in this trading update ? If CCR is bad they had a chance to come clean, and if CCR is good they could show some positive, so why nothing on it at all ?

Did they want a really negative trading update ? Very strange.

Hi Paul and Capetown,

Someone has to holding the stock.

Interesting times ahead for EVS methinks .... will Google be buying EVS in a year or two to compete ????

http://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article/1291.cfm


eBay Calling Skype: Is It a Good Connection?

When online auctioneer eBay announced its intentions last week to buy Internet communications services provider Skype in a potential $4.1 billion deal that will consolidate three of the biggest Internet brands -- eBay, PayPal and Skype -- under one roof and eliminate e-commerce "friction," the questions began.


What, people are asking, is the rationale behind the acquisition, and isn't $4.1 billion a bit steep? After all, it takes some imagination to see how eBay's e-commerce activities -- auctions and payment systems -- will be combined with Skype, a Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) and PC-to-PC calling company that has signed up 54 million users globally in a little more than two years.


Under the terms of the deal, eBay will pay $2.6 billion in stock and cash plus "potential performance-based consideration" that could make the deal worth $4.1 billion over time. The acquisition of Skype is eBay's largest ever (PayPal is the second largest at $1.5 billion). With Skype, eBay gets a way to enter the voice communications business, integrate Skype with its auctions and payment systems, and deliver sales growth. Skype gets the resources to compete with rivals ranging from Google, Microsoft and Yahoo to Verizon, Vonage and SBC.


"We have evolved over the years and our goal is to grow faster than [the rate] of e-commerce," said eBay CEO Meg Whitman on a September 12 conference call with financial analysts.


While that goal sounds fine, Wharton professors are struggling to nail down the reasoning behind the deal. "I understand it from the Skype perspective," says marketing professor Xavier Dreze. "Skype gets money and more visibility. It's less clear for eBay." Business and public policy professor Gerald Faulhaber was more direct. "I don't understand it at all," he says. "I see Internet voice as a natural adjunct to IM (instant messaging). It would have made sense if Google had bought Skype, but I just don't see the synergy" in the eBay-Skype deal.


Whitman begs to differ. She sees eBay integrating Skype with its auction and payment systems to enable faster communication between buyers and sellers and allow the completion of more transactions.


Among the benefits highlighted by Whitman:


Skype is a fast-growing business that will fuel future growth for eBay properties as a stand alone business. Skype is currently adding about 150,000 users a day to its member base of 54 million in 225 countries and territories. Skype generated about $7 million in revenues in 2004, and is expected to have $60 million in revenues in 2005 and more than $200 million in 2006.

The combined networks of eBay, PayPal and Skype will cross-pollinate and create more paying users. Skype's basic service, which will remain free, will be integrated into eBay and PayPal with the possibility of additional pay services. Skype's popularity internationally will also help eBay increase its presence abroad.

Skype's video and voice communications software can be used to develop additional commissions for eBay, say through a phone lead on a real estate purchase. "Some categories don't fit with our model," says Whitman, citing new cars, travel and real estate as examples. "These markets are very interesting to us."

According to Kevin Werbach, legal studies and business ethics professor at Wharton, it would be foolish to count eBay out. "If you think eBay is a big auction house and Skype is just a phone company, then the deal doesn't make sense," he says. "Does real-time communication play a role in e-commerce? The answer is clearly yes. If that's the case, do you rely on a phone network or build a new communication platform that can be integrated with e-commerce? eBay is betting that next-generationn communications will be an important sector over the next 10 years."


Werbach acknowledges that the price tag for Skype could be viewed as high, but also notes that there "was only one VoIP company with the brand and the user adoption out there." Wharton marketing professor Barbara Kahn adds that Skype could make international transactions easier for eBay and help buyers and sellers iron out complicated transactions with real-time communications. "The argument is that the ability to talk to each other easily will help e-commerce," she says.


A Tough Sell?


Werbach predicts that eBay's acquisition of Skype will be closely watched. "Given what eBay paid, investors will expect a lot from the deal," he says. "Whitman and her team in short order will have to show some synergies." Indeed, Wall Street is closely scrutinizing the Skype acquisition. Many analysts, such as Christa Sober Quarles at Thomas Weisel Partners, note that Skype would need $1 billion in revenue with 25% operating cash flow margins to justify the price eBay paid.

Meanwhile, Quarles adds, it's not clear that Skype will hold up as a stand-alone business. "While we believe the company does have a competitive advantage by offering low-cost phone calls, we do not feel that this is a sustainable strategy to generate revenue over the long run," she writes in a research note. "For example, in the United States there are many low-cost, fixed-price phone plans from most cell phone companies, some cable providers and VoIP competitors such as Vonage."


