Inflation, Rate Fears Bruise Stocks

Once again, investors got skittish about inflation and rising interest
rates – hurting the broad markets. As for Internet shares, they were not
immune.

internet.com’s Internet Stock index plunged 19.10, or 3.26 percent, to
567.05, the Nasdaq Composite fell 43.49 to 2,872.46 and the Dow Jones
industrial average dove 231.12 to 10,417.06.

One of the few stocks to buck the downward trend was MP3.com (MPPP)
, which was up 3-1/4 to 46-7/8. The company announced a deal with
Pearson TV and Peace Arch Entertainment, as well as with Francis Ford
Coppola, to use MP3.com music content for the TV show “First Wave,” a
science fiction show.

America Online
Inc. (AOL)
was off 5 to 116-1/16. Several users have reported a bug in the new AOL version 5.0 software, which the
company knew about prior to the release. The error prevents users from
logging onto the Net. AOL also signed a deal with Universal Studios to put kiosks inside the theme parks.

Excite@Home (ATHM)
signed a deal with IBM to make Excite the default portal of the IBM
Aptiva PC line. Despite this, Excite@Home was still down 3-1/8 45-1/16.

Vitria Technology (VITR)
surged 8-7/16 to 55. A CS First Boston analyst put a “strong buy”
rating on the stock. Vitria Technology is an e-business infrastructure
software company.

As for the Net leaders, Amazon.com
Corp. (AMZN)
closed off 3-7/16 to 84-15/16, CMGI
Inc. (CMGI)
fell 5-13/16 to 103-13/16, Juniper Networks (JNPR)
tumbled 21-1/2 to 222-1/2 and Yahoo! Inc. (YHOO) closed down 7-1/2 to 173-7/8.

The big winner of the session was E.piphany Inc. (EPNY)
which soared 10-11/16 to 62-11/16. The company, whose software
analyzes customer data on the Internet, sealed a deal with Amazon.com.

Homestore.com (HOMS)
was off 2-1/4 to 45-7/8 after purchasing Homefair.com for $85 million.

Stamps.com Inc. (STMP)
leaped 2-1/2 to 35 after reaching a deal with IBM Corp. (IBM)
to put its postage software on IBM’s Aptivas.

Modem Media Poppe Tyson (MMPT)
had jumped 10-1/4 to 50 after saying third-quarter revenues will
exceed $21 million. BancBoston Robertson Stephens also reiterated its
“strong buy.”

Phone.com (PHCM)
had gained another 9-13/16 to 214-13/16. Shares continued to benefit
from Monday’s deal with Ireland’s Apion Ltd.

On the IPO front, Collectors Universe set the terms of its IPO at 4 million shares between the prices of $7-$9. The company auctions collectibles from its Web site. The lead underwriter is Needham & Co. and the proposed ticker symbol is CLCT.

ALL NEW! internet.com’s HotWatch a monthly e-mail subscription for $99,
featuring Internet Stock Report’s top 10 noteworthy Internet stocks for the month. Each month you will receive in-depth analysis on the top 10 Internet stocks to watch with the information you need to assess the fast-paced nature of Internet stocks. Staying on top of market changes in the Internet Stock market is what counts. For $99 per year, you receive 12 timely issues sent to you by e-mail. Don’t wait, our next issue will be out before you know it with a whole new perspective on the market. Sign up today at: e-newsletters