New Media Age articles from November 2004

New Media Age archives from November 2004

ISPs dismiss BBC worries over foreign control of broadband.(British Broadcasting Corp. director Ashley Highfield)
November 4, 2004... Foreign-owned ISPs have defended their position in the development of the UK broadband market after the BBC's director of new media and technology, Ashley Highfield, suggested that the UK media industry would be controlled by foreign companies...

Web telephony to get major UK push.(Brief Article)
November 4, 2004... UK consumers will be bombarded over the coming year with ads for Internet telephony services. Millions of pounds have been set aside by leading firms from the US and Europe for marketing. Skype, set up by the founders of file-sharing...

SonyBMG to offer content on P2P service.(News)(peer-to-peer)
November 4, 2004... Former Grokster CEO Wayne Rosso and Shawn Fanning, the original founder of Napster, have convinced record company SonyBMG to offer content on a major new legal peer-to-peer (P2P) service. The surprise move is a huge volte face both on the...

Ann Summers to run viral ad push for Rabbit toy.(News)(Brief Article)
November 4, 2004... High street sex shop chain Ann Summers is putting the Web at the centre of a two-pronged pre-Christmas marketing blitz to drive sales of its new Platinum Rabbit toy. The shop's initial viral push centres around two rich-media online ads,...

New West End takes to Web for pre-Christmas events drive.(News)(Brief Article)
November 4, 2004... The New West End Company has shifted its marketing focus to the Web for the first time with a pre-Christmas push for special West End events, such as switching on the Christmas lights. The company, a voluntary Business Improvement District...

LVMH to take on email marketing agency.(News)(Brief Article)
November 4, 2004... Luxury goods firm LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton is set to appoint a new online agency for several of its drinks brands to increase its Web and emaii marketing activities. NMA understands three agencies have been pitching for the account,...

Coors ramps up investment in online to boost Grolsch brand.(News)(Brief Article)
November 4, 2004... Drinks manufacturer Coors plans to "significantly increase" its investment in digital marketing for its Grolsch brand next year as it eyes new communications channels such as mobile. The move comes as the advertising industry comes to terms...

BT unveils tie-ups in Christmas online gaming promotion.(News)(Brief Article)
November 4, 2004... BT is running a series of marketng initiatives this Christmas in partnership with some of the online console gaming industry's largest publishers. Among those taking part in joint marketing activities are Activision, Konami, THQ and...

DreamWorks joins with Yahoo! to run Shrek 2 DVD promotion.(News)(Brief Article)
November 4, 2004... DreamWorks Home Entertainment is using online as its key channel to promote the DVD release of summer hit Shrek 2 this week. The promotion will focus on special DVD features including a parody of Pop Idol with characters singing a range of...

Viatel launches first online ad campaign.(News)(Brief Article)
November 4, 2004... Pan-European broadband telecoms firm Viatel is launching its first ever online ad push, targeting medium-sizes UK businesses. The campaign is designed to back up the firm's direct marketing push, which has been aimed at 45,000 UK businesses...

Lycos launches Opera mobile content deal.(Breaking)(Brief Article)
November 4, 2004... Lycos.co.uk has signed a deal for mobile firm Opera Telecom to supply its portal with mobile content. It'll see Opera offer games, ringtones and mobile wallpapers through the Lycos UK mobile channel. This could expand further as the mobile...

Snapple sees 33% sales response to mobile push.(Breaking)(Brief Article)
November 4, 2004... Drinks brand Snapple's latest US mobile marketing push, called 'Snaffle', saw 33% of participants go on to buy Snapple products, reports mobile media firm Enpocket. The push saw Snapple print numbers on 225m bottle caps that the public could...

Findwhat posts Q3 profit.(Breaking)(Brief Article)
November 4, 2004... Findwhat.com, owner of search firm Espotting has posted revenues of $58.3m (31.8m [pounds sterling]) for Q3, a rise of 227% on that period last year. The results also show the completion of the acquisition of Espotting Media, which expanded...

