As a number of you might remember, I was critical of the firm on the basis that they never produced a business plan, and like some of you here, I implicitly suggested that we may need some new thinking in the executive suite.
On the other hand, I wrote the other day an optimistic report regarding the meeting-- the size of which reflected more my limited time and less the details of the discussion that took place. Among the questions I asked was the one about the size of the market concerning Edig's products. I knew, of course, that it was not very large and to some extent it was already almost saturated. What I liked about their answer was that the didn't try to soft pedal their answer. They admitted this much but they also said that there is room to grow substantially. The additional gadgets they equip the IFE with has two functions. One is to get far ahead of the competition. The other is to attract a partner that will sell the same product, or a similar product that they can tailor appropriately, to the final consumer. Their intention is not to market it themselves (see they have learned). They want to attract a large company well known in this market to do so. Clearly this market has a large potential.
I also asked about their business plan. The answer was that in the sort run they want to focus in the development of the new platform for the aforementioned purpose. In the long run they are looking forwards to find firms with innovative technology in allied fields that will provide Edig with more products and market penetration.
For this they need credibility that only comes with the dollars they have in the bank. I also talked to both FF and RP on something else. Particularly, about the possibility of approching Wall street bankers with the idea of finding a interested buyer. Their response was that they have thought about this issue and they feel that they are not ready to do so at this time. They need more cash and market penetration before they engage in such a move. I agreed.
Finally, as trivial as it might seems the repair business is very profitable. They mentioned in public and to me separetely that from only two airlines the current revenues amout to about $20,000 per month. Not counting new orders this revenue can increase to about $100,000 per month which is 67% of their monthly burning rate.
I really think that FF and RP are on the ball and the "soon" is almost upon us.
I hope that this answers some of the questions a number of posters asked.
