CMGI's Version of Priceline?
Internet incubator CMGI has quietly invested in a version of the reverse auction ecommerce idea that has made Priceline.com famous, by taking a 20% stake in tiny
Information Management Associates majority owned sub, buyingedge.com.
Buyingedge.com buyingedge.com launched in June imaedge.com , provides consumers and merchants with an
efficient way of conducting business over the Internet. Its personalized, secure marketplace creates a buyer centric model that benefits both consumer and merchant.
It enables registered members to submit requests for desired products to merchants who respond to the buyer and then compete for the sale.
This notice was quietly tucked into IMAA's earnings report, released Thursday evening-
"Information Management Associates, Inc. (NASDAQ:IMAA - news), a global provider of enterprise-wide customer interaction software for sales, marketing and
customer service, today announced financial results for the second quarter ended June 30, 1999. IMA also announced that its majority owned subsidiary,
buyingedge.com closed financing of $10 million with an investment group led by @Ventures, the affiliated venture capital arm of CMGI, Inc. (Nasdaq:CMGI -
news). " biz.yahoo.com
An article in Red Herring adds that CMGI's venture capital division, @Ventures' Brad Garlinghouse, says buyingedge.com's alliance with @Ventures, which owns
roughly 20 percent of Buyingedge.com's equity, could bring in traffic from CMGI's other properties. Mr. Marino adds that the site plans to add larger vendors and
more product content in the coming months, as well as relocate from Connecticut to the Silicon Valley.
By offering the service free to buyers and taking a percentage of sales from the registered vendors, Buyingedge.com hopes to attract an audience of buyers, which
will in turn attract more sellers to the site. In its first six weeks of operation, the site has registered 20,000 buyers and 4,000 vendors."
herring.com
IMAA trading near 4 - worth looking into |