Kids charities call for overhaul of Web policing.(Breaking)(Brief Article)
November 4, 2004... The Children's Charities Coalition for Internet Safety (CHIS), which includes NCH, NSPCC, Barnardo's and ChildLine, has joined forces with the Association of Chief Police Officers to call for a review of Web policing and sentencing. CHIS has...

Key 103 and iTagg run SMS voting competition.(Brief Article)
November 4, 2004... Manchester radio station Key 103 is using mobile services provider iTagg.com to power the voting mechanism for its new Big Brother-style competition 'Castaway'. Contestants have to spend a week on a 'desert island' in the middle of Manchester,...

Fox ties with SwapitShop to push DVD release.(Fox Home Entertainment)(Brief Article)
November 4, 2004... Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment has joined with kids auction site SwapitShop to promote the DVD release of its film Mission Without Permission. The campaign uses e-cards that have free Swapits points, which can then be redeemed on the...

JWT Specialized acquires Empower Communications.(Brief Article)
November 4, 2004... WPP-owned JWT Specialized Communications has acquired marketing and digital solutions agency Empower Communications. EC brings clients including the Metropolitan Police and ICI to JWT, which specialises in employee communications. jwt.com

Gizmondo revamps site ahead of UK launch.(Brief Article)
November 4, 2004... Handheld gaming device Gizmondo has revamped its Web site ahead of its impending UK launch. The new site is the first element of the forthcoming marketing campaign in the run-up to Christmas. It will be the access point for its music download...

Egg picks new agencies as it doubles online budget to 15m [pounds sterling].(News)(Brief Article)
November 4, 2004... Egg will more than double its online marketing spend next year to 15m [pounds sterling], after this week appointing two new agencies to what is now one of the UK's biggest online marketing budgets. The online bank has given its 30m [pounds...

Wippit signs up partners for pre-Christmas promotions.(News)(Brief Article)
November 4, 2004... Music Download service Wippit has tied up a number of new partnership deals to drive its business in the run-up to Christmas. Wippit has entered into an agreement with consumer music download publication Rip & Burn to offer its readers a 5...

Yahoo!'s Opzoomer to join Blinkx as CEO.(News)(Appointments)(Brief Article)
November 4, 2004... Search technology start-up Blinkx has hired former Yahoo! Europe chief Mark Opzoomer as CEO to help raise its profile as it prepares to expand. The US-based firm, which offers a free downloadable desktop search product, said that Opzoomer...

Queen concerts made available for digital download.(News)(Brief Article)
November 4, 2004... Rock legends Queen are monetising their back catalogue by making three concerts from the 1970s and 1980s available to download from the band's official Web site. The concerts from 1979, 1982 and 1985 are the first of a raft of concerts...

Paid search accounts for 41% of online ad spend, claims IAB.(News)
November 4, 2004... Search advertising accounted for the biggest chunk of online ad spend in the first half of 2004, rocketing to 50% more than spend on cinema advertising, according to the latest set of in-depth figures from the Interactive Advertising Bureau...

Your Party runs online survey for general election.(News)(Brief Article)
November 4, 2004... Your Party, a new online political party set up by former 365 Corporation executive Dan Thompson, has begun an online survey of its members to decide which seats to contest at the next general election. The move comes as the Internet is...

Celador links with operators for mobile Millionaire launch.(News)(Brief Article)
November 4, 2004... Broadcaster Celador is partnering with mobile operators for the pre-Christmas launch of its Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? Java game. There had been speculation earlier this year that the game would be made available through a standalone...

Flightstore targets new media with GP Capital.(Brief Article)
November 4, 2004... Flightstore has hired corporate finance house GP Capital as the latest step in its efforts to find acquisition targets in the new media sector. The company has been developing in-flight shopping and ad technology and so far has signed up six...

Sportbox.tv launches with content offer.(Entertainment & Sports Agency Group)(Brief Article)
November 4, 2004... The Entertainment & Sports Agency Group has launched a new service to integrate sports content into third-party sites. The Sportbox.tv service includes daily news bulletins, interviews, press conference coverage, training ground highlights and...

4thegame.com in retail deal with Sport-e.com.(Brief Article)
November 4, 2004... Football news site 4thegame.com is expanding into retail following a deal with Sport-e.com, part of the Littlewoods Home Shopping Group. Sport-e has become the online partner for sports footwear, clothing and equipment. The sports site, which...