Faulhaber agrees that Skype faces intense competition and that eBay may be overestimating the acquisitions' potential. When America Online acquired Time Warner, Faulhaber says, the deal just didn't make sense on the surface. "From a business perspective, it was a dumb merger." Likewise, he adds, the eBay and Skype deal "is an egregious example of something that doesn't make sense."

But Whitman sees no reason that having Skype in the family can't be successful. Skype is focused on one goal -- making communications easy; all the great web brands, from eBay and Yahoo to Amazon and Google, have identified a singular mission. "Focus matters," says Whitman.


For his part, Skype cofounder and CEO Niklas Zennstr says eBay provides Skype the best platform to make "talking over the Internet the most natural thing in the world." Zennstr notes that Skype's business will continue as a standalone entity and be integrated with eBay and PayPal to smooth out e-commerce delays that come with e-mail, the primary way eBay users communicate.


To understand the Skype acquisition, Werbach adds, you have to look at it from eBay's perch as an Internet giant. "It's a clash of the titans. eBay sees itself as one of the Internet's behemoths along with Google, Yahoo and Amazon. This was a preemptive strike."


Skype-fueled Commerce


The payoff from the deal -- assuming eBay is successful -- will be the ability to generate a phone call lead to land a sale. Werbach says eBay would couple contextual links -- a buyer searching for an Audi with a link to a local auto dealer, for example. That link could then launch Skype to generate a call to the auto dealer and potentially close a sale. eBay would take a commission on the phone call for the lead.


To Whitman, this "pay for call" model would help reduce "friction" in e-commerce. Say, for instance, that a buyer wanted more detail on an antique collectable or a car. With email, a response could take hours and the buyer could change her mind. With Skype, there would be instant communication to work out any concerns and cut down on the 5 million eBay email messages sent every day. "Communication is the fabric of commerce," says Whitman.


Despite her skepticism about Skype's ability to survive on its own, Quarles is receptive to the integration possibilities. "We believe that eBay's experience in advertising, e-commerce and search could be paramount in shaping Skype's future business outlook," she writes. "Specifically, we believe a lead generation model in the form of a pay-for-call model could present a compelling opportunity for Skype." She adds that Skype could increase conversion rates for sales of big ticket items such as automobiles, real estate and high-end jewelry and launch new businesses for eBay. For instance, the online auctioneer could offer financial, legal and healthcare services.


Quarles estimates that some of these services, say an eBay referral to a lawyer, could command price-per-call rates as high as $10. This capability could be integrated with a classified advertising site such as Kijiji, an international eBay site that resembles the popular Craigslist.


Yet while those possibilities are enticing, eBay's rationale for buying Skype may have a fundamental flaw, Dreze suggests. "PayPal clearly filled a hole for eBay. This deal is like eBay saying, 'Let's add the ability to talk' without asking the user base. I don't want to talk to anyone on eBay. I make my listing and want the transaction done so I don't have to worry about it." If eBay users refrain from chatting their way through transactions, Werbach speculates that Skype as a stand-alone business could fuel growth.

One big challenge for eBay will be adequately juggling its acquisitions as it tries to maintain growth. It has purchased nine companies in the last 18 months. "We believe management time and company resources could be thinned out, making execution more difficult," writes Quarles. Indeed, eBay bought Shopping.com for $634 million on August 30, just a few days before acquiring Skype.


Werbach acknowledges the challenges. For instance, Skype is a small international company that will be combined with a relatively established eBay. "Culturally, Skype is rebellious," says Werbach. "eBay is mature." That said, this merger isn't complicated like the Hewlett-Packard-Compaq combination. "Given the size of Skype, the actual integration will be easy." Indeed, integration may not even occur. Although it had a number of suitors, Skype chose eBay for the deal because of assurances that eBay would basically leave the company alone.


Despite the challenges and naysayers, the eBay and Skype integration will be interesting to watch. If eBay, PayPal and Skype users feed off each other, there could be some interesting revenue possibilities. Dreze wouldn't be surprised if eBay has a master plan that will play out, but until Whitman and her crew deliver he will reserve judgment. "I could see Skype being used for high-end auctions like they have at Sotheby's," says Dreze. "I wouldn't rule out the possibility that eBay may have another plan, but I'm still waiting. I haven't heard anything that makes me think this deal is outstanding."

