NEW YORK-By the tenor of their top executives’ flirtatious banter Nov. 2, WinStar Communications Inc. appears to be an amorous suitor to a somewhat hesitant Advanced Radio Telecom Corp.
“Spectrum is a rare commodity, and the more we have the better. ART has some, and I want it,” said William J. Rouhana Jr., chairman and chief executive officer of WinStar.
“I hope your stock doesn’t go up too much tomorrow,” on takeover speculation fueled by these remarks, Rouhana said to Henry C. Hirsch, who is chairman and chief executive officer of ART.
The two men spoke at a panel discussion that was part of the Bear, Stearns & Co. Inc. “Global Competitive Telecommunications Conference.”
Earlier this year, WinStar purchased a 13 percent stake in ART.
“I’m not so sure about my stock picking ability (because) I paid $17 a share for ART, and shortly afterward the market overall dropped,” Rouhana said. “We’re having a bad quarter, as you all know.”
Rather than a momentum play for quick gains, however, WinStar’s was a strategic investment for the longer haul. “There are a lot of issues (at present) that stop us from going further,” Rouhana said.
However, he said WinStar’s modus operandi is one of gentle persuasion rather than brute force.
In response, Hirsch said, “We are delighted to have WinStar as an investor in ART. It was timely and a nice compliment.”
WinStar, headquartered in New York, is a facilities-based, fixed-wireless carrier with licenses in the 28 GHz and 38 GHz spectrum. It provides local and long-distance, high-speed data, Internet access and information services.
ART, based in Bellevue, Wash., also has 38 GHz licenses. “We chose to enter the market as an Internet service provider, but we will augment our product line to do what the customer wants,” Hirsch said. “We will solve [our] lack of voice (telecommunications) problem by year-end, and will migrate to [Internet Protocol] telephony as soon as practical.”
