ISRAEL 
HIGH-TECH & INVESTMENT REPORT

from the June 2000 issue


"Cool People in the Hot Desert"


"Last month hi-tech executives, venture capitalists, investment bankers, managers of investment funds, heads of financial institutions, start-up entrepreneurs, managers of foreign companies considering partnerships with Israeli companies, and partners of leading law and accounting firms, mingled at the Burda Center for Innovative Communications at Ben Gurion University. They participated in a conference appropriately named - "Cool People in the Hot Desert". They had an opportunity to interact with a selected group of top "new and old media", technological, publishing, business and academic experts all working in the field of information and Internet, either in research or applications. The impact of modern communications and Internet on fields such as business, media, politics, medicine, education and technology was addressed from various of points of view.

The Burda Center for Innovative Communications was established under the sponsorship by Dr. Hubert Burda - Chairman, Hubert Burda Media Holding, one of the most powerful and innovative enterprises in Germany. The company employs 4,400 and has annual sales of more than DM 2.0 billion. It specializes in publishing, printing and new media. The news magazine Focus, founded by Dr. Burda in 1993, broke a monopoly position held by Der Spiegel for four decades and today boasts 5.8 million readers.

Dr.Burda, 60, has undertaken a very active role in promoting good relations between Germans and Jews. At the conference Dr. Burda noted that for Europe the Middle East has a role to play and Israel is central to it. He stressed that creativity and vision are key issues in building great businesses.

Dr.Avishay Braverman - President, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev in a keynote presentation entitled the "New Media and Social Transition" stressed the importance of ethical considerations in all areas of the new media. The visionary President of BGU pointed out that he expects in the near future to see the operation of the express train service linking Beersheba and Tel-Aviv in 50 minutes. He also pointed out that the recently granted approval for the operation of civilian flights at the nearby Nevatim Airport, would allow for the rapid development of a high-tech industrial park, adjacent to the University.

"It would be the final realization of the dream to make the Negev a center of high-technology", declared Ben-Gurion University's President. Mr. Shimon Peres - Minister of Regional Cooperation, in his address stressed the role of "speed" in the modern world whereby information about political events due to its rapid transfer impacted immediate behavior. Mr. Peres Israel's leading statesman in recent years, has devoted extensive energies to Promoting the Peres Peace Center since 1997. The Center's aim is to advance Arab-Israeli joint ventures.

Dr. Yosi Vardi, chairman of International Technologies, and a founder of ICQ, which connects up individuals when on line, stressed that the forces driving world innovation . "Instead of a handful of people with considerable influence today millions of young people dictate innovation".

CRITICS of the dot.coms
"There are many challenges as new technologies bring along with them enthusiasm which is taken to excess," stated the Rt Hon Lord David Young of Graffham - Chairman, Young Associates Ltd. . Lord Young was one of the architects of the Thatcher Era privatization surge in Britain and now heads a company specializing in making capital available for start-up companies. He pointed out that in the early 1900s in the US there were many railroads, most of whom subsequently disappeared and that this would repeat itself in the Information Technology of today.

Mr. Erich Sixt ­ Chairman of the Board and CEO, Sixt Group and one of the hosts of the conference while pointing out the need for information by venture capitalist and the investor also stressed the need for inter-connectability. Mr. Sixt in a few short years led a family car rental business from a fleet of 1,500 to 150,000 and transformed the company into Germany's number one car rental agency. The company utilizes the Internet for the renting and buying and selling of cars.

An Optimistic View and Key Issues in Business Models
"The investment environment is now more compelling due to lower valuations," stated Len Leader, president of AOL Investments since 1998. He is responsible for managing AOL's growing portfolio of investments in public and private companies. He stressed that new model is "making money". The issues at hand, he stressed, are "customer convenience for value added services, aggregate content, strong brands, multiple revenue streams, cash, the monetizing of Internet traffic, the use of a recognized brand or trusted name and the application of innovation and creativity". AOL's stock quote service, first established three years ago now attracts 245 million entries daily. AOL has already invested in a number of Israeli ventures including DealTime and e-SIM, among others. "Business models have not changed but the world has changed. It is the telecoms, Internet Service Providers, consultants and ASPs who get paid for services and they should be a part of an IT business model," said Dr. Franco Bernabe, former CEO of Telecom Italia and now an Internet entrepreneur.



Mr. Shimon Peres - Minister of Regional Cooperation with Dr. Hubert Burda - Chairman, Hubert Burda Media Holding at the Conference

Reprinted from the Israel High-Tech & Investment Report June 2000

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