Still 10% down today

i;ve emailed KJ suggest you all do but my main q was why no mention of CCR and
also sentiment await my response if not I will call him we do have power and suggest unhappyness/anger vented at company not just on bb's

Here is one to tie your brain in knots, Corporate Synergy on the trading update day of the 20th Sept reiterated the 2.0 million PBT and 0.66p EPS forecast for this year 05/06.

What is going on ?

I`m going back to lay down in a darkened room !
DB66

PP Hi,

Whats going on is the P.I's are running scared, and the institutions are buying all the stock dirt cheap .... this is easy money for them, 100% profit is pretty much guaranteed, although I bet they stick around for a massive profit .....

Cheers,
PM

Another Pauly ramp ... last one was a bit crap mate , your losing your touch.

another bad day where to now ?? could they go bust

My thoughts exactly Gordon.
DB66

Hardly likely to go bust !

No debt
Were making a profit
Lots of Institutional backing for aquisition(S)
Selling part of the business for cash
New calling cards product expected to do well
VOIP is growing fast, and EVS can capitalise by moving fast now with aquisitions.

I just received e-mail to say a results date has not been confirmed yet, but I will be informed as soon as one is set.

Cheers,
PM

Too many posts decrying the company over the past few weeks (H has been at it for some months) and seemed to have caused turbulence in the minds of many. That's why herds run.
We have braved the storm and hope people like PapalPower and others see a return on their investment.
We won't mind a loss should that happen because we are a load of stubborn ba**ards. (Although we may well be proved right.)

As always remember -

DYOR

haystack
i believe in free speech, so squelch nobody. i accept a contrary view......what sane person wouldnt? its your arrogant know it all attitude that gets up my nose. be negative by all means, but dont be negative for the sake of it.

A tale of two trading updates ....

I have merged them together, so we can see the context and changes of each part easier .... Sections titled in italics are from the latest update

===========================================================

Focus within the business has been to prepare the company for the medium and
long term strategy to remove its dependency on one market. The thrust of our
strategy is to build a retail product to complement our managed wholesale
business, build or acquire a VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) capability
then, through acquisition, move further towards a retail offering ready for a
fully converged Voice and Data world over the next few years.

Strategy
In an acceleration of the strategy originally set out in March 2005, driven by
the recent market sector moves such as ebay's purchase of Skype (the VoIP
retailer) and recent trading in our core managed wholesale business; the Company
will be moving away from its concentration on the wholesale voice business into
retail, focusing on the new era of Voice over Internet Protocol and IP.

Over the last few months the Board has been in detailed discussions with a
number of significant acquisition targets that have the requisite attributes to
contribute to Envesta's focus on Retail Voice and IP Data delivery. Upon the
successful completion of these acquisitions, the new operating companies will
work together as part of the Envesta Group, moving towards using VoIP as the
chosen platform for delivering voice to end-user customers. The presentation of
Envesta's strategy to these companies has been warmly received along with
institutional interest in investing in the acquisitions.

As part of this strategy and given the continued volatility within Seven
Telecom's managed wholesale calling card business, the Board has decided to
divest the Seven Telecom operation in order to focus on its acquisition strategy
to move into the more stable retail voice and IP space.

===========================================================

Trading

Revenue and PBT were in line with market expectations. Revenue increased by over
75% on last year, whilst absolute gross profit was more than double that of last
year. This growth, along with significant investment in the new product areas,
has however put a strain on our working capital and we will look to address this
early in the new financial year.

Current Trading Update
The competitive market position in the managed wholesale part of the Seven
Telecom business has dramatically changed, with the current market leader
growing from 8% to 60% of the 495 million pre-paid card market (Source: Schema
Market Analysis 2005) in less than 6 months (Jan 05 - Jun 05). This has been
achieved by extremely aggressive pricing and cash collection.

During the second half of the last financial period, (January to June 2005), our
sales were not adversely affected, however the cash collection cycle slowed
considerably in the last quarter. The Company's actions to secure cash
collection have however adversely impacted revenues in Q1 of the 2006 financial
year and we expect this to continue. In this competitive environment where such
major changes in market share have occurred, the Board's opinion is that the
only sustainable long term protection mechanism would be to introduce a
direct interface with the end user pre-paid retail customer, hence ensuring that
cash collection is direct and greater margin is secured. Creating this
interface is not consistent with Envesta's strategy and as such the Board
believe that Seven Telecom should be divested to an acquirer who has this
capability. In preparing Seven Telecom for divestment operating costs are being
adjusted to a level consistent with the reduced revenues.

