Path: utzoo!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rutgers!cs.utexas.edu!rice!uupsi!schoff
From: schoff@uu.psi.com (Martin Schoffstall)
Newsgroups: comp.mail.uucp
Subject: Re: New rules for UUPSI
Message-ID: <1991Mar8.145837.5079@uu.psi.com>
Date: 8 Mar 91 14:58:37 GMT
References: <1CE00001.abkx86@tbomb.ice.com>
Organization: Performance Systems International, Inc.
Lines: 44

Actually Tim,

It turns out that neither message you refer to was a press game
(that is why they are so rough), they were private correpondence
to our customers talking about upcoming issues.  We've had a pretty
strong tradition in our users group of talking straight, and in
ADVANCE of taking action.  Our group's experience of the last 5-6 years
is that what we say generates questions which have to be answered
and our statements have to be clarified, on occassion we have to
retract.

Our customers have historically included the people that invented
important segments of the "information technology", or created
and maintained implementations of it.  Take a look at the customer
list and you can see that.  In general we think that our customers
are VERY smart, in fact about 75% of the service products that
we sell were defined by them.

We can turn these facits into press/marketing games, they will become
very smooth and undoubtedly contentless.

We understand that these issues can in the short term cause anxiety
(until the dialgue is done, we hope); however, strategically we think
this is workable, at least if it remains private, and the "cyber terrorists"
don't participate :-)  (that is a smiley face).

But your point is taken.

Marty
>
>Second, I think PSI has been playing the press game a little rough.
>Their recent announcement concerning Telebit modems is yet another
>example. The fact is the announcement came across more as "We are
>abandoning Telebits" than as "We are embracing V.32". Now this new
>announcement comes along and it sounds like PSI is cutting off a service
>already negotiated and paid for. NOT TRUE. But, again PSI did not
>put themselves in the shoes of USENET readers and make it very clear
>that the "full service" was still there, just that the "bargain service"
>was not intended for forwarding and that the *existing* rule would
>be "encouraged".
>
>I strongly encourage PSI to be more careful in their reviews of their
>announcements, as this community is neither stupid nor ill-informed!
>We READ your announcements *and* ANALYZE them.