MMS International Expanding Delivery; Will Broadcast Feed Directly To Customers

MMS International, which has provided real-time analysis on the U.S. debt market over Telerate Inc.'s network since 1977, has been quietly broadening its distribution.

MMS now offers equity analysis through Bridge Information Systems and Reuters Holdings PLC and distributes yen bond and U.K. gilt market analysis via Reuters.

In addition to its existing relationships with financial infor- mation vendors, MMS is developing the capability to independently deliver its economic and technical analysis services, says Richard Green, chief executive and president of MMS International.

Green told TST that MMS wants to distribute its feed to customers who are not subscribers of Telerate, Reuters or Bridge. "We want to send our information to corporate treasurers that have PCs on their desks," he says.

From a technical standpoint, it would not be difficult for MMS to transmit information to a video switch, but Green says he does not know how many trading rooms will receive MMS analysis directly.

"No one is receiving our feed [directly] on any kind of video switch system," he says. "The only way they get it is through Telerate, Reuters or a dial-up service."

MMS's contract with Telerate expires this month and the two companies are in the process of negotiating another, says John D. Jessop, executive vice president of Telerate.

Jessop says the contract allows MMS to deliver its analysis services independently but prevents the company from offering its U.S. debt market product through another vendor.

MMS and Telerate have not always seen eye to eye about where MMS may distribute information about domestic equity and foreign debt markets. Until its acquisition of CMQ Communications Inc. last year, Telerate did not provide any stock prices and therefore was not concerned about MMS offering equity analysis over Bridge and Reuters.

However, sources say Telerate has not been too happy about MMS distributing analysis on the U.K. and Japanese bond markets on the Reuter network.

Telerate subscribers have traditionally viewed MMS's real-time market analysis as a useful addition to the interdealer broker prices Telerate provides through its exclusive agreement with Cantor Fitzgerald Securities Corp.

However, observers say proposals to broaden access to U.S. Treasury prices could enhance the value of proprietary market information offered by MMS and others. "It is even possible that non-quote information, rather than the quotes themselves, could become the commercial core of the real-time information business," according to one executive, who asked to remain anonymous.

Green does not deny that wider access to interdealer broker prices will increase the importance of proprietary market information, but says that MMS has no plans to "fundamentally" alter its relationship with Telerate.

"We want to be on Telerate and we will stay on Telerate," he says. "We expect to stay on Telerate for the next decade."

Green says that MMS wants to deliver its information to as many customers as possible, but that this goal must be balanced against its long-standing relationship with Telerate.

Based in Redwood City, Calif., MMS had revenues of $19.7 million in 1987.