Agency Channel: News Briefs September 2000

Posted: 09/2000

News Briefs

* Telegroup Inc., a Primus Company (www.telegroup.com), launched in August a new agent web portal,
Telegroupbiz.com, which offers ASP solutions to help agents sell Telegroup’s bundled services online. The portal offers agent-branded ASP platforms that range from small e-commerce and web hosting sites to large storefront e-commerce sites. It also will provide services for agents such as live online presentation capability, live product training, MS Exchange 2000 integration, file server backup and unified messaging.

The broadband network of Telegroup’s parent company, Primus Telecommunications Group Inc.
(www.primustel.com), will enable agents to offer Internet, e-commerce, web hosting, enhanced applications, virtual private networks
(VPNs) as well as other data and voice services through their e-commerce sites.

* Broadband services provider Winstar Communications Inc.
(www.winstar.com), made available this summer Microsoft Corp.‘s
(www.microsoft.com) Microsoft Office 2000 suite on an ASP basis. MS Office was rolled out to Winstar’s agent and VAR channels in July. Channel partners, explains Richard Rupp, Winstar’s vice president of business development, can leverage Winstar’s data centers,
"fatpipes" and management advantages to make the sale. Commissions will be based on ASP usage.

The provider also will offer Microsoft Exchange 2000 Platinum sometime later this year. Currently in beta testing, the application will be available to Winstar’s full sales force when Microsoft officially releases the product. The indirect channel will sell the MS Exchange ASP offering to convert customers from Lotus, Eudora and other e-mail applications.

* In July MicroCorp Inc. subsidiary the Agents Network
(www.agents-network.com) rolled out Network One’s bundled local and long distance solution to agents in BellSouth territory. Under its
UNE-P agreement with BellSouth Corp. (www.bellsouth.com), Network One
(www.networkone.com) is able to resale dial tone over existing BellSouth lines and bundle it with its own long-distance service. All charges are combined on a single Network One bill.

Customers can save up to 17 percent on local dial tone and get a rate of 4.9 cents per minute on long distance. Agents receive up to 10 percent commission on local service and 20 percent on long distance.

* Silverthorne Production Company, parent to agent-driven telecom provider Cognigen Corp.
(www.cognigen.com), announced in July a corporate name change, to Cognigen Networks Inc. Additionally, the company’s common stock will begin trading today on the over the counter (OTC) bulletin board under the new ticker symbol
"CGNT." Additionally, the company announced in June that it hit a milestone of 50,000 agents in its distribution channel. The Internet marketer attributes the growth to new product offerings and technology tools.