New Media Age articles from February 2003

New Media Age archives from February 2003

Government gets tough over Web accessibility.(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... The Government is preparing to launch the UK's first legal crackdown on companies that fail to make their Web sites accessible to blind or partially sighted users. The Disability Rights Commission (DRC) will begin a formal investigation...

Vauxhall to run major iTV drive.(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... Vauxhall is launching its most ambitious iTV ad campaign to date this week as part of a cross-media push to boost sales at a key time of year for auto purchases. While it used iTV for the launch of its Vectra model last year, the current...

UK gambling plans at risk as Isle of Man pilot falters.(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... The UK's ambition to establish itself as an online gambling haven has been dealt a blow after several casino giants threatened to pull out of an Isle of Man pilot scheme. The UK Government had been hoping to follow the Isle of Man's lead...

Sex laws could force chat rooms into 24-hour watch.(UK's Sex Offenders Bill)(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... Radical new laws to crack down on paedophile activity on the Web have been labelled as unworkable by the UK's largest portals. The Sex Offenders Bill, which was announced in Parliament at the end of last week, will give courts the power to...

Camelot appoints partners to build iTV games platform.(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... Camelot's long-awaited iTV lottery service took a step closer to launch this week with the appointment of Sky and IBM to build a gaming service on the Sky Digital platform. Camelot told NMA last month that it had shortlisted six agencies to...

Hoegaarden to enter SMS arena.(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... Brewing giant Interbrew is taking Hoegaarden into the mobile arena with a new campaign aiming to build brand awareness. Guerrilla marketing agency BlueberryFrog has been appointed to create an international strategy for Interbrew's Belgian...

Advertising bodies clash over new mobile guidelines.(Institute of Practitioners in Advertising and Mobile Marketing Associaticn )(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... The traditional advertising industry trade association, the Institute of Practitioners in Advertising (WA), has clashed with the Mobile Marketing Associaticn over the launch of its own guidelines for mobile marketing campaigns. These...

Lynx confirms commitment to online marketing.(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... Lever Faberge's Lynx brand has reaffirmed its commitment to online marketing with its combined use of digital animation and TV to promote the pan-European launch of its new Pulse fragrance. Lynx believes in the need for a synergy between...

Sky to boost revenues with one-off iTV events.(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... Sky is looking to bolster its iTV revenue with the launch of one-off dedicated interactive services based around major public events. This month the digital TV giant has launched the first such service, an iTV portal dedicated to...

ABCe completes Real Media audit.(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... Web site traffic auditor ABC Electronic has announced that it has completed its first audit of a thirdparty ad tracking platform, Real Media's Open Advertiser platform. Real Media UK MD Tim Brown said the aim was to boost confidence in...

Fujitsu signs 10-year deal with Bolton Council. (Breaking).(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... The consulting arm of Fujitsu has signed a 10-year e-government contract with Bolton Council that will help it fulfil its obligation to move all of its local government services online. The partnership will see the launch of Internet kiosks and...

Buongiorno buys Vitaminic. (Breaking).(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... Mobile services firm Buongiorno is taking over online music site Vitaminic in an all-share deal which should be wrapped up by mid-July. The deal is dependent on the approval of their shareholders but will see Buongiorno control up to 90% of the...

Betinternet.com nears profits and looks for acquisitions. (Breaking).(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... Online bookmaker Betinternet.com is eyeing up potential acquisitions as it prepares to make its first profit this year. In results released this week, covering the half year to 1 December, the company made a pre-tax loss [pounds...

Lastminute.com in holiday tie-in with McDonalds. (Breaking).(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... Lastminute.com is set to launch one of its biggest marketing campaigns to date, a month-long promotion with McDonalds that was due to begin yesterday (5 February). It's offering a range of high-value package holidays as prizes to McDonalds...

J17 launches Valentine's text campaign with Flytxt. (In Brief).(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... Emap girls' magazine J17 is launching a Valentine's Day mobile marketing campaign. Launched by Flytxt, Emap's preferred mobile marketing agency, the campaign is being run from the magazine's SMS database of 54,000 readers. On 14 February the...

