Earlier this year, after he downgraded his rating on Digital River, a provider of electronic commerce services, the company retaliated, demanding that his firm drop its research coverage. ...But his final reports gave explicit warnings to investors that rising competition in the company's biggest business - distribution of antivirus software - could hamper Digital River's growth. ...First, Internet service providers were starting to distribute anti-virus software directly to their customers, cutting out middlemen like Digital River. ..."Given Microsoft's obvious market penetration, we believe any security services offering could dramatically disrupt the market for third-party antivirus and related services offerings," Mr. Meier wrote last January in a report downgrading Digital River to a "sell." ..."Fairly major market forces are in progress that we don't have a lot of influence on," said Joel Ronning, Digital River's chief executive, in the Wednesday call. ...Reached at his office last week after the company's disclosure, Mr. Meier said: "I cannot comment on Digital River. ...None were related to the analyst's core argument that increased competition in Digital River's antivirus business would cut into its incendiary growth rates. Instead, the errors related to options grants made to Digital River executives and directors, confusion about the nature and date of a filing the company made with the Securities and Exchange Commission and a reference to the chief executive's stock holdings. Mr. Meier apologized for the errors and corrected them in a research report published about two weeks later. But that was not enough for Digital River; it demanded that Mr. Meier and his firm stop researching the company.... "They issued the retraction and agreed that they would drop coverage and requested at that time that we not pursue legal action. ...On March 15, Mr. Meier wrote his last research report on Digital River, reiterating his sell recommendation. You are subscribed as roessler@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx To manage your subscription, go to http://v2.listbox.com/member/?listname=ip Archives at: http://www.interesting-people.org/archives/interesting-people/ |