BusinessWeek: January 10, 2000

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 BusinessWeek Investor -- Inside Wall Street

Talk City Is Buzzing

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Talk City Is Buzzing

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Talk City is, well, talking fast and growing rapidly. A provider of interactive services such as online conferences, Talk City's customers include Microsoft (its biggest), American Express, IBM, and Hewlett-Packard. So-called chat services, which include hosting live events and online meetings, have become an essential management tool for companies communicating and interacting with customers in real time.

Talk City (TCTY) is "an undiscovered and undervalued stock in the crowded Internet world," says money manager Kai-Teh Tao of Watson Investment Partners, which has been accumulating shares. The stock has been on fire since November, when it started heating up from 7 a share, to hit 23 by Dec. 28. Tao, who is primarily a value investor, sees Talk City as a "compelling" value and growth play. "It's still unusually underpriced relative to its peers, although it has been gaining market share fast," says Tao, who thinks the stock is worth 40. According to Media Metrix, visitors to Talk City's sites jumped in November to 2.9 million from 2.2 million in October. Its network partners, such as AltaVista and NBC, outsource their chat and related services to Talk City.

Another big Talk City believer is Brian Oakes, an analyst at Lehman Brothers, which took the company public in July at 12 a share. As one of the largest outsource providers of moderated chat on the Web, Talk City is a "hidden gem," Oakes says. He expects revenues to jump from $7 million in 1999 to $22 million in 2000 because of expanded services and robust growth in usage.

Talk City will increase its research services with its expected acquisition of Research Connections, a leader in Web-based market research technologies. It will then be able to provide primary research and analysis of the Net's growing consumer base. Research Connections' current clients include Fidelity Investments, Intel, Microsoft, and AT&T.

By Gene G. Marcial

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