Columbia Ventures to Withold Votes for Metro One Directors.VANCOUVER, Wash. -- Columbia Ventures Corporation, the largest shareholder of Metro One Telecommunications Metro One Telecommunications, Inc. (NASDAQ:INFO) is a provider of directory assistance with call centers located in the United States. It employs 1,640 people. Corporate headquarters are located in Beaverton, Oregon. , Inc. (NASDAQ NASDAQ in full National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations U.S. market for over-the-counter securities. Established in 1971 by the National Association of Securities Dealers (NASD), NASDAQ is an automated quotation system that reports on :INFO) announced today it will withhold its votes for the election of the company's directors at Metro One's annual meeting scheduled to be held at 3:00 p.m. on Thursday June 16, 2005 at the company's headquarters in Beaverton, Oregon Beaverton is a city in Washington County, Oregon, United States, seven miles west of Portland in the Tualatin River Valley. As of May 2006, its population is estimated to be 84,270,[1] 9.1% more than the 2000 census figure of 76,129. . Columbia Ventures, which owns 3,090,000 shares or 12.31% of the outstanding common stock of Metro One, has proposed several steps to enhance shareholder value including appointing Kenneth D. Peterson, Jr. as interim Chief Executive Officer at a nominal salary of $1 per month; appointing Gary Henry, Metro One's current Chief Operating Officer Chief Operating Officer (COO) The officer of a firm responsible for day-to-day management, usually the president or an executive vice-president. , as the company's President; and selecting new, non-management directors who will be more responsive to the company's owners. "Metro One has not responded to these proposals," stated Kenneth D. Peterson, Jr., CEO (1) (Chief Executive Officer) The highest individual in command of an organization. Typically the president of the company, the CEO reports to the Chairman of the Board. of Columbia Ventures. "The company is bleeding cash at a high rate, and has been doing so for two years. The company, in spite of offering superb products, has lost several large customers and has either been unwilling or unable to restructure the business so as to live within the remaining revenues. The company has spent $70 million in advertising and marketing a product that has yet to generate any significant revenues, let alone profits," Peterson wrote to Metro One in a letter dated June 2, 2005. In that letter, Columbia Ventures offered to purchase 910,000 shares of new stock of Metro One at price of $1.10 per share to demonstrate its optimism about and commitment to its actions to enhance shareholder value. Columbia Ventures has engaged Allen Nelson & Co. to assist in its efforts. Columbia Ventures Corporation is a private investment company founded by Peterson in 1987 that today is focused principally on the international telecommunications industry. Its current portfolio companies include CTC CTC - Cornell Theory Center Communications Corporation, Hibernia Atlantic, Globalstar Australia, Globalstar LLC (Logical Link Control) See "LANs" under data link protocol. LLC - Logical Link Control and Columbia Fiber Solutions. For more information on Columbia Ventures please visit www.colventures.com |
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