From the "Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery" file:
Super chat site to be built - "Turnkey Community Solution" will be offered to ISP's and RBOC's.......Instant Community?
My question: Can you take the most popular ride out of an amusement park, plunk it down across town, and still draw a crowd?
<< ChatVillage to Integrate Major Web Sites
into User-Friendly Network of Communities
NEW YORK, Dec. 23 /PRNewswire/ -- Leading Internet innovators iVillage and
ichat today signed an agreement to build the ChatVillage Network, the next-
generation Web-based community network. Based on iVillage's expertise in
developing online communities and ichat's premier chat technology, the
ChatVillage Network will aggregate popular community brands on a user-friendly
communications platform. The ChatVillage Network uniquely enables users to
create and lead their own chats, while automatically reaching others with
similar interests across the entire network. Incorporating chat, targeted
advertising, and future community tools across diverse online brands, the
ChatVillage Network establishes a new business model for generating revenue on
the Web.
"While creating our core brands, we've learned that community starts when
members begin to add their own touch," remarked Candice Carpenter, CEO of
iVillage. "But up until now, there hasn't been a technology that helps
facilitate this experience in an organized, useful way. The ChatVillage
Network will also let us provide advertisers with the most targeted direct-to-
consumer venues to date on the Net."
"Chat is the cornerstone of building a strong community -- especially with
the right user interface," commented Andrew Busey, Founder and Chairman of
ichat. "We're delighted to work with experts in community building like
iVillage. Together, for the ChatVillage Network we've created a robust and
seamless interactive community that's built to work the way real people
interact."
On every screen in the overall ChatVillage Network, a "recommendation"
window will prompt users with direct links to conversations that meet their
specific interests. Members of the ChatVillage Network can use this window to
find or create chat rooms, polls and reviews from the Network's communities,
including iVillage's flagship sites -- Parent Soup, About Work, and Vices &
Virtues. The ChatVillage Network is affiliating with other popular brands to
enrich the Network with communities of interest ranging from sports fans to
music lovers to seniors. Network affiliates will benefit from increased
traffic, improved user experience and splits of advertising revenue.
The ChatVillage Network is positioned to meet the needs and interests of
advertisers on the Web. Using the strengths and experiences of iVillage and
ichat, the ChatVillage Network sets a new standard for advertising and
merchandising opportunities by customizing ads for individuals, based on "user
profiles" over an entire network. This customized advertising will be
displayed and continuously updated while users are engaged in online
conversations.
"This Network gives everyone we work with -- users, developers and
advertisers -- a solution that meets their needs," commented Carpenter.
"Community was already popular on the Internet, and now with the ChatVillage
Network, it will be branded, accessible and profitable."
iVillage and ichat are delivering this turn-key "community solution" to
premier Internet Service Providers (ISPs), telecommunications companies, and
search engines. These "distribution partners" will participate in the
revenues generated through traffic flow.
iVillage
iVillage's goal is to humanize cyberspace by building targeted communities
online, alive with discussion and shaped by the very topics participants are
most passionate about. Most recently, iVillage launched About Work
(http://www.aboutwork.com and AOL keyword: About Work), a community for anyone
who's ever worked, works now, or is thinking about working in the future.
ichat
Founded by Andrew Busey in 1995, ichat is the established leader in the
growing Web chat market, enabling organizations to build community via real-
time, Internet communications. ichat delivers an integrated, scaleable chat
server and feature-rich user interface, available from the company's Web page
at www.ichat.com. Both products integrate seamlessly with Web browsers to
bring together real-time chat and HTML within a single window. ichat's
partnerships with premier Internet technology innovators such as Progressive
Networks, I/PRO and NetGravity, integrates chat with best-of-breed audio and
advertising support to create an interactive communications medium that meets
the needs and interests of end users, Web site developers, and advertisers.
CO: ichat; iVillage
ST: New York
IN: MLM
SU:
Brian |
