1. Internet Mania. ... One of my favorite newsletters is the dailyFortune e-mail, Street Life, by Andrew Serwer. Last week, December 29, 1998, he quoted J. Evans of CNN on Internet company valuations as follows: "Amazon.com is worth more than Sears ($16.8 billion market value versus $15.8 billion market value), Ebay is worth almost as much as Alcoa ($11.9 billion versus $12.7 billion), Yahoo is worth the same as Dow Chemical (both are $24.4 billion companies). And AOL ($53.5 billion) is worth more than Merrill Lynch, Delta, Kmart, U.S. Steel, and Aetna combined! ($53.5 billion versus $25.2 billion + $7.2 billion + $6.9 billion + $2.1 billion + $11.3 billion)." ... Truly extraordinary. What are the real estate implications?

2. Yes, But. ... How has the Internet affected commercial real estate service providers? Not much, at least not yet. ... In a wonderful article in the latest issue of Fortune, January 11, 1999, (p. 159), Stewart Alsop speculates that highly fragmented, complex industries like real estate may not be "Amazoned" any time soon. According to Alsop, "I'm beginning to believe that there is a reasonable chance that the web will enhance the role of middlemen in complex markets, just as it reduces the role of middlemen in concentrated markets." ... Right on. To me the excitement about the net is not the disintermediation of real estate middlemen, but the re-mediation of the profession to take advantage of the Internet. ... And that's what I'll outline in the next Dispatch on trends to watch.

3. What Happened to My Life?... In a related vein, here's an interesting e-mail that I recently received from a Dispatch subscriber. ... "How does a one man independent practitioner, in a company of eight other agents, three of whom are partners, do all of this techie stuff, respond to clients, make deals, develop my own properties, keep my assistant directed and productive, and have a life? Is this what the 90's are all about?" ... So what advice would you give our subscriber? How do you keep your life organized? Send e-mail to me and I'll cover in future Dispatches.

4. Dispatch Goal Achieved--Thank You!... On December 31 the 6,000th subscriber signed up for the PikeNet Dispatch. Currently the actual count is 6,014. Thanks to the many subscribers that spread the word at the end of December and enabled my to reach my goal. Strange as it seems, I do feel a connection to all of you, and that's why I like to show your name at the top of the pages. ... So please keep encouraging your colleagues to sign up! Go to the PikeNet home page and click "Subscribe!" (below the logo).

5. PikeNet 99 Conference.... Mark your calendar to attend PikeNet 99 at the New York Hilton, April 29-30/May 1, 1999, "Commercial Real Estate Internet Strategies." ... It's THE place to learn about how technology is transforming commercial real estate and to meet the leading players. ... Visited the updated PikeNet 99 web site.

-- Peter Pike