June
27, 2000
In this week's report. . .
-
Ceative
barter keeps business rolling
-
Asia4Sale.com
promotes e-commerce with China
-
Barter
advertising resolved by EITF
- Here and there.
. .
Zhone
Technologies Knows The Value of Barter. . .
Whether For Land Purchases Or Construction Worker Incentives
When
pre-IPO Zhone Technologies purchased a 14.5 acre lot from the City
of Oakland, it employed barter to close the deal, as the only sticking
point was price. Zhone's offer of $9.50 per-square-foot didn't match
the city's $12 per-square-foot price. The solution? The city accepted
100,000 stock warrants to round out the discounted cash price of $6
million, in exchange for the land.
Zhone, which expects to go public next year, also used the same barter
strategy when heavy rains and shortage of construction workers threatened
to slow work on its headquarters. Zhone jump-started the process by
adding 15,000 warrants to the normal pay rate!
Barter
Exchange Slated For China
Asia4Sale.com
Signs e-Commerce Agreement With 200,000 Member Organization
Asia4Sale.com
has signed an agreement with the 200,000 member World Chinese Merchant
Mutual Aid Union Association (www.worldsino.org) to promote e-commerce
within China. The deal includes the establishment and operation of
a barter company in China.
Making
the announcement in China, Brian Hodgson, President of Asia4Sale,
declared, "We are very pleased to be working with the association,
and strongly believe that there is a tremendous amount of trade which
can be facilitated by our joint expertise. The network of showrooms
in China established by the association, and our experience with the
Internet, plus our affiliations worldwide will greatly boost China
trade."
Hodgson
founded a barter exchange company based in Asia in early 1997 (www.barterasia.net).
Subsequently it became a part of Asia4Sale, together with home shopping
and industrial auctions.
Internet
Barter Revenue Must Be Valued At The Cash Price
The
Emerging Issues Task Force (EITF), also known as "the swat team" for
the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB)--an independent body
that does most of the SEC's guidance and rule-making dirty work--has
resolved the barter advertising question on the Internet.
This
was done because the SEC felt immediate action was needed. In short,
EITF says that an internet barter deal must be valued on a similar
advertising deal transacted within the last six months, and one that
involved actual cash. Otherwise, the company cannot book the revenue.
Here
And There. . .
- Northwest Airlines
is using scrip (a dollars-off voucher) which will be good for future
travel when passengers are temporarily missing their luggage. The
$25 voucher, along with a letter of apology, is an excellent "exchange"
in that it promotes good will. It also provides a monetary link to
the passenger holding the redeemable voucher...a value that can push
the passenger toward Northwest, rather than another airline, the next
time they travel.
- One of the leading
barter sites handling surplus inventory and excess capacity, iSolve,
has appointed Eric M. Weiss as the Chief Operating Officer of its
barter division. Prior to joining iSolve, Weiss served as Executive
VP and General Counsel of Active International, the world's largest
corporate barter company.
Working with Active International, Weiss negotiated many joint ventures
and established foreign subsidiaries. He also led Active International's
legal department and provided strategic counsel to the president and
chief executive.
- Australia's
Bartercard, www.bartercard.com.au, has just announced the acquisition
of a major competitor, IBEX (International Business Exchange). IBEX
has 2,500 members and does $50 million of barter transactions (both
sides) per year.
- Michael Touma's
Business Barter Exchange (BBX) located in Hornsby (NSW), Australia,
held their sixth Barter Expo last Wednesday. Within just over four
hours some $2.6 million in barter had been transacted! Nearly 600
members attended the event on June 21, to secure some of the great
inventories offered by the 103 member/exhibitors. A full dinner was
included in the event. BBX, www.BBX.aust.com, has over 3,000 members.
- Cyfit.com, a
personal weight loss and fitness counseling organization is bartering
with 5B Technologies Corp. (Tony Little, a well-known fitness professional
is their national spokesperson). Cyfit is developing an advanced web
site where people all over the world can customize and track their
own weight loss, fitness, and anti-aging program. 5B will receive
250,000 shares of Cyfit's common stock, plus an option to purchase
250,000 additional shares.
- Jasen Watkins,
a 27-year old from Grand Blanc, Michigan, is going to be offering
points (similar to air miles) with a twist. He's the founder of FreeTradez
and his company is offering no-commission stock trades. How will FreeTradez
make a profit? Through advertising and offering customers a Visa card
that accrues points when used. The accumulated points will be redeemable
for shares in companies!
- The Barter Group,
a family-owned trade exchange operating in Phoenix for the past 22
years, held their second annual Casino Night and raised more than
$5,500 in barter dollars for Tumbleweed Center for Youth Development.
(Tumbleweed has been helping troubled teens in the Phoenix community
since 1975.)
The members-only event was held April 21 at the Tovrea Mansion and
included gourmet food and drinks, gaming tables, and a live auction.
Trade dollars raised at last year's event were used to repair the
air conditioner and plumbing at their Boy's House, and for the design
and print cost of their annual report. The Barter Group has recently
affiliated with Redwood Shores (CA)-based BigVine, an online barter
marketplace.
- Manitoba's Kurt
Refrick, a BarterNet affiliate, recently spent two days touring Western
Manitoba. He talked with agricultural producers and processors to
assess the potential for agribarter.
- Announcement:
The yearly review for the administrator and technical support for
the International Reciprocal Trade Association (IRTA) Universal Currency
program will be up for renewal. If you would like to submit a proposal,
contact IRTA at (312) 461-0236.
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