Txtstatian and Carbon launch Americas Cup SMS info service. (In Brief).(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... Mobile entertainment company Txtstation has teamed up with Carbon Partners to launch a premium SMS information service for the Americas Cup, with a range of packages. carbonpartners.co.uk txtstation.com

Fox runs text 'Daredevil' push. (In Brief).(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... 20th Century Fox has this week launched a mobile marketing campaign to support the launch of comic-book film Daredevil. The text-and-win game was developed by Aerodeon. aerodeon.com fox.com

O2 reports best quarter results. (In Brief).(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... 02 reported its best ever quarter for mobile data revenues, in the three months to December 2002. Data as a proportion of revenue grew from 15.6% to 17.7% from the last quarter. 02 reported 100,000 active users for its Java and MMS services,...

Sainshury's Bank signs promotion deal with Delia site. (In Brief).(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... Sainsbury's Bank has signed a tenancy with Deliaonline.com, promoting credit cards, loans and insurance products. Sales firm Unanimis, acting for the site, said Delia's online audience was a good fit with the customers Sainsbury's is targeting....

Orange attacked for slow payment of SMS revenues. (In Brief).(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... Mobile operator Orange has again been accused of slowing development of the premium SMS sector. One of the last operators to launch third-party reverse billing, Orange is now being held up by the sector as the most backward UK operator in...

Web confidence sparks rise in travel sales. (In Brief).(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... Leading UK travel portals say growing consumer confidence in e-commerce is a major contributor to rises they're seeing in the average value of goods booked through their sites. Sites including Thomascook.com, MyTravel and Travelocity say...

Blue Square plans offline move through Rank buy-out. (In Brief).(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... Interactive bookmaker Blue Square looks set to make its first move onto the high street following its recent takeover by leisure giant Rank. Blue Square, which is on the verge of profitability, was bought for [pounds]65m at the end of last...

Overture defends increase in minimum bid on network.(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... Search marketing firm Overture is defending itself against criticism that its move to raise the minimum bid value on its network will price SMEs out of the market. Overture has emailed advertisers to inform them that it's raising the...

American Express adds Web features to Blue credit card.(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... American Express has launched a new set of Internet applications for its Blue credit card. The ID Keeper system, released last week, stores multiple URLs, online IDs, passwords and other data on the smart chip of the card. This is...

BT cuts Brightstar stake in split from investments.(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... BT is selling most of its corporate incubator BT Brightstar in a $100m ([pounds sterling]61m) deal due to finish in March. London-based investment firm Coller Capital is providing some of the money and will take a majority stake in what...

Bango offers WAP content via SMS.(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... Mobile payment firm Bango has launched a system letting consumers access paid WAP content via SMS. Txt Trigger is intended for use in print, TV and poster ads, with Parker's Car Guides among the first clients. First, consumers send an SMS...

Classic Comedy offers free broadband clips in ad push. (In Brief).(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... BT Broadband and Classic Comedy have unveiled the first fruits of their partnership since the early stages of the BT Broadband marketing campaign. A campaign that runs for seven weeks offers visitors the chance to view a selection of free clips...

O2 warns subscribers of paid-for SMS hoax. (In Brief).(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... 02 has issued a warning to its subscribers about an SMS hoax that has begun to affect a number of its customers. The message, titled 'Nike', asks consumers to answer a sporting question to win a prize. The message costs [pounds sterling]1.50 to...

Phonestars acquires mobile rights in entertainment push. (In Brief).(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... Mobile entertainment start-up Phonestars has acquired a raft of mobile rights from artists and brands to supply interactive mobile audio content. The last month has seen the company sign up DJs including Radio 1's Fergie and Kiss FM's Tall Paul...

Hot Group buys Planet Recruit. (In Brief).(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... Recruitment services company the Hot Group has acquired general job board Planet Recruit in a share deal that values the company at [pounds sterling]3m. The company, formerly Rex Online, is now claiming to be the fifth largest supplier of...

Eposs makes new acquisition. (In Brief).(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... Mobile services firm Eposs has made its second acquisition in as many weeks after buying mobile top-up company Omega Logic. Eposs said the deal means it should sell more than [pounds sterling]500m worth of goods and services this year. Omega...

First Direct to be third bank to offer account aggregation.(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... The number of account aggregation services is set to double in the next few months as both First Direct and MoneySupermarket prepare to launch their services. Aggregation services, which have been steeped in controversy since they were...

Audit positions Premium TV as top sport network.(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... NTL sports subsidiary Premium TV is claiming it has the biggest network of sports sites on the Web after its first comprehensive audit. Premium TV -- which runs the Web sites for nearly all of the UK's lower league football clubs and some...

