As soon as the option expires, whatever good thing you thought will happen happens. You're paying taxes on options. With stocks, you're not paying taxes until you sell them. Before, a company listed could list its options at just one exchange. Now, options may be listed at all five options exchanges.
Options lends itself to technology and trading.
The Pacific Exchange opened 25 years ago with 500,000 contracts in its first year. Now, the volume hits 500,000 a day. The SEC and the exchanges are still tiptoeing through new regulations designed to protect investors and promote competition between the Chicago Board of Exchange, the Pacific Exchange, the Philadelphia Stock Exchange, the American Stock Exchange and the International Securities Exchange. This should be in place in six to 18 months following SEC approval of the change in July 2000. The move means someone will be able to buy an option at the Chicago exchange through Philadelphia, for example.