Msg: 199 *Conference*

07-10-91 12:25:00

From: RICHARD HANSON

To : JOHN NEUFELDT

Subj: REPLY TO MSG #194 (BBS SAMPLING)

Excellent feedback, John.  Yes, I've heard of Prodigy and tried it once.
Prodigy has no value for me--real or perceived.  I'm not thrilled by a service
a mile wide and an inch deep.  However, my reaction is not typical for the "new
user" to online information services.  Prodigy is a money machine.  It took
vast amounts of money to push into the market but has reached its critical
mass, now, and thus receives a respectable ROI.
 
I, too, read the story of the Ma and Pa BBS.  I've known about their service
for some time, now.  No, I haven't called it, but will in the future.  It's all
part of my basic research.
 
Your closing comment, "mild long-distance phobia," helped me see something
obvious.  There, indeed, is a phobia, or fear, to calling long distance.
However, that fear goes out the window when the value received out strips the
value spent.  And, in well documented cases of excessive long distance use, the
actual charges are "totally ignored" as the user is taken in by the online
drug.  In such cases, I feel that the service providers share a social
obligation to minimise the financial impact of excessive use.  The social
responsibility of business is fast becoming the policy for businesses in the
90s.  The concept, of which, started in the 60s.  The 60s children--like
myself--are the 90s business owners and leaders.
 
-Rick-