===========================================================

Cheaper Call Rate progress report

Following the launch of www.cheapercallrate,com on 28 February 2005,
the Company now has a growing position within a UK retail market worth 460 million per
annum(1). We are particularly pleased with the level of Gross Margin achieved to
date, which is in excess of 33% and we expect the product to deliver
profitability in our current financial year.


Kevin Jauncey, Executive Chairman commented, 'I am delighted that the results
this year showed a strong return to profitability. In line with the strategy, we
continue to hold a number of acquisition discussions, which we hope to bring to
fruition in the next period. In the meantime we are well progressed in our plans
to incorporate additional VoIP capability as a vital piece in the jigsaw.'


===========================================================


Existing Managed Wholesale Business

The Managed wholesale business continues to operate in a very important part of
the UK International market-place. Our current commissioned research shows that
the market for International telecoms via a pre-paid calling card remains
significant at 495 million per annum(1). While this is an important part of the
UK market it has always been and continues to be a volatile sector. Envesta
competes in this market by continually seeking new niche opportunities.
Our strategy is not to grow this business further, but use it as a foundation
from which to move deeper into retail products thus removing our reliance on
this single market.

Equity Raising
In the announcement dated 28 July 2005 we outlined the need to raise working
capital for the current business. This process was put on hold while we
investigated interest in the Seven Telecom business. With the decision now to
divest Seven Telecom as part of the acceleration of our strategy, raising the
working capital is now underway.

In addition to the working capital required for the existing business the Group
will require investment capital for our future acquisition strategy. We expect
the capital raising(s) specifically for each major acquisition to take place
over the next 12 months. The Board anticipates that such acquisitions would be
financed by a combination of the issue of vendor shares and equity cash placing.

Hi All,

Narrowing my last post down to the relevant points below, I see both RNS as positive, and that nothing much has changed, apart from instead of just cutting back wholesale, they are going to sell it.

All the aquisitions were mentioned before, as was capital raising, as PP says the CCR is missing from the second update, so we can only assume that nothing has changed, you don't have to update things that have not changed, so that part is still expected to be profitable, with 33%+ gross margin

The drop is way overdone, because when EVS buy the 'number of significant acquisition targets' and dump the difficult wholesale part, they will be in an extremely good position, and the price will zoom back up. The institutions are backing EVS in that plan, that speaks volumes for the potential.

Sitting tight on 575,000 shares, and waiting for the above to happen ....

Cheers,
PM


July :-

Move away from volatile wholesale voice business
Move into retail
In detailed discussions for a number of significant acquisition targets
Expecting successful completion of these acquisitions
Presentation of Envesta's strategy to these companies warmly received
Institutional interest in investing in the acquisitions.

September :-
Divest the Seven Telecom operation
Focus on acquisition strategy
Move into the stable retail voice and IP space.



In July :-
Revenue and PBT were in line with market expectations
Revenue increased by over 75% on last year
Absolute gross profit was more than double that of last year
This growth has put a strain on working capital
Look to address working capital early in the new financial year.

September :-
Market position in wholesale has dramatically changed for the worse
During January to June 2005 sales were not adversely affected
Cash collection cycle on wholesale slowed considerably in the last quarter
The Company's actions adversely impacted wholesale revenues in Q1 of the 2006 financial year and will continue.
Need to ensure that cash collection is direct and greater margin is secured.
Seven Telecom should be divested to an acquirer
Seven Telecom operating costs are currently being reduced

July :-
CCR now in a growing position within a UK retail market worth 460 million per
annum
Pleased with Gross Margin which is in excess of 33%
Expect the product to deliver profitability in our current financial year.


Kevin Jauncey, Executive Chairman commented
Delighted results show a strong return to profitability
We continue to hold a number of acquisition discussions
Hope to make acquisitions in the next period.
Well progressed in plans to incorporate additional VoIP capability


July :-
Market for Wholesale Business PCC significant at 495m P.A
Wholesale Business Market continues to be a volatile sector
Strategy is not to grow this business further
Move deeper into retail products

September ;-
Equity Raising
28 July 2005 said we needed to raise working capital for the current business.
Now to divest Seven Telecom
Acceleration of our strategy
Raising the working capital is now underway

Group will require investment capital for our future acquisition strategy.
Capital raising(s) for major acquisition(s) spread over the next 12 months.
Acquisitions to be financed by issue of vendor shares and equity cash placing.

superrod
I think your complaints are misdirected. As I said before you should save your complaints for the rampers. The writing was on the wall for EVS and the rampers got in the way.