SeaFrance uses Good Technology to revamp site.(Brief Article)
November 4, 2004... SeaFrance, the Dover-to-Calais ferry operator, has appointed digital agency Good Technology to revamp its Web site. Due to launch next spring, the site will include an ecommerce facility enabling customers to buy tickets online, as well as...

Daimler-Chrysler revamps fleet car site.(Brief Article)
November 4, 2004... Luxury car manufacturer Daimler-Chrysler has revamped its Fleet Management car hire Web site as part of a new marketing strategy to provide services online. Business customers can select vehicles, view a variety of leasing options and get...

GetFit.com employs Digivate to boost site.(Brief Article)
November 4, 2004... Online fitness site GetFit.com has appointed Digivate to manage its online consumer marketing efforts. The London-based agency will work on a campaign that will include promotional emails, search engine optimisation, affiliate deals and...

TV industry agrees that PVRs won't threaten iTV.(Personal Video Recorder)(Interactive Television)(Brief Article)
November 4, 2004... Two-thirds of those in the broadcast industry agree that personal video recorder (PVR) technology isn't a threat to the growth of interactive IV, according to a new survey by Eckoh Technologies. However, 27% said PVRs would or might threaten...

Labour MP calls for UK to insist US changes Web gaming laws.(News)(Brief Article)
November 4, 2004... Tony Banks, the prominent Labour backbencher, has called on the Government to press the US to change its Internet gambling laws. Speaking during the debate on the Gambling Bill in the House of Commons on Monday, Banks welcomed the chance to...

IBM offers new digital media framework to rival Microsoft.(News)(Brief Article)
November 4, 2004... IBM has announced a new digital media framework that it claims will enable companies to create, manage and distribute rich-media content faster, easier and at a lower cost. The firm has teamed up with Adobe, Apple and Cisco for the...

Carling and Storm take ad space in latest PS2 game.(News)(Symbiosis Media)(Carling beer)(Storm Watches)(Brief Article)
November 4, 2004... Specialist in-game ad agency Symbiosis Media has signed up Carling beer and Storm Watches to advertise in Sony's latest release The Getaway: Black Monday. The PlayStation2 game is due out next week and will see both brands fully integrated...

Profero moves into France via alliance.(News)(Media Track)(Brief Article)
November 4, 2004... UK full service digital agency Profero is gearing up to compete more aggressively with the big media-buying networks on a pan-European level. It's signed an exclusive agreement with French agency Media Track, expanding the number of...

Informa predicts third of digital TV homes to have DVRs by 2010.(News)(Digital Video Recorders)(Brief Article)
November 4, 2004... A third of all digital TV homes worldwide will have digital video recorders installed by 2010, according to a new report from Informa Media Group. The analyst predicts there will be 120m DVRs--also known as personal video recorders...

Operators still unsure about launching 3G.(Analyst Speak)
November 4, 2004... After what seems an eternity, Europe's operators are queuing up to launch commercial 3G services. Following a spate of soft launches over the summer, which saw the likes of Vodafone and T-Mobile introduce high-speed mobile services via...

Overture.(News)(Brief Article)
November 4, 2004... www.uk.overture.com Search statistics This information represents searches carried out through September on Overture's search network, which reaches more than 80% of the UK online population *. Overture provides advertising-based...

GPRS phone figures double in second quarter.(General Packet Radio Service)(Brief Article)
November 4, 2004... The number of GPRS mobile phones in use in the UK rose by almost half in Q2 2004, according to the latest data from the Mobile Data Association (MDA). 24m handsets were active from March to June this year, claims the report, an increase of 45%...

TV firms sign up for DVD-i developers group.(Zoo Digital)(Brief Article)
November 4, 2004... Fernhart New Media and Two Way TV are among 15 firms that have signed up to a new developers' alliance for interactive DVDs. The grouping has been set up by Zoo Digital, a DVD software and games publishing firm, to help get more products to...