Home Office refutes ISP claims of high data costs.(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... The Government is on a collision course with the ISP industry after failing to defuse the row over the costs to service providers if they're forced to store the personal data of Internet users indefinitely. Last week a group of influential...

John Lewis opens online flower store.(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... Johnlewis.com this week begins an email marketing campaign to promote the launch of its online flower store in time for Valentine's Day. This is the first product category not available in John Lewis department stores to be offered online....

Diary.(Calendar)
February 6, 2003... 6 February 2003 SMS Meets TV Seminar Lisbon 0031 20 6231 530 smsmeetstv.com/overviewlis.php 6-7 February 2003 Essential Servlets/JSP London 020 8693 0354 ...

Autobytel reports first profit since launch in 1995. (Finance).(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... Autobytel has broken into profit for the first time since it was set up in 1995. The online car dealer made a $462,000 ([pounds sterling]300,00) pre-tax profit in the final quarter of last year on turnover of $20m ([pounds sterling]12.2m). Over...

Channelfly reviews position despite 25% boost in turnover. (Finance).(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... Channelfly, the online and offline music company, boosted its turnover by 25% last year to [pounds sterling]3.3m, according to results released last week. At the same time losses before interest, taxation, depreciation and goodwill charges fell...

Trafficmaster writes off [pounds sterling]61m in expectation of losses. (Finance).(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... Trafficmaster, the in-car and mobile traffic alert firm, has written off [pounds sterling]61 m from its assets in recognition of its expected future earnings potential. The company said its second-half losses for 2002 should be lower than the...

WHSmith reports online sales up by a third from last year. (Finance).(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... WHSmith's online sales have risen by a third over the past year. In the 20-week period to 18 January, sales at WHSmith Online were 33% up on the previous year, despite overall sales for the company falling 3% over the same period. Christmas...

ACT raises year's largest European technology fund.(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... ACT Venture Capital has raised [euro]170m ([pound sterling]110m) for its third venture capital fund, in what it claims is the largest technology VC fund raised in Europe over the past year. The Dublin-based VC mainly targets investments in...

Digital Look revenues up due to corporate offering.(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... Online finance site Digital Look said it's making significant headway in its new strategy of offering corporate services. The company has generated revenues of over [pounds sterling]100,000 since it began pushing its new range of services...

Danger prepares for European launch.(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... Danger, a Californian mobile device manufacturer, has raised $35m ([pounds sterling]21m) in fourth-round financing ahead of a European launch. The company has been working with T-Mobile in the US; the German firm's venture capital arm,...

Sonyand Ericsson invest [pounds sterling]196m in joint venture.(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... Sony and Ericsson have pledged a further [euro]300m ([pounds sterling]196m) to their mobile phone joint venture after it halved its losses in the past year. The money should be handed over within the next two months, with each giving...

Tamblin and Two Way TV to speed up cable iTV services.(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... Interactive TV enabler Tamblin and Two Way TV are rolling out dedicated technology that will shorten the time it takes broadcasters to launch iTV services on digital cable. The technology combines Tamblin's I-Zone TV system with Two Way...

BT to link hotels and airports into wireless broadband network.(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... BT is planning to roll out its wireless broadband services in hotels, service stations and airports. It has inked deals with Hilton Hotels, the British Airport Authority and Welcome Break which will see nearly 80 new wireless broadband...

Mobiqa in mobile barcode talks with major retailers.(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... Edinburgh-based mobile developer Mobiqa is in talks with a number of event venues and major high street retailers for adoption of its mobile barcode system. The technology enables standard barcodes to be sent to any mobile phone, allowing...

Private to roll out adult VOD service.(Private Media Group)(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... Global adult entertainment giant Private Media Group is to launch its first Web-based video-on-demand service after partnering with IP-video firm DiVXNetworks. The broadband-based VOD service which will enable customers to download adult...

TTPCom launches 3G set for standalone devices. (Technology).(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... Digital wireless communication application developer TTPCom has launched a 3G technology set which will enable vendors and handset manufacturers to develop standalone 3G devices for launch next year. TTPCom is offering radio chip designs,...

Leeds United FC ties up with Software4Sport. (Technology).(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... Software4Sport has partnered with Leeds United Football Club to provide the Premiership outfit with an online ticketing service. 'Click it to Ticket' has been launched using the firm's Talent technology. This will enable fans to enquire about...

