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Did hackers actually help to kill off the Websurfer company?
Did hackers actually help to kill off the Websurfer company?

New MessageDid hackers actually help to kill off the Websurfer company? (modified 0 times) Randy
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Like everybody else, I've confirmed that the phone numbers (toll-free, regular toll, and fax) no longer work for Websurfer Pro. The only thing up seems to be their web page, but it's now registered to someone who has an anonymous free "yahoo.com" email address.

That said, I'm wondering to what extent our rush on $50 units without TOS at CompUSA (their major retailer) impacted their business model. Said differently, how much of a negative impact did we have? Did they fail because very few legitimate customers signed up? Or did they fail because very few legit customers could acquire a unit after the hacker rush? Or perhaps the company went under because, without the standard 2-year Earthlink subscription kickback, they couldn't cover their costs by selling the units for $50 each...

Anybody have any thoughts, opinions, or -- even better -- actual facts they can share?

Randy

08-09-2000 06:28:31

New MessageRE:Did hackers actually help to kill off the Websurfer company? (modified 0 times) Linuxguru
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My understanding is that it was a Canadian company, registered in Toronto. Without the deep-pocketed venture funding that is found here, it is possible that they ran out of cash fast. The only thing that surprises is me that they went out quietly and quickly. No death rattle, nothing. Anyway, GCT/Allwell is still around, and so is National Semiconductors, so nothing to worry about. There's a new company called Coollogic which has picked up the platform for something similar, though at a much higher price. If they implode too, we will have more boxes to hack shortly.
08-09-2000 12:51:52

New MessageRE:Did hackers actually help to kill off the Websurfer company? (modified 0 times) spdracer5g
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I dont think that it was the hackers that did it, They went under within a few weeks of the hack and that is just not enough time for the impact of us sucking up the hardware to have killed a company. They were probably in very bad shape and figured partnering with earthlink, might help them out, and figured that if not at least if the hardware was off the shelves at compusa then that would be one less legal headache to deal with once the shutdown came. I believe that thier real problem was having thousands of units sitting on the shelves of CompUSA for 6 months without any interest at all due to the $200 price tag. Yes we probably would have killed them with our hack, but the truth is they did it themselves with bad marketing before we ever had the chance.
08-09-2000 16:25:59

New MessageRE:Did hackers actually help to kill off the Websurfer company? (modified 0 times) area51
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Just figure you cut out the middle man. You know, the guy who buys them at the auction and re-sells them on ebay. Plus you didn't have to wait for the court to allow it!
08-15-2000 19:11:06

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