Focused on finding emerging long-term trends, ChangeWave Investing is one of the most consistently exciting services around. Here's a sample, as editor Tobin Smith looks at a pair of leading edge firms, on involved in satellite radio, the other in digital radiology.
"Sirius Satellite Radio (SIRI NASDAQ) is one of two companies that seek to bring more than 100 channels of satellite radio programming to autos and trucks. In a service reminiscent of cable TV, this diverse, crystal-clear radio programming is available to drivers for a monthly fee. Sirius plans to launch several new channels on Sept. 29 that will include new music formats as well as talk/entertainment channels. The new channel lineup will include Howard Stern, as well as Martha Stewart Living Radio.
"Meanwhile, Sprint Nextel wireless customers will be the first to enjoy Sirius Satellite Radio's paid radio service on their wireless phones. Sprint Nextel plans to have a music download service in place by the end of the year that will allow users to download entire songs straight to their wireless phones using its wireless network. Sirius also announced an exclusive relationship with BMW through August 2008, in which all BMW models will be available with factory-installed Sirius satellite radios. Overall, the stock is now gaining speed toward our $12 price target- the news will continue to get better and better as their new products hit the street and more and more people add Sirius to their home as well as car.
"Merge Technologies (MRGE NASDAQ) is in the business of integrating digital radiology images and information into healthcare enterprise networks. It delivers its product to healthcare facilities of all sizes, but it specifically targets small to medium-sized hospitals, multi-hospital groups, clinics and diagnostic imaging centers. The firm recently announced the launch of I-Conference, an easy-to-use medical presentation software application. I-Conference is a dynamic medical presentation application that runs on a standard PC and streamlines many of the tedious and time-consuming steps involved in presentation preparation for medical professionals involved in patient care and education.
"The firm also launched Baby Explorer, a 3-D fetal imaging software application. Running on a standard PC, Baby Explorer cost-effectively enables technologists to easily generate 3-D fetal images from 2-D clips. It is used to ensure the proper growth of the fetus and to investigate potential abnormalities. Merge will also be showcasing its I-ReadMammo, a multi-modality breast imaging workstation, to attendees at the 2005 Breast Imaging Conference this week. The product presents a number of advantages over other clinically available products; from exceptional image quality, to integrated CAD support and mammo-specific functionality."