Telecity and Fujitsu partner for IT systems agreement. (Technology).
February 6, 2003... Hosting specialist Telecity has partnered with Fujitsu to enable it to offer customers using its data centres a range of IT systems and services. The agreement will enable Telecity customers to purchase hardware and software solutions directly...

Telecom Systems launches content charging mechanism. (Technology).(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... LSE-listed communications firm Intec Telecom Systems has launched a new content charging mechanism which is designed to enable content owners and intermediaries such as portals or operators to have complete control over revenue generation for...

I-D Media creates microsite to support 'Cosmetic Surgery'. (Agencies).(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... Digital agency l-D Media has created a cosmetic surgery microsite for the Discovery Health Channel. The microsite supports Cosmetic Surgery, a 15-part series on Discovery Health Channel that follows patients before, during and after their...

New Media Industries moves into integrated offerings. (Agencies).(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... Marketing and creative services group New Media Industries has announced a move towards integrated communications in its interim results for the six months ended 31 October 2002. The agency group said there was a continued shift towards clients...

Domino Systems. (Agency Wins).(web site for BMW Williams Formula One team )(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... Professional services agency Domino Systems has been appointed by the BMW Williams Formula One team to design a new site that will be used to distribute race reports and up-to-the-minute information directly to the media. The new site will be...

Interactive consultancy Oyster Partners. (Agency Wins).(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... Interactive consultancy Oyster Partners has extended its relationship with financial services group Savills after being appointed by Savills Private Finance to design a new Web site and improve the online experience for customers. The agency...

Ogilvy restructures digital after last NoHo boss quits.(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... This week saw the end of an era at Ogilvy Interactive with the departure of Rob Mettler, the agency's director of interactive. He is the last of the management team of NoHo Digital, which became Ogilvy's interactive division in 1999. The...

De-construct wins pitch for Radio 1's youth brand.(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... Full service digital agency De-construct has set out its stall to take on traditional agencies in the youth marketing field, after winning a competitive pitch for one of the core youth initiatives from Radio 1, OneMusic. The agency won the...

Graphico designs site for Pepsi ad.(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... Digital design agency Graphico New Media has designed and built anew site for the current Pepsi TV ad starring David Beckham, which first aired last weekend. The site, pepsi-football.co.uk, features a streaming version of the new...

Fernhart doubles stake in PRShots.(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... Digital agency Fernhart New Media has doubled its stake in online publicity picture company PRShots, following a four-fold increase in the company's turnover in the last 12 months. The agency is upping its holding in the pure-play company...

Tesco courts broadband users with finance ad push.(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... Tesco Personal Finance has this week launched a major brand-awareness exercise aimed at the country's broadband users. It has spent [pounds sterling]40,000 developing the push, which will target 400,000 broadband users of Freeserve, NTL and...

BCA and Figleaves ink marketing deal.(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... Bertelsmann-owned book club BOA has signed a co-marketing deal with lingerie e-tailer Figleaves in the build-up to Valentine's Day. BCA will promote its Mango, TSP and World Books online clubs to Figleaves shoppers through a targeted email...

Saab launches e-branding and data capture campaign.(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... Car brand Saab will run a Web push this month to attract prospects and capture data for future activity. The Saab Ice Experience uses online for the bulk of the campaign, with banners, pop-ups, editorial on Guardian Unlimited and a...

Vodafone to use Unica marketing tool.(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... Mobile network Vodafone is to move towards closer integration of email, SMS and DM campaigns after a deal with marketing software firm Unica. Vodafone said Unica's Affinium tools will help it communicate with clients in a more timely and...

Paddy Power embarks on London poster campaign. (Marketing).(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... Ireland's largest bookmaker Paddy Power is launching its latest London marketing push, which will see poster ads on sites across the city. They will be posted in all major Tube and rail stations and next to several major roads. They aim to...

Personal Loan Express signs 11-month Freeserve ad deal. (Marketing).(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... The Personal Loan Express is to run a [pounds sterling]500,000 11-month ad drive on Freeserve. It'll use 'watermark' ads on Freeserve search pages, promotional boxes on the Today home page, and banners on the Money channel. This continues an...

Muller puts email at centre of cross-media campaign. (Marketing).(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... Yaghurt brand Muller will email 500,000 addresses in a [pounds sterling]350,000 Valentine's Day push. There will also be banners on FHM.com and Handbag.com. The push will use press, live events, radio and TV to drive traffic to a competition...