Hitwise claims 2m-strong household sample.(Brief Article)
November 4, 2004... Web analyst Hitwise is now using a sample of more than 2m households to compile its online audience research. Hitwise will use this sample--which it claims is the largest of its kind in the UK--to detail gender, age and lifestyle demographics...

Eyeblaster adds behavioural customer targeting to Web ads.(News)(Brief Article)
November 4, 2004... Rich-media ad technology firm Eyeblaster will offer advertisers the ability to target customers based on their behaviour through a new ad format. The behavioural ads make use of all the data that Eyeblaster collects on user interaction...

Click fraud detector launched.(News)(ClickDetective)(Brief Article)
November 4, 2004... A new service aimed at stopping 'click fraud' in search marketing has been launched in the UK by ClickDetective. The service is aimed at firms advertising on pay-per-click (PPC) networks like Overture, Google and Espotting. Click fraud...

Sendmail releases email security tool.(News)(Brief Article)
November 4, 2004... Sendmail, the email firm claiming to handle 60% of the world's email traffic, has launched a new security system. Director of product marketing JF Sullivan believes more than 70% of its customers will be using the new email system within...

Global mobile game downloads set for sixfold increase by 2010.(Technology)(Brief Article)
November 4, 2004... Global mobile gaming download revenues will increase sixfold by 2010, according to research from media research consultancy Screen Digest. Its new report suggests that the market will be worth $1bn (540m [pounds sterling]) by the end of...

Music drives sales of portable media players.(Technology)(Brief Article)
November 4, 2004... Portable digital media players sales are being driven by music and not video or games, according to a new survey from Jupiter Research. The survey, 'Portable Media Players in Europe', revealed that 27% of consumers have expressed an...

UK opts for online in home services search.(Brief Article)
November 4, 2004... Three-quarters of UK consumers prefer to carry out searches online for household service providers such as plumbers and electricians, according to Web hosting company Easily.co.uk. A survey of 1,500 people revealed that only 18% still look for...

Third of all corporate email is personal.(Email Systems)(Brief Article)
November 4, 2004... More than a third of all messages sent from company email systems are personal mail, according to email management company Email Systems. The firm monitored UK businesses' email traffic over 22 months and found that 35% of outbound mail went to...

Digital Oxygen email enables Flash platform.(Brief Article)
November 4, 2004... Online marketing technology and services company Digital Oxygen has upgraded its Flash-based video delivery platform to support email delivery. Other new features of the platform include the ability for advertisers to customise creatives...

Is the UK market ready for Voice-over-IP? Voice-over-IP has already become an accepted technology, but will UK customers be sold on the added-value services or just the possibility of making cheap phone calls?(News Analysis)
November 4, 2004... Making phone calls over the Internet known as Voice-over-IP (VoIP) seems to be coming of age at last, according to just about everyone working in the sector. It's almost become received wisdom long before it's even happened. Vonage, the...

To reach out to the masses you must talk their language.(Comment)
November 4, 2004... A couple of weeks ago iconic inventor James Dyson lashed out at marketing men, claiming they get in the way of good design. Speaking at the UK Trade & Investment's Design UK event in Tokyo, he said he stopped the Dyson marketing department from...

E-government needs to be truly representative of the people.(Woolfson On Government)
November 4, 2004... From e-voting to planning applications, job hunting to paying taxes and fines, the potential for e-government services to radically change the way citizens interact with government is well known. Research by NTL shows that virtually all...

Interactive TV ads need to focus on the idea.(Letters)(Letter to the Editor)
November 4, 2004... Coming from the world of traditional TV advertising into the interactive arena, I can't help but notice how iTV practitioners regularly confuse 'design' with 'creativity'. Understandably, as with any new technology, the focus tends to be on...

Get ready for the onset of MSN Search.(Letters)(Letter to the Editor)
November 4, 2004... Exciting times as ever in search, with MSN Search going out this Christmas with a huge awareness campaign (NMA 28.10.04). It's great news for MSN to be aggressively competing in the exploding search market. It's also good news for all search...

Keep staff sweet or face the consequences.(Letters)(Letter to the Editor)
November 4, 2004... As companies are always telling us, their employees are their most important asset and individuals in their own right. This is very true, and if employees aren't looked after properly, you'll soon find out how independent they are. Not only are...

