First worm: As a former loggy, and seeing how Wencor is a Logistics oreinted business, I can tell you that you want to avoid having a sole source supplier. You want multiple sources for key products (components or end items) to enable more competitive pricing as well as better assurance of supply requirments being met. But, having said that, you can see that from this perspective, Wencor wouldn`t want to abandon EDIG - quite the contrary. They`d want EDIG plus someone else (umm, IMS?).

Second worm: Sometimes you can`t avoid having a sole source supplier due (typically) to IP issues. So what can you (Wencor) do about it? Seek leverage. As sole customer, you already have some leverage - for a while at least. But there is the ongoing threat that your sole supplier can come up with more customers - and in your user realm (IFE). How to increase leverage? Couple of ways.... Take an equity stake in that sole supplier - enough to influence their business decisions (a la ``Accumulation Theory``) and/or develop enough ongoing business to passify your sole supplier (why look for more customers in the same realm if you - EDIG - are already overwhelmed with business from your sole customer?). Once you have the leverage, what do you do with it? Assuming the sole source`s (EDIG`s) IP is essential to the product, you convince/pursuade them to license their tech to others, thereby creating multiple sources.

That`s just a couple of worms, just from one perspective, out of a can-full.

I addressed the ``control`` worms (some of them anyway) in my ``Accumulation Theory`` conjecture.

And careful yanking those worms out of the can, `cuz sometimes they break in two, and you create even more worms!

Bottom line: if it ain`t broke, don`t fix it. So much talk about something being broken, with little evidence that it really is (especially when it comes to portables - the digEplayer).

Obviously, there is some posturing going on re: the digEsystem. New animal with possible work-arounds to the sole source issue, the supplier cost issue, and the control issue. Wencor pursues those work-arounds; EDIG advances the portable functionality and pursues multiple customers. And why is EDIG doing this? Because, just like avoiding a sole supplier, that sole supplier desires multiple customers for similar reasons - to increase demand and command a better price (you don`t want to pay our price? We`ll just sell those units to the other guys).

So both sides are dancing the dance re: digEsystem, but, unfortunately for Wencor IMO, that dance could spell disaster re: digEplayer. Proven product, good supplier, nice profits. If EDIG starts dancing with someone else, especially someone a lot better looking with a better personality (and sense of humor?! LOL), Wencor could find themselves being the wall flower. Similarly, if Wencor starts dancing with someone else re: digEsystem, it could hurt EDIG.

Worms, worms, worms.....

As EL suggests, IMO it`s probably best for both to not rock the boat too much. With regard to the digEsystem, it may be that both EDIG and Wencor are standing up in a canoe. Rock that thing and they could find themselves both overboard, without a paddle in a smelly creek! Outside competition, beyond the control of either, is looming....

Fish like worms, but I don`t care for them (they eat dead people).

So alot of SGE-babble, only to demonstrate that there are a lot of worms in this can. Best to put `em on hooks and just go fishing together for more customers - status quo.

Does ``a deal`` have to get done? No. Status quo has worked so far, everybody`s making money (with Wencor making a wind-fall); don`t fix it!

JMHO,

SGE