Betfair launches print marketing drive. (Marketing).(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... P2P betting service Betfair.com is launching a six-figure marketing campaign this week, aimed at City workers. Planned by Brand-Links, with creative from Wheelhouse Creative, it includes ads in the FT, Tube posters, ads in pub toilets and...

Deutsche Telekom plans commercial 3G German launch. (International).(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... Deutsche Telekom will launch a commercial 3G network in 200 cities and towns across Germany from Q3 2003. The firm said it expects 3G to create a "quantum leap" in mobile communications and content similar to that brought by high-speed...

Sonera and Telia reach MMS inter-connect agreement. (International).(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... More Finnish mobile phone users will be able to send MMS messages across networks from this month after the two largest Finnish operators, Sonera and Telia, reached agreement on interconnection standards. This follows the launch of...

Microsoft forced to change .Net Passport system. (International).(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... Microsoft will make "radical changes" to its .Net Passport online authentication system, under pressure from European Union data protection regulators. The software giant will introduce features to the system giving users more control over how...

Shimano revamps global sites with Day technology. (International).(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... Sports equipment manufacturer Shimano has embarked on the overhaul of all its global sites after taking on technology from content management firm Day. The first revamped Shimano site has already launched in China and the US will follow...

Yahoo! launches subscription Web radio service in the US. (International).
February 6, 2003... Yahoo! has launched a subscription Web radio service in the US. The service, named Launchcast Plus, is accessed via Yahoo!'s Launch.com music site. 50 niche channels are available for $3.99 ([pounds sterling]2.40) a month or $35.99 ([pounds...

12Snap wins German 3G mobile marketing contract.(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... Mobile marketing company l2Snap has won a multi-million-euro deal from the German government to conduct one of Europe's largest research projects into next-generation mobile marketing. The project, carried out in association with Lucent...

Aerodeon expands with Paris and Istanbul offices.(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... Mobile marketing firm Aerodeon has made its first moves overseas, opening Paris and Istanbul offices. The company also wants a partner to facilitate its move into the US. The new offices will be used to target opportunities in...

Japanese record body uses P2P site.(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... The Japanese music industry has followed the litigious lead of the US and secured a court verdict against Japan MMO's FileRogue P2P service for copyright infringement. The Recording Industry Association of Japan (RIAJ) and 19 record label...

NDS strengthens presence in China.(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... Rupert Murdoch-owned interactive TV systems developer NDS has strengthened its presence in China, striking two deais with major cable broadcasters in the space of a week. The business has been taken on by the Chongqing Broadcast and TV...

Hitwise collates league table of most visited Web sites. (Trends).(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... Internet monitoring company Hitwise has released its league tables for the top-pea-forming UK Web sites in the final quarter of 2002. Top scorers included last-minute.com in the travel agency category, Iloydstsb.co.uk in banking, and...

Ultra-wideband chips need new standards for wider use. (Trends).(according to Wireless Oracle report)(Brief Article)(Industry Overview)
February 6, 2003... The ultra-wideband (UWB) chipset market will be worth $520m ([pounds sterling]315.6m) by 2007, predicts a new report from Wireless Oracle. This translates to the shipment of 24m UWB-enabled units. Despite this, Wireless Oracle is cautious about...

Firms concerned by teleworking. (Trends).(Brief Article)
February 6, 2003... Almost 50% of companies have no way of monitoring mobile workers, finds a new survey from LogicaCMG. It also reveals that 45% of HR directors are concerned about their employees' self-discipline to work effectively while out of the office....

US to make broadband secure. (Trends).
February 6, 2003... Broadband security in the US will be widely adopted over the next few years as consumers and small business owners become aware of their vulnerability, predicts InStat/MDR. It says the broadband security market in the US will grow from $74m...

Online set to take greater share of marketing spend.
February 6, 2003... Marketing spend on new media campaigns will grow significantly this year, a new survey from communication management specialist Jaywing reveals. This supports findings from the recent IPA Bellwether Report. Jaywing's research found that 39%...

E-champions help improve government Web sites but integrity problems remain.(Web browser compatibility problems)
February 6, 2003... Over 70% of government Web sites have browser compatibility issues, according to new research from Internet performance company Keynote Systems. The research, investigating the content and technical integrity of UK government sites in...

Users most willing to open emails from travel sector.
February 6, 2003... Consumers are more likely to open emails from travel companies than from the insurance sector, new research from online marketing group IPT has found. The study, carried out over the final quarter of last year, shows that on average the...