Is the balance of power finally shifting from South to North?(Opinion)
November 4, 2004... The era that saw London as the only place to be for large advertisers and new talent in the marketing/advertising sector could be coming to an end. Times are changing. The lure of London no longer seems to hold the same appeal as it once...

Old cliches of not working with children don't hold for NSPCC.(Ad Watch)(National Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Children )
November 4, 2004... Never work with children or animals. Not a cliche you expect to apply to online creative, but one that's come to haunt me this week. Before we get there, though, here's a cliche we do expect in this game: Lichtenstein-style pop art used...

Moving forward: as head of interactive services at Sky Media, Robert Leach has pioneered interactive advertising. He tells Jonathan Webdale how technology is giving way to creativity.(Profile)(British Sky Broadcasting Group PLC. Sky Media)(Interview)
November 4, 2004... When the Territorial Army ran its first interactive TV ad campaign this summer, it represented something of a turning point for Robert Leach. Not that Sky Media's head of interactive services signed up for duty, but rather that the team he...

Revving up: triumph is shaking up its brand to appeal to a younger, modern audience, headed by a new-look Web site that builds on its reputation and heritage.(Strategic play: Triumph)
November 4, 2004... Ask your dad about the glory days of the British motorbike industry and one name he's bound to mention is Triumph. It's the only major British manufacturer still going, despite former bankruptcy worries, fierce Japanese and American...

Who are you? When picking a name for your online brand, do you stick with what you have or go for something new? Justin Hunt examines the options for choosing and changing names.(Online Branding)
November 4, 2004... In the early days of the Web, start-ups ploughed through their VC millions attempting to build new online brands from scratch. Today, with the Internet an established part of business, companies are beginning to rethink their brands online from...

Gadfly.(Financial Times )(Brief Article)
November 4, 2004... Last week, the FT may have been smirking as it implied they were a bunch of clowns (just because they took management training courses from a clown school). But a week is a long time in new media and this week the Sarf London lads and ladettes...

Draft London.(Moves)(Brief Article)
November 4, 2004... Stephen Beasley has joined digital agency Draft London as head of digital operations. He formerly worked at TBWA/GGT on accounts such as 3, Abbey and Thomas Cook. Prior to this, Beasley held the role of producer at interactive communications...

Recollective.(Moves)(Brief Article)
November 4, 2004... Interactive design consultancy Recollective has appointed Dave Rattray as head of Web development. He was previously at Saatchi & Saatchi and Saatchi's Oasis Communications as a senior developer.

Yahoo! UK & Ireland.(Moves)(Brief Article)
November 4, 2004... Yahoo! UK & Ireland has appointed Myrddin Gwynedd as entertainment editor to head its newly created entertainment division. He was previously channel editor at Internet portal Blueyonder.

Mailtrack.(Moves)(Brief Article)
November 4, 2004... Direct marketing, eCRM and data consultancy Mailtrack has opened up a Midlands office and appointed Oliver Loveridge to head it. Loveridge joins from Expedite where he was Northern sales manager.

Holler.(Moves)(Brief Article)
November 4, 2004... Digital design consultancy Holler has recruited Hana Salam as a producer and Duncan Worrall as a developer. Worrall previously worked for design consultancies SAS and Ico, and will focus on Holler's Universal Music account. Salam joins from...

JPMH.(Moves)(Brief Article)
November 4, 2004... JPMH, the FMCG online specialist, has hired Johannie Liebenberg as senior online copywriter. She joins from TBWA/Fusion SA, where she worked on through-the-line communications for Adidas, Absolut and Woolworths.

Jamkit.(Moves)(Brief Article)
November 4, 2004... Jamkit, the Web development company for the not-for-profit sector, has taken on Malcolm Cleaton as senior software developer. He joins from Cassini Division, the Web consultancy, having spent two years working on the BBC's online news site.

Web Diversity.(Moves)(Brief Article)
November 4, 2004... Search engine marketing specialist Web Diversity has taken on Simon Worsfold-Gregg as COO. He was formerly executive director of operational support development for investment bank Goldman Sachs.

OgilvyOne.(Moves)(Brief Article)
November 4, 2004... OgilvyOne has recruited two senior interactive staff. Richard Barker joins the agency as head of production, where he will lead the combined on and offline and interactive technical team. He was most recently a director at Modem Media....

EDR.(Moves)(Brief Article)
November 4, 2004... Nerissa MacDonald has been recruited by email marketing company EDR as head of agency sales. Formerly at Buongiorno, the digital marketing agency, she will develop sales and marketing strategies for email, SMS and online advertising.

CMW Interactive.(Moves)(Brief Article)
November 4, 2004... CMW Interactive, Clark McKay and Walpole's digital division, has appointed Martyn Gooding as an interactive designer. He has spent the last three years working as a freelance designer and animator in the interactive and broadcast industries....

Diary.(Brief Article)(Calendar)
November 4, 2004... Entries to claire.armitt@centaur.co.uk For a full listing go to nma.co.uk 1-6 NOVEMBER 2004 User Experience 2004 Amsterdam +31 02 0504 5714 nngroup.com/events 10 NOVEMBER 2004 The Interactive Marketing and...

Next week in NMA.(Brief Article)
November 4, 2004... Making more of media Npower has taken its core values of being 'personal' and 'forward thinking' and applied them to a revamp of its Web site Game on Christian Aid Web manager Sara Chamberlain has brought eight years' worth of...

The Pier.(Site inspection)(Brief Article)
November 4, 2004... The Pier pier.co.uk Owner: The Pier Agency: Gencon CONTENT 20/25 USABILITY 22/25 BRANDING 12/25 MONETISATION 20/25 TOTAL 74/100 This home furnishings site isn't about contemporary...

Varilux.(Site inspection)(Brief Article)
November 4, 2004... Varilux varilux.co.uk Owner: Essiler Agency: Rhythmm Communications CONTENT 20/25 USABILITY 18/25 BRANDING 23/25 MONETISATION 10/25 TOTAL 71/100 As this is a specialist optical...

Aston Martin.(Site inspection)(Brief Article)
November 4, 2004... Aston Martin astonmartin.com Owner: Aston Martin Lagonda Agency: JJ Group CONTENT 23/25 USABILITY 22/25 BRANDING 22/25 MONETISATION 0/25 TOTAL 67/100 The new site for luxury car...

Fulfilment: ba.com.(Site inspection)(Brief Article)
November 4, 2004... Site founded January 1996 Selection Flights to 550 destinations around the world. In its desire to provide for any route, it sometimes throws up crazy routings, (Sri Lanka to Oman is via a connection in Heathrow). Technical...

In with the new.(Making Money Out Of Mobile)(multimedia messaging service)
November 4, 2004... Until network operators deliver a true 3G network, the needs of MMS business users will never be addressed in a useable and profitable way. In the meantime, by focusing on the business market, network operators and handset manufacturers are...

Opening doors: attracted by the prospect of delivering premium content without operator interference, ever more brands are looking to mobile Java portals.(Making Money Out Of Mobile)
November 4, 2004... The holy grail for any content owner in the mobile content space is to build a direct relationship with consumers, one enabling them, via a branded piece of real estate on a user's handset, to deliver constantly updated premium content, without...

Mobile Flash technology.(Making Money Out Of Mobile)
November 4, 2004... Flash technology helped to revolutionise the consumer experience of the Web. Despite initial heavy-handedness, it ushered in an era of rich, user-friendly multimedia content and now promises to do the same for mobile. In fact, many believe...

The crash test: with mobile content having to work on a growing array of devices from multiple operators, testing has become ever more important.(Making Money Out Of Mobile)
November 4, 2004... As the amount of content and applications running on mobile networks increases, so too does the importance of ensuring both that network integrity is maintained and that applications function properly on a wide variety of devices. Application...

The next step: figures from across the mobile industry met recently to discuss the challenges that lie ahead for the sector and their hopes for the future.(Making Money Out Of Mobile)(Interview)
November 4, 2004... NMA: What challenges do you think the premium mobile content industry faces in the year ahead? Flynn: I see two principal challenges. One is keeping consumer trust in mobile, on the basis that if we lose that, we lose this industry. The...