AT&T's Eo to focus on cellular phones as market for data devices proves slow

Eo Inc, a company of AT and T, plans a new investment strategy and will market its small data communicators as 'smart cellular phones.' Less than 10,000 of the company's hand-held devices have sold, prompting Eo to devise a new strategy. The company's plan may involve new equity partners, but the majority holder will continue to be AT and T. Eo and other manufacturers, including AT and T and Apple, are finding the market resistant to hand-held data communications. Compaq is delaying the development of its device due to the quality of pen-based software used in the devices to convert handwriting to the digital form. Eo's director of customer marketing says customers are more interested in communications than a tablet-device type of product. The company's redesigned line will feature a flip-open model with a built-in phone, and the device will be priced between $1,000 and $1,500.