WongNet at your service

WE?RE picking up steam towards the launch of WongNet, our own Internet service provider (ISP)!

While I was initially against the idea, Gary?s enthusiasm has infected me, and I?m right behind it. Indeed, looking at the press this week, even our deadly rivals at Lombardo plc are behind our brave plan.

?With WongCorp?s record for reliability, the reputation of its customer service operation and its ideas on profitability, I?m sure WongNet will fit right in with the UK?s ISP community,? said the Lombardo spokesman.

Usually he doesn?t have a good word to say about us!

Step one has been to decide on the IT resources we will give to WongNet.

Luckily, I have experience of the demands of web hosting after we accidentally found that our telesales department was hosting ?Busty Teen Midlands Misses? as a favour for a local councillor last year. (I objected very strongly at the time, but before we could deal with the culprit the board was distracted by a surprise order of 5,000 Wong IVs for local schools). Which left the difficult issue of pricing.

Gary was all in favour of giving each of our users #10 per month to stay with us.

Gary calls it Internet marketing. ?Not only is this the economics of the 21st century, it?s cheaper than charging people and employing bailiffs to collect the subscriptions,? he said.

?But we?ll never make a profit,? said the financial director.

?Well we certainly won?t with that attitude,? said Gary.

Eventually we settled on giving the service away free. Focus groups indicate that our target market particularly values incentives such as amusingly-shaped lollipops and mousemats, so we will use those as introductory offers.

This is especially handy as we have 250,000 spare WongCorp lollipops in a warehouse just outside Wolverhampton, following an unfortunate calculation error on my part at this year?s Business Incentive Show.

I?m particularly looking forward to seeing the look on the face of the IT director of Lombardo plc when we launch WongNet next month, especially following the high-profile failure of The Lombardo Network, which so far has collected only half a million subscribers.

It?s not surprising they choose to knock us in the computer press with half truths: I even had an encouraging call from a prospective customer on the subject.

?It?s not true what they?re saying about WongNet,? he said. ?I?ve seen your prices, so I know you ?can